Chapter seven – Decision of mind and heart
Imported from SF2 with no description.
Kass was still sitting on the street among the ruins of the ERF building and cried. With his face pressed hard against her soft fur, he hoped, begged for a wonder or something; anything to bring his Aki back! As if all this would not be enough, suddenly a noise could be heard from the ruins and the heap of rubble in front of the boy started to move. A tall person stood out from there surrounded by a cloud of dust. Was that Nare Darks again? Will this nightmare never end? The dust was slowly settling down and the shape of the person was becoming more visible. A body of an attractive female appeared in front of the boy. It was Lash! Her clothes were ripped to bits and she had a few wounds and breathed heavy, but that was all. A lot of blood was dripping down from her long, black, metal tail. It was not her blood, because steel cannot bleed, so the only person, the blood could belong to, was Kass' father, Nare Darks.
"One Darks down... ...now's the other one on the row...and then the rest of your cursed kind!" - said the white rat while she was still breathing heavy.
Lash stepped out of the rubble and walked towards Kass. As she got closer to the boy, she slowly wagged her tail in the air from side to side and the droplets of the red liquid flew away from it and dripped down on the street into the dust. Kass heard well what the rat said, but his mind was too sunk into the grief, so in that moment, Lash’s words meant nothing to him. He just sat there by Aki without a move, even as Lash was already so close that she could reach the boy with her sharp tail!
The rat stepped backwards immediately when a wolf, white as the fresh fallen snow, stood tall in front of her and held up a well-known blade. Lash did not expect this, so as she was stepping backwards she fell down on her back in the dust. A moment later, as from nowhere, a wolf, black and beautiful as the night's starry sky appeared in front of the white one and their looks have met! The two combat knives bit into each other as the sharp blades met in an unavoidable touch. Alex and Wolf, the two legendary wolves, were now standing there and looking at each other through the crossed blades! This was what Alex dreamed about for so long, a fight against Wolf; but then he saw the young boy sitting by the little wolf and crying silently. The boy's grief was so strong, that even Alex felt his pain. It was so familiar to the black wolf, but where from?
It took him a moment, but he remembered. It was the time, when Kay was still alive! Alex once saw his young brother crying as painful as Kass, for the same reason. As Kass lost Aki, Kay lost Kathy, the human girl he was in love with. Alex felt so sorry for Kay back then, and now the same happened again to the boy. The black wolf never wanted Aki to die. The only one Alex wanted to see dead was Wolf, because of what he did to Kay. But now, this felt neither to be the right time nor the right place for his revenge. To everyone’s surprise, Alex took the knife away and turned back to Lash and helped her to stand up. The rat could not understand why was master Alex doing this, when they both were so close to their revenge! It seemed, that she was not too happy about that they were leaving, but she was hurt and very exhausted, so she was in no condition to talk back. Alex said to Wolf that they were not done yet, that he was doing this only for Aki. Wolf understood it and was very thankful to Alex for this. Then the black wolf and the rat walked away and disappeared between the ruins of the ERF.
Wuffy let out a sigh and then turned back to Kass. The boy was still sitting down on the street with Aki in his lap and was still crying. Kass looked up to Wuffy with his golden eyes filled with tears as if he would be asking the only word; why? Wuffy did not know the answer. The wolf just knelt down on one of his knees, put his long black coat around Aki’s naked body, and only a gentle smile appeared on his mouth. Kass was begging Wuffy to do something...anything that Aki would be all right, because...he can for sure, he simply must, he was one of the Shadow Wolves after all! Wuffy would give Aki his own life if it would be possible, but not even the leader of the legendary Shadow Wolves had such a power.
"There is nothing I can do to bring Aki back..." - Wuffy said to Kass and put a paw on the boy’s shoulder - "...because...there is nothing necessary."
On this, as if the world would suddenly stood still for Kass! Even his tears, which dripped down in Aki’s white fur seemed to stop in the air for a moment!
"...nothing necessary? Should this mean that...Aki is...that she's still... ...alive?" - Kass only whispered the last word, as if not to ruin the brittle hope.
At first he did not want to believe what he just heard. He just could not believe it; it was just too beautiful to be true!
This was too much for Kass’ mind. The boy was too exhausted to hold out any longer and landed with his nose where else, than in Aki’s soft white fur as he lost consciousness. The big white wolf, who stayed as the only one awake now, took the two young ones to a safe and peaceful place, which Aki called home.
It happened so much today and the adventure was still far from being over. The ERF building was history, so what will happen with COHAF now? The whole city was without the energy again, and without the ERF, there was not a big chance that this will get any better. It will come only worse; because Lash was now like torn off from a chain, as Nare Darks was not in her way anymore. Not even Wuffy knew for sure what was the rat planning, but if they will not stop her fast, the humans in this city will be lost, as the rat planned to take her revenge on every single one of their kind, not only on the Darks’ family. Mentioning Darks...
