She was floating. It was dark and all around her chaos raged. Something pulled at her, trying to drag her out of the brief respite into the chaos. She didn't have the strength to fight it and felt herself slip into the storm. She was hanging, swaying gently from side to side. From above, the creaking sound of chains broke into her half conscious haze. She shifted uncomfortably, suspended by her wrists. She was badly wounded. Weak, dizzy, why wasn’t she healing? It must be bad. How much longer could she last? It dawned on her... she was going to die.

But not yet. She needed to get to them, fight for them, protect them. They were too precious, she had to-

She was barely keeping her eyes open. Pain had been her only sensation for so long that she wasn’t sure if she even felt it anymore. Just numb. She didn’t even feel the blood as it congealed on her skin leaving a tight tackiness. Every now and then a drop landed with an audible plop from some of the fresher wounds to add to the spreading puddle below her. Why wasn’t the nano floor absorbing it? C’mon. Hold on. Fight!

As she pushed herself back to full consciousness, she became aware that she was not alone. He was still here, still torturing what he wanted from her. Well he wouldn’t get it. Her lip curls to reveal her fangs in a silent snarl and she pierced him with her eyes from behind the blood and bruises.

“Ahh you’re back with us at? Good, now stop stalling Sister dear. We both know I will get what I want.”

His supercilious, smarmy, arrogant look just made her smile. No brother, you don’t always get what you want. And you won’t this time. She remained stubbornly silent, letting her eyes talk for her. No matter what he did, no matter how long he tortured and beat her, she wouldn’t give in. Never.

With an exasperated sigh, he flicked the dagger he held and scored another slice across her stomach. There were so many now, you could barely tell them apart, her whole body was just a bloody mess. She hissed an involuntary protest of pain but held silent.

“Where’s the boy?”

She said nothing, hanging in defiant silence.

“WHERE IS HE!!??”

Her brother growled in irritation and lashed out again, this time with his claws, gouging deep across her cheek. He had to visibly hold himself back from attacking again, breathing heavily, muscles tense. She swung a little with the momentum of his strike, but all that time, she just watched him, her answer clear. He snarled and moved to strike again when she parted her split and bloodied lips. He paused in anticipation.

“Losing your temper brother? How characteristic of you. It must bother that you cannot even keep track of one cub.”

She didn’t know where she got the energy from to talk, let alone taunt her sibling, but she be damned if she’d let him think he had beaten her. He sneered in irritation but quickly smiled in that sly way of his.

“Sister, you don’t have any bargaining room here. Your Mate has every right to take whatever measures he wishes as soon as you took his cub from him.”

“And he knows, in every detail, your measures does he? Come brother, we both know the truth. You want my cub controlled by the family, just like all the others. But this time brother you will fail.” She hissed out.

“Last time sister, where is my nephew?

“... Safe.”

His eye slitted and his face tensed in anger. He flicked an ear and she was blindsided by a punch. She’d forgotten about her brothers minion. She swung in circles with the force of the blow and another wound reopened. But she was satisfied. Her brother turned and stormed to the door flinging orders over his shoulder.

“Get me answers Anar. I don’t care if you take her within a spec of her life, just get them. Contact me if you need more hands or instruments, but I expect you won’t. Will you.”

He left. Anar turned to her and landed three heavy blows. Head, head, stomach. He turned casually to inspect the blood stained blades laid out on a table. She realised that they were in an old servants room.

“Well my Lady, it looks like it’s just us again. You really need to tell us what we want to know. I’m sure you’ll heal without scars given enough time.”

As he turned with his signature stiletto in hand she snapped her legs out and kicked with all her remaining strength. Her foot connected with Anar’s jaw and he went down, toppling his instrument table and landing with an audible thud as his head slammed into the floor. He was still. The clattering instruments settled and the tense silence sent her adrenaline shooting through her body. Move!

Her attention snapped to the sideboard behind her. Still swinging from the kick, she stretched out, trying to touch it with her feet but she was already slowing down. Through the pain, she tucked up her legs to her chest and, as she reached to the top of the arc of her swing, flung her legs down and back, trying to gain momentum. Not quite there. Again, forward and back. Nearly. Forward and back, she stretched until her feet gained purchase on the sturdy furniture. Yes! She gripped the edge with her toe claws and pushed her heels back until she stood on the top.