It was already a late afternoon when Kass’ golden eyes opened and he woke up in a well-known house. Kass looked around the room he was in while he sat up on the bed. Even if he was never in this room before, he was sure that he was in Wuffy’s house. As he lifted up the covers with his hand, he saw that he was sitting on the bed naked and his wounds were clean and patched up. Someone must have taken care of him, maybe Wuffy. However, the only person Kass could think on was Aki. Suddenly, he felt something long and furred under the covers next to his right leg. It remembered him on a long tail... Aki! Without to think about what he was doing, Kass instinctively followed the long tail under the covers with his hand to the owner on its other end. Then his hand touched the body the long tail belonged to. Kass was gently moving his hand up the body while softly stroking against the fur. The nice curves of the body gave away a young female, so now he had no doubts, it must be Aki, who else would it be? He quickly pulled away the covers while calling out her name. As Kass did that, both, he and the female looked at each other surprised.
"Kass, you’re all right!" - the furry said happily and threw herself around the boy’s neck.
"Kendi...claws...your claws!" - this was all, Kass could say as the kitten put him into the embrace.
He has not expected such a sincere and for all sharp greeting. Who would say that Kendi, the black cat who only this morning ran away from Kass from the fear, would be so happy to see him again. Yet, the boy was a bit disappointed. He was happy to see that Kendi was all right, especially after he left her in the city alone, but still... He hoped to find Aki by him, and it made him worry not to know what happened with her. The black cat understood that this was serious, because Kass did not even cared to ask her to turn around as he stood up from the bed still naked. It was, as if nothing else would matter anymore. He just took his clean clothes, which were ready for him by the bed and wanted to walk outside to find Aki. In that moment, the door opened and someone walked inside.
It was Jenny! She brought something to eat for Kendi, but as she saw Kass standing naked in the room, she immediately changed the tone. She really scolded him hard for this. The nudity maybe was tolerated by furs, but Kass was a human. He did not have fur to protect, keep warm, and for all to cover his body and was never meant to. Luckily, Jenny's lesson was interrupted by a loud growl. It came form Kendi's stomach as the cat was literally drooling over the fresh food. Since Wolf came back with the two young ones, the black kitten did not move from Kass’ side. She even passed the dinner, even if she has not eaten the whole day, just to be by him. Some time later, Kendi must have became so tired that she fell asleep beside the boy. The kitten was so caring to him, and the only thing he had in mind was Aki. Jenny understood that Kass loved Aki so much and that he was worried, but sometimes he could also think on the others as well. Kass knew that Jenny was right; he apologized to Kendi and said thanks to her for everything, but he still was worried. Not even Kendi’s purring, that he liked so much could cheer him up. He just wanted to know if Aki was all right. On this Jenny finally shoved mercy and told Kass where to find the little wolf. The boy quickly put on his clothes and ran outside into the garden behind the house, towards the small lake.
The sun was already setting down and the large garden was covered in the golden evening light. The glittering water surface of the lake was reflecting the rays and it looked like the whole lake would be filled with liquid gold. Only small soft waves created by the evening breeze were disturbing the water's surface. As Kass came closer to the lake, he could not believe his eyes. His heart skipped to beat as he saw her... Aki! She was turned away from him and was sitting on one of the large stones set in the lake. She looked so beautiful with her large wings risen high behind her while the evening breeze gently kissed the soft fur on her body. The rays of the sunlight were surrounding her, as if trying to put her into a hug to comfort the little wolf. Aki was looking down on her paws sunk to the ankles in the cold water, and her beautiful icy blue eyes were filled with sadness. Not even the wonderful scene of the large ball of fire setting down in the far horizon seemed to make her smile again...
The large ball of fire on the horizon suddenly appeared dark and cold to Aki against those warm golden eyes of Kass' shining in the sunlight. Now, they were looking at each other without a word, as their eyes slowly started to fill with glittering tears of happiness from seeing each other again. None of the two knew where to begin or what to say, but after the look in their eyes, both of them wanted to say the same. Aki pushed herself aside on the stone, suggesting Kass to come and sit down beside her. He approached her slowly, stepping into the cold water, and then he sat down close to her.
"I thought I have lost you..." - Kass said to her with a silent voice.
Aki knew everything from her Wuffy. He told her about the collapse of the ERF and about Darks’ death, but for all he told her about Kass and Lash. The last part was simply not leaving Aki's mind, not even now. She felt sorry for Kass' loss, even if it was Nare Darks. The little wolf knew only too well how the boy felt, as she went through the same. Kass could never forgive Nare Darks for what he did to Aki, but he never wanted him to die. He was still his father and the only family he had. Kass was now alone. He had no idea what should he do, or how he will explain all this to Niaa, but right now, that was a far future for him. They both knew that if they will not stop Lash soon, there will be no future to look forward for Kass. Aki told him, that she will not allow Lash to hurt him like the rat did to his father, but it seemed, that the boy was not pleased with what he just heard from her.
"I’ve almost lost you today and I don’t want it to happen again! We’re just kids...why it must be you who should stop the rat?" - Kass asked with a sad tone in his voice.
"...because...I don’t want to lose you either." - came the words of the little wolf as she looked up to the sky where already shined the Moon, and she put her long tail around Kass to hold him close.
Then Aki put her paw in Kass’ hand, and he squeezed it gently while looking up at the Moon as well, she understood. So, the decision was made; the two will be going after Lash, but Aki must have promised Kass to not to put herself in deadly danger again just because of him. The two hugged each other and then walked back into the house to have some rest. But, even in their beds, none of them was really resting now. Everyone in the house was worried about what happened, will happen or can happen. However, even the biggest worries slowly faded away and disappeared in the shadows of the night, and a little later, the tired eyes of our heroes closed tight.
It appeared only as a single moment for Kass and Aki since they fell asleep, but in fact the whole night passed by and the morning sun was already peeking inside their room through the window. It was already some time since Aki slept in her own room under the soft covers of her own bed. It felt really good to her to be home again. She turned her head and saw the photo she had on the night table where she was sitting on Wuffy’s shoulders and yanking his ear. A smile immediately appeared on Aki’s mouth. Back then, they were so happy and she was enjoying every moment of her life, but since then it was a long time, and Aki did not know if it can be like that again. Maybe it can, but now they had other worries.
They needed to stop Lash, because she was up to something no good. With all the power the rat now held in her paws, she could put not only humans, but everyone in whole COHAF in great danger. There was only one small problem for our heroes; to stop her they needed to find Lash first, but where? The ERF was destroyed and the city was just too big to search for the rat! The only place they could start the search was the ERF, or better what was left from it, but by now, the place was sealed off for sure and full of security. They would be risking their pelts just trying to get even close to that place.
Meanwhile, Kass and Aki got up from the bed and were already waiting with Kendi in the garden for Wuffy's return. The wolf was getting back from the city and he was bringing no good news. The whole city was in panic. All the citizens were afraid about what will happen with them and the city now, without the ERF. Not even this part of COHAF was supplied anymore, and when the remaining energy will be consumed, everything will be over.
Aki and Kass did not want to let it come that far. However, Kendi seemed not to understand too much about the whole energy crisis, because she never needed it that much in the Depth. The black kitten only knew that without the energy, Missy and all the other cubs in the medical station will not make it.
"Wait!" - Kass suddenly called out - "The medical station, that’s it!"
Aki understood, that Kass could only mean the secret lab in which they found her on the beginning, but the lab broke together creating a huge hole in the cafeteria above. The little wolf was right, but she did not get the point. Kass thought about that incident, but he meant something that happened after it, when Jenny was driving them home. Aki did not know it, because by the time she was unconscious from saving all the people in the cafeteria. Back then, Jenny and Kass were talking in the car, and by this Jenny said something now very important. In case that something would happen, the ERF was trying to move the research to some safe places like the medical station or the schools, because their thick energy infrastructures and large underground floors were perfect for that. Jenny never thought that it was real, but now everyone knew that it real was and they also knew which school they were talking about. There was only one school connected to the same energy line as the medical station.
As Wuffy finally came home and walked into the garden, all three turned to him calling out that they found out that Lash should be hiding in...
"...your school's underground." - said the big white wolf.
At first, the young ones were surprised how could he knew, but then they realized who they were talking with. Wuffy knew this all the time, but he was impressed that they have figured it out all by themselves. Still, he did not seem too happy that they wanted to go with him after the rat. This will be dangerous, especially for Kass as he was the main target, but then Wuffy remembered what happened the last time when he let them home. If they will come with him, he can at least keep a watchful eye on them.
Then, few minutes and one breakfast later, almost everything was ready for them to go, only Wuffy went back into the house for something. After a short while he walked out with a small white box in his paws and as he handed it to Aki, everyone was wondering what was inside. Aki took it slowly from Wuffy’s paw and as she wanted to open it, the big wolf gently held her paws to not to do it. He told her, that she should open it only when all this will be over. The words sounded reassuring, as if everything was going to end well, but it also made Aki a bit worried. If she should open the box only in the end, then why was he giving it to her now and not then? Aki stood there with the small white box in her paws sunk in her thoughts. For some reason, she could not take her eyes away from it. Only as Kendi took Aki’s arm and started to pull her away, that they must go, Aki came back to reality and followed the black kitten close behind.
Our heroes needed to walk to the ERF, as they had no idea where precisely the hidden entrance was. This made things a bit difficult. Searching the whole school after the entrance to the rat’s underground lab would take too long; and unlike in the medical station, this time they had no lead. There was also no logical reason for Lash to use the school entrance anyway, so there must have been another entrance somewhere in the ruins of the ERF.