From her new perch, she flicked the chains off the hook that protruded from the ceiling. It would normally hold a glow but this room looked to have been vacant for some time. The chains clattered to the floor and she cringed at the noise. Hopefully no one was around to hear it. She needed to move quickly. She freed her wrists and made a quick inventory of herself. Knee length leg coverings (mostly torn and blood stained), a basic modiste (same) but no other top, no food for two rotations and her wounds were serious but the bleeding had slowed. She needed supplies. Her eyes flicked around the room. What could she use?

Hopping down from the sideboard, she ignored the distant pain and weakness that dragged at her limbs and knelt by Aran. He was alive but had a nasty head injury. Probably a fractured skull. His healing would keep him unconscious for at least a day. Good, he wouldn’t be pursuing her any time soon. Just to be safe, she used the chains to secure him to the hook. It would take them a while to free him.

Next she opened the wardrobe. She was in luck, there were coverings in it. They must have had them ready for when she capitulated or someone demanded to see her. You can’t exactly attend court in blood stained rags, especially when her brother wanted to hide what he was doing. Court coverings wouldn't help her on the run but she could use the travel cloak. She rummaged a little more and found an oversized loose top. It smelt like Aran. It wouldn’t completely hide the scent of her blood but it was something. She hastily eased it on trying not to aggravate her wounds and used the cloak to hide any evidence of her ordeal. Lastly, she moved to the scattered weapons around the upturned table. She couldn’t afford to be weighed down but every weapon she took was one less that could be used against her. The small blades were light and numerous so she gathered as many as she could find and hid them in her coverings. She took Aran’s leather belt and fastened it firmly around her middle, tucking more blades into it. She tried not to think about how they had been used on her. Though only minutes had passed, it took too long. She needed to leave.

During her interrogation, they hadn’t touched her face and her brothers swipe had barely left a mark so she should be able to walk out the front door as long as the cloak hid everything else. Her bare feet didn’t matter and many Icanthie chose a more simplistic or animalistic way of life. With a quick glance around the room, she headed for the door and peaked out. Finding no guard, she slipped into the brightly lit corridor, it must be near noon. A beautiful day with not a cloud in the sky. Damn it. She would have preferred a moonless night but she couldn’t afford to wait. Not only could her brother return at any time and set his personal guard on her, she knew her wounds were life threatening and she wasn’t healing. She didn’t have much time. She needed to get to them.

A large place like the Fortress needed a vast maintenance force. Perhaps a couple millennia ago they would have been known as servants but now it’s a highly respected career. Although her family role meant she would never have been allowed in maintenance, she had been fascinated by it and the people who worked behind the scenes. Engineers, electricians, inspectors, she would often shadow them as a cub. The maintenance routes and hidden rooms were her playground and the staff her friends. If she used them, she would be undetected by her brother. Her friends and supporters may be able to help... or at least turn a blind eye. Decision made, she hastily made her way to the nearest access.

In a fog of hunger, pain and blood loss, she made her way through the often confusing passages. To the uninitiated, the maintenance world was a maze. She recognised a few people and nodded kindly but she refused to stop and address the concerned looks her friends gave her. She would not put them at risk anymore than she already had using these passages. Eventually, she emerged out into the magnificent forest that surrounded the Icanthie’s towered city. But she couldn’t rest. She ran. On and on, her bare feet pounding the packed dirt, sunlight dappled through the tree, each breath a rasping gasp. Sweat stung her wounds and the bleeding still wouldn’t stop though it was just a slow ooze now. She hadn’t even realised she wasn’t in her fur. She must have slipped into her resting form. It didn’t matter. She knew where she had to go. She ran until she couldn’t go any further, then she limped until finally she crawled. She wouldn’t stop, on and on until she knew they were safe. Her cubs...

***

We were waiting. The refugee camp had moved on two days ago. They couldn’t afford to stay in one place for too long. The Myath, half-bloods like me, had no rights, no citizenship. “Mongrels” . We are shunned, hated and killed simply because we’re not “pure”. Ha, as if anyone was pure anything. You’d think an advanced society would understand genetics. But no. Somewhere along the way, our great society fell into the trap of superiority and arrogance.

It was always safer to travel with a camp than alone but we needed to stay here. We were due to meet my mum and couldn’t afford to miss it. We hardly ever saw