In the meantime, as they walked through the city, our heroes were talking among themselves to pass the time. Since Kass saw Aki by the lake, he wanted to know how could it be, that she recovered so fast from what happened to them, not to mention to survive it! He still felt every wound on his body even when he was well rested from the night. Aki only smiled at this. No wonder the boy was well rested, when he spent the whole night laying beside her with his nose buried deep in her warm fluffy fur. Kass blushed hard on this as everyone laughed at Aki’s cute comment. Still, the boy was not the only one who wanted to know how Aki survived, so Wuffy explained it to them. As they already knew, the device was absorbing warmth and transforming it into energy, so as long as Aki’s body will produce warmth as long will the device work. Kass stepped into this and said that by the time Aki’s body was as cold as ice, so there was no more warmth the device could absorb! Whatever Wuffy did to Aki, the little wolf was more than thankful for that. Suddenly, Wuffy’s expression changed and he looked away, as if he could not look into Aki’s eyes for some reason.
"If only you would know the truth..." - thought the wolf.
Then, Wuffy took a deep breath and continued with the explanation. He said that Aki made it because of the needle that was stuck in her chest. As Kass remembered, that thing was gloving hot, so the device had more than enough heat to keep her alive. She just needed to recover, what was not a problem in Wuffy’s loveful care. Even so, they really had a great luck that they have survived, and Wuffy feared that they might not be as lucky again.
On this Kass turned to Kendi and put her into a big hug to thank her. All the others seemed confused by this, especially Kendi. Thanking for what, she did not do anything, did she? Yesterday, after the chasing with the security, Kass tapped the black cat on the paw for luck and it really worked, because all three of them were together again safe and sound. The white wolves smiled as Kass said this, because a bunny paw brings luck, not a black cat paw. What, and hey tell him this only now? Kass called out shocked and all four of them laughed together on this. Even someone as smart as Kass sometimes does not knows even such a seemingly basic thing; but it were moments like these when they felt to be closer to each other. This was what was bringing the two sides closer together, sharing thoughts and stories with each other and bringing others to smile.
A moment later, our heroes could already see the ERF building complex, and from now on, they will not have many things to laugh on, that was for sure.
As they walked closer, they could see that all windows on the surrounding buildings were smashed; so strong was the explosion in the lab! As the main building collapsed, even the street broke under the weight of the ruins. Our heroes knew that there must be another entrance to the secret lab somewhere around here; they just needed to find it! Aki was the only one who knew the ERF interior a bit when she was searching for Kendi when they were caught the first time. Unfortunately, she has not seen anything that could lead to an underground secret lab. The only thing that led deeper underground was just a small corridor, which led away from the recycling room. This made Wuffy thinking, but they had no time for doubts, because a lot of security was walking around and guarding the place, so they must hurry. Thanks to the broken street, they had easy access to the underground floors of the ERF and after Aki silently flew them down one after another, they could already see the recycling room. Everything looked pretty damaged and it was dark in there too, it looked almost like in the Depth. They needed to be careful, because everything could easily collapse down on their heads any moment. As they found the entrance to the corridor, they must have realized that it was locked. There were again the massive steel doors with the key-card lock and the number keyboard like in the medical station. Now they knew that they were on the right place, but they could not open the door without a key-card and the proper code. Aki and the others knew that there was only one way to get inside, even if they will be risking their lives by this, but that was nothing new to them.
Aki spread her legs and bent forward in front of the door for better stability. She was now touching the ground with all four of her paws and her long tail was raised high in the air. As Kass and Kendi saw this, they immediately got closer to Wuffy for cover, because they knew well what was Aki able to do with that strong tail. She wagged it slowly in the air to get ready, and then... Wham! The massive steel door twisted like a can!
Everyone remembered how clumsy Aki was with the long tail on the beginning. She was hitting everything with it just by walking, so she must always held it in her paws and say to herself to stay calm to not to wag that thing as she usually did. Like the morning by Jenny, when she smashed the night table only centimeters away from Kass’ head! Now, only few days later, Aki was moving her long tail as she would be born with it! Not even the steel door could stand a chance and got damaged! Unfortunately, it stayed not just by the door, because the whole underground floor started to collapse from the blow. Everything was breaking together and falling down, right on top of them! The massive steel door was twisted, but still not fully opened, so Wuffy gave it a push and waved his paw to the young ones to get inside quickly. They have made it in last moment before the entrance broke together and blocked the way behind them. So now, there was only one way to go, and that was forward.
The tunnel was leading them deeper and deeper in the underground and it seemed to them as if it would go on forever. Finally, they reached the end and our heroes found themselves in a large dark room. This was it; this room was leading to the secret lab. They just wanted to continue, when something shiny caught Kendi’s attention. It was a golden jingle that laid on the floor and as Kendi picked it up, she wanted to know what it was for. Kass told her that it is a habit by furries to wear such a jingles for fashion, or attitude, but he did not know for sure. Even Niaa, his snow leopardess, was wearing such a thing on the ID collar on her neck, but what was a jingle doing down there he had no idea. Lash and Alex would never wear something as humiliating as that, so it made Kass really curious. As he looked closer at it, he started to recognize the jingle, because of the wide crack on it.
It belonged to one cat that was attending the school with Kass and the others. The boy remembered the jingle, because he was the one responsible for the crack. It happened before Aki came to the school, when Kass and Luke were not a big friends of the furs. The cat never put the jungle down, not even as it became broken, because it was supposed to be the only thing the cat had after his mother. Kass could not imagine the cat to have lost or forgot it, because it was too precious to him, so how came the jingle down the... Oh, no! Today was supposed to be a normal school day again! Without the energy, the teachers were supposed to send Kass’ and Aki's schoolmates home again, like the first time, but what if Lash got them first? This was the only explanation of what was the jingle doing down there!
"Lash, you filthy rat!" - Kass called out angrily - "She knew that we will not dare to risk a fight with her, not while she will have our friends as captives."
The white lab rat was so close, only a short corridor and a steel door stood between them and Lash, but they just could not risk the lives of their friends. At first, they needed to find the kids, but after that it can already be too late for all of them! To be worse, it was almost impossible to find anything in this dark abandoned place! The situation seemed to be really bad. What should they do? Fortunately, there was someone who lived in a dark abandoned place almost the whole life. Kendi! If someone could find the kids, then it was her! She has never forgotten how Kass and Aki saved her life in the Depth, and now she had a chance to show them her gratitude. Kass and Aki could not believe this. The little scared kitten they helped in the Depth was gone and a beautiful strong cat was now standing in front of them and offering her help. It was amazing, the two were really proud to have such a great friend like Kendi. Before she left to find the kids, Kass gave her the jingle and tapped no her paw for good luck again. Even if it was not a bunny paw, for them, Kendi will forever stay the lucky black cat. Then, a moment later, the black cat run in the other direction and disappeared in the darkness. Now could Wuffy, Aki, and Kass continue to the secret lab, to the den of the white rat.
As Aki opened the steel door for them again and they walked inside, they stayed absolutely surprised. The place was amazing, it was so huge! The best labs of the ERF did not get even close to this place! The rat must have been tunneling the ERF for years! They could barely see the ceiling; how deep underground they could be? The lab was really impressive, but without the energy, it was only another dark empty place. The only source of light, besides the emergency lights, was a huge cylindrical machine with a massive coil around it, which was standing it the middle of the large lab. A bright blue light was coming from that thing through its openings. They immediately recognized the light; it was the same one as in the Depth. In fact, it was not a light at all, but it was the same energy just like in the energy lines! Aki did not like that thing, because she remembered only too well what happened the last time as she came too close to so much energy. What was doing such a thing up there in COHAF, and for all, where from did Lash get so much energy?
This was what they were searching for all the time! All the missing energy from the medical station as well as from the rest of COHAF has been brought here, but for what purpose? Kass and Aki could not believe it; they never saw so much energy on one place! What for would even Lash need so much of it? For some time already, Wuffy had an idea about what all this meant, but he hoped to the very last that he was wrong. Unfortunately, he was not, and the danger was bigger than ever before!
By the time, there was someone who still did not know about the great danger that was only waiting to be unleashed. It was Kendi with the other young ones, who were now on their way back to Wuffy and the others. It has not taken too long for someone like Kendi to find the kids, but she stayed surprised as she saw how many they were. She thought it would be five or six, but there were at least twenty kids about the same age as her and the most of them were humans. The kids seemed surprised as they saw the black cat. They were very scared, because they had no idea what was going on, or what will happen with them. The kids were lured there by the rat under the impression of safety. Within few short days, two big explosions happened in COHAF already, so not even the teachers has a reason to not to believe the rat, the current head of the ERF research. After Lash brought the kids down there, she told them to wait there for their teachers and closed the door. But the teachers never came and the door was locked from the other side, so the kids began to fear. Only one from the group tried to calm the others, a boy with black hair. It was Luke; he said that he is sure that everything will be fine, because they have friends they can count on. Luke almost fell off his legs as Kendi told him, that the friends he was talking about, Kass and Aki were there right now to stop the rat which locked them in there.
...to stop the rat... If only it would be that simple, but Kass and Aki knew, that it will not be so easy. After what Wuffy told them, it seemed, that Alex was as much a talented mechanic as his younger brother Kay. In first moment Kass and Aki did not understand what the wolf meant with it, but as he started to explain, everything started to make sense. Wuffy said, that Lash was not interested in the device as much as in not to let Nare Darks have it. That was why she helped Aki to escape from the ERF. It was her, who deleted the security entry about Aki, so the security could not identify the creature all the time. She also faked the data from the device's test so that Nare Darks would fail! The rat had no need for Aki’s device, because now she already had one by herself!
Aki and Kass could not believe what they just heard from Wuffy! Did Alex really create another device for Lash? Then, a voice could be heard from the darkness in front of them.
"Oh my...so, the legendary Shadow Wolf found out my little secret." - said the mocking voice and in next moment, a person appeared in front of the high cylindrical machine.
Because of the bright blue light behind the person, only a dark shape could be seen, a dark shape of an attractive but rotten rat. Lash! She was looking quite dangerous in the long white coat as she was walking towards the young ones. As she was almost by Kass, Aki stepped in her way on what Lash held on in front of the little wolf. The rat really did not understand how Aki and Wolf could want to protect the humans after all what happened. Did they really think that when this will be over the humans will thank the furs or will let Aki be? The little wolf was a creature, something this world will never accept, so the humans will never let her be as long as she will be alive. The rat did not want to hurt Aki, she only wanted the human Aki was protecting. Lash was just trying to help the furs! She said that the stupid humans were responsible for all the pain and fear. Humans like Nare Darks who killed their families, or has Aki already forgot that? Aki could forget neither that nor what Darks did to Kendi, but even then, she knew that not all humans were that bad. Like Kass, who risked his own life for her. Since then, Aki and Kass understood each other better than anyone else. A human and a furry bond together, with their friendship and love. Lash could not listen to this anymore!
"Where was the damn human friendship as I must have watched how my entire family vanished among the flames...?!" - said Lash almost in tears - "Humans and furs can never be friends!" - she added in anger and wanted to strike Kass with her sharp metal tail.
"No!" - Aki screamed and put her tail in the way.
The little wolf did not want to fight against Lash, but she had no choice when she wanted to protect Kass.
Wolf wanted to use that Lash was distracted to find the device she got from Alex, but he sensed that Alex was near. The beautiful black fur made the wolf almost invisible in the darkness and only his eyes, deep and blue as an ocean shined from the shadows. Wolf was defenceless against those eyes, and this time Alex was not willing to let Wolf pass. The black wolf still had Kay’s collar, and even after so much time, the marks after Wolf’s fangs could be still seen on it. Wolf has never refused that he took Kay’s life when Alex asked him what happened, even if there was more to tell. Back then, Alex would not listen to anything Wolf would say, just as now Lash was not listening to Aki.
The two girls were giving everything and each hit of their tails was even harder than the one before. Lash was the better one; not only was she an adult, but she was also taught to fight by Alex. Aki instead was taught the moves by Wolf only because of her disease, like a breathing exercise, so she would not be so exhausted all the time. She never thought to use it this way, so it was hard for Aki to stand against Lash. Not even the lab could stand the hard hits and was slowly getting damaged.
Aki was pushed back to the door they came in and the rat wanted to pin her down to the ground with a strong hit. Lash raised her metal tail high in the air to hit Aki from above, but the little wolf stretched her white wings and flew with Kass to safety. Unfortunately, the door opened and Kendi with the other kids came inside. The black cat ran directly under Lash’s hard tail...! Wham! The whole room echoed with the blow. When the dust from the blow finally came down, once again, a warm red liquid was dripping down from Lash’s tail and the kitten was laying on the broken floor. Kendi slowly opened her scared eyes only to find herself in someone’s embrace. The person was laying on top of her and covering her with his body. Yes, he, a boy, but it was not Kass. This time, the brave hero was no one else than Kass' best friend, Luke! Thanks to him, Kendi stayed unharmed, but he was not that lucky.
As Kendi ran under Lash’s tail, Luke was right behind the cat and in last moment he dragged her by her clothes to the side. Luke escaped the full hit only by a cat’s hair breadth, but Lash’s sharp tail made a deep cut on Luke’s shoulder.
At first, the rat stayed surprised that the boy protected Kendi, but then she slashed with her long tail again at Luke, and this time on purpose! As Aki saw this, she again stepped in Lash’s way, but now the rat’s tail landed hard on Aki’s back cutting her clothes to pieces. The rat hit exactly the place with the scar on the little wolf’s back, making Aki scream out of pain. Lash did not want this, so she immediately stepped backwards.
Even Alex and Wolf stopped to swing their swords, as they heard the scream. Wolf immediately hurried up to his little girl. The wound was not dangerous, it just hit a sensitive place, but Aki’s paws were already very cold, as the fight was very exhausting for her! It was not a wonder, after all the blows the two females gave and took... Even the lab looked that way! Everything was broken! The whole place was slowly starting to fall apart and the walls looked like they could break together any moment! The hard blows made much damage and everything slowly begun to shake strong, maybe too strong. No one knew what was happening. No one besides Lash...
"It doesn't matter how much you are trying to protect the humans, because it’s already too late!" - said the rat and grinned evilly at the two white wolves.
They did not know, that Lash already activated the device that was connected to the huge cylindrical machine packed to the top with energy. This was what all the energy was for; to be producing heat! An immense amount of heat was necessary to make the device functional. Now it was fully working and ready to be used. That, what our heroes feared the most became reality, like a nightmare that suddenly became true. The thing was now threatening not only the humans in the city, but the whole COHAF itself!
Kass could not believe it; how could Lash have done something like that? As if it was not enough for the rat that she made Aki to a creature, she also must have done this! Kass' blood boiled with anger! However, Lash did not know what the boy was talking about. She maybe tried, but she did not make Aki to a creature and the little wolf knew that well. Kass’ words were not bothering Lash one bit as the boy will soon be quiet anyway, but forever! Kass was not scared by Lash’s threats, but he stayed very surprised as Aki confirmed her words. He could hardly believe what he just heard, because he remembered well how he and Niaa found Aki. There was the paper message leading to the secret lab in the medical station's underground. They also found a piece of white fur sticking on the door sensor unlocking the door...
"Why would I leave a paper note to my dirty secrets?" - the rat laughed on this - "And why would I need to stick the door sensor with fur? I have my key-card!" - said Lash with a large smile, as if she would know something that the two young ones did not.
"...but then, who else would do such a thing?" - Kass asked completely confused.
"Yes...who else would have the skills and the wisdom to use the device..." - said the rat with a taunting voice - "...had access to paper like Aki, and had a white fur as well? Who else, than the great master White Wolf himself!"
The room filled with silence. Only the cracking of the walls and the pieces falling loud on the floor could be heard in the background. Everybody stayed shocked! Only little Aki, who was sitting on the floor by Wuffy, asked with a silent voice if it was really true. The big white wolf closed his eyes and said the one and only word he could...
"Yes."
No words he would say or things he would do could ever apologize what he did to her. Being the one responsible for so much pain and suffer of those he loved so much, was hurting him more than anything. Then, Aki saw something in Wolf’s sad green eyes, what she never saw before. It were tears. Glittering and clear droplets of water, that twinkled as the purest crystals. On this, the big white wolf put down the bandages from his left paw. As everyone saw the paw, they could not believe their eyes! All the fur and skin from the elbow down to the claws was burned away by the device when Wolf was using it to rescue Aki. The pain must have been unbelievable, but the wolf did not care back then. He lost Kay and then Alex; he could not lose Aki as well! Wolf just could not let her die, even if it should cost his own life, but now it seemed that he will lose Aki anyway. He just could not expect, that Aki would forgive him after what he did to her.
All this time, the little wolf was sitting there and listened to the story silently. As Wolf’s voice faded away, Aki got back on her feet and was now standing tall in front of the kneeling wolf. Then Wolf felt something unexpected, his black nose was suddenly all covered in a soft warm fur, and two paws were holding his head pressed tight against the furred body. Wolf did not know what was happening, but as he heard a familiar sound, he understood everything. It was the sound of a beating heart that he was listening to. It was the heart that was beating only thanks to him. Aki held Wolf’s head close to her heart hugging him tight, then she said the words Wolf will never forget.
"You were risking everything you had, only to help me. How could I ever be bad to you... ...you will forever stay my beloved Wuffy." - came Aki’s calm voice and a few tears dripped on Wolf’s forehead.
The others could not believe how strong the bond between Aki and Wolf was. Even Alex was astonished; but not even this wonderful scene could change neither his mind nor Lash’s. Mentioning the rat...where was she anyway?
Wolf got back on his feet and with the others they were looking around the place, but the lab rat was nowhere to be found! Slowly it was starting to be too dangerous in there, because the room could break together any time now. If they wanted to stop Lash in time, they needed to hurry. As everything became even worse just in a few moments, they had no doubts about what Lash was doing right now. Large pieces of ceiling and walls started to fall down, and the whole place was shaking so strong that the young ones could barely hold the balance! All the kids took shelter by a wall which as the only one was still withstanding damage. From there, the kids could see the rat above them doing something on a platform which was connected to the coil on the cylindrical machine where the device was. This was bad... Aki had trouble to keep up with Lash now, not to mention when the rat will use the power of the device! They must stop her before that will happen! Kass asked Luke and Kendi to stay there with the other kids until this will be over; and when everything will be fine, they will bring them to safety. Kass and Aki said that everything will be all right only because the other kids were so scared and many of them were crying. They did not really know what will happen. They could only hope. As Kass and Aki were leaving, Luke and Kendi were watching them as if they should never see the two again. It was really a strange, unpleasant feeling.
The two then got back to Wolf to decide what to do next, even if it was clear. Destroying the device and stopping Lash was the plan, but there was a "not so little" problem; Alex! Even now, as everything was falling apart, he did not want to let Wolf be! The death of his little brother was still hurting him deep in his heart. The pain was like a dagger that Alex could not take out just by himself. All this made the black wolf remember how strong was the bond between him and Wolf back then, and he wanted to sever that bond for good, to not to feel the pain anymore.
In fact, Alex was missing the old times just as much as Wolf. For the two wolves, it was not about the fighting, or the adventures that they were through, or about to be heroes. It was for all about that they were through all that together, as friends...and maybe more than friends can ever be! But that was a long time ago. Since then, any time Alex closed his eyes, he saw Wolf, with his muzzle dripping wet with Kay's blood, standing in front of him with Kay’s blood-soaked collar in his paws. Alex could never forget that moment and so could not Wolf. Wolf tried to wash his mouth and fangs clean, but even now, after so long time, he still tasted Kay’s blood in his mouth.
Today, the two legendary wolves were standing in front of each other again, facing a hard decision. Everything was shaking and breaking apart, not only there, but already in whole COHAF! There was not much time left. If they wanted to save the city they helped to build, one of them must die! And Alex knew exactly who it will be as he pointed the cold blade of his knife towards his best friend. In that moment, a big part of the ceiling loosened up and was falling right on top of Alex, who’s all attention was on Wolf. Kass and Aki just saw how the big part of the ceiling fell down in a loud blow and took a part of the lab’s broken floor with it. There was no way how could Alex survive that, no matter how strong he was. However, there was one thing Kass and Aki did not see. As they were looking up at the falling piece, the two overlooked, that in last moment, Wolf reached Alex and pushed his friend out of the way of the danger and they both landed hard on the floor. Then, Aki saw Wuffy as he was kneeling above Alex who was still laying on the floor. She just hoped that they were all right and with Kass they hurried up to them.
As Alex sat up on the floor, he saw Wolf kneeling above him and breathing heavy.
"Why have you rescued me?" - Alex asked towards the exhausted white wolf.
"You’re still my friend, what reason do you need more...?" - said Wolf and looked at Alex with his tired green eyes.
Wolf seemed so happy that Alex was not hurt, and smiled at his old friend just as when they were only cubs, as if all this would be only an innocent play. But then, Wolf suddenly fell on top of Alex and his head landed on the black wolf’s lap. At first Alex did not know what it meant; only as a warm red liquid dripped down from Wolf’s mouth he understood what the white wolf did. A heavy wound could be seen in Wolf’s chest made by Alex’s knife as the wolf pushed him out of the danger and they both fell together on the ground.
As Aki saw the wound, she became so scared, that she did not want to leave Wuffy’s side. Even through his wound, the wolf told her that she must, because if they will not turn off the device, it will not matter if he was wounded or not, they all will going to die! It felt so very wrong to Aki to let her Wuffy there like that, but she understood that he was right. For the last time Aki gently pressed her head against Wuffy’s fur promising him, that she will come back to him when she will stop Lash and turn off the device.
Aki and Kass stepped away and Aki spread her wings wide and bent down suggesting Kass to hop on quickly. To fly was the fastest way up to the rat, but also the most dangerous one too, because of all the falling parts of the breaking lab. Kass sat carefully on Aki’s back because of the hit she got from the rat, and as the two were ready, they slowly rose in the air. The little wolf flew low above the ground and by this Kass took Wolf's knife that was stuck in the lab’s floor near Alex. The combat knife was as old as the device and made from the same materials, so it was the only thing hard enough to destroy it. Avoiding the falling parts, Aki flew with Kass in the height to stop the rat, leaving Wolf with his old friend. After the two were out of sight, Wolf called Alex close to him, because there was something Alex needed to know. It was the truth about Kay’s death. It seemed, that this will be his last story to tell. A story, so beautiful and sad at once, that back then it had the power to end the war...
In the meantime, Aki with Kass reached the platform, which was on top of the big coil, halfway to the top of the cylindrical machine. Lash was already awaiting them there with an awful surprise. Thanks to the tests she made when Aki was caught by the ERF, the rat was able to use the device’s power as Aki, but without to becoming a creature. All Lash needed to do, was to touch the coil where all the energy was circulating. Aki could not believe what Lash wanted to do! It scared her, because she still remembered what was happening with her as she touched the energy line, but it was all too late to do something to stop the rat.
The white lab rat reached out her paw through the wall of heat that was coming from all the packed energy and rammed her claws into the metal coil. In that moment Lash’s body started to soak with all the heat from the machine and it became too dangerous to stay close to her. Not even the steel chains, which held the platform, could stand such a heat and melted away. Half of the platform collapsed down in front of the kids below! This made the kids squeeze even closer to one another from the fear. As the rays of static electricity shot high in the air, everyone understood that the worst happened!
It was just like back then with Aki. Even someone as strong as Lash begun to scream out of pain as the enormous heat rushed through her body. The rat felt as if her bones would melt down and the pain forced her to her knees. Aki could not get close to Lash to help her, because she would end up like her, and for Kass was the heat just too dangerous! He would turn to ashes before he would reach Lash’s tail tip! Only a second later Lash’s fur started to turn black like by Aki, but this was much faster. To be worse, it did not stay just by the change of the fur colour, because Lash started to grow in size! Her clothes ripped, because they just could not stretch that much and with each moment the rat became taller, but for all stronger! To end it all, a large wave of energy escaped from the machine and blew Aki with Kass away as easy as a dry leaf from a tree. Aki must have really put some strength into her large wings, so she and Kass would not end flat against the opposite wall. As the wave passed, everything seemed to silence down, but it was only the silence before the storm!
What happened with the lab rat? Will the two have enough strength to stop her? Let us hope so, because if not, everything what they fought for until now, will be lost maybe forever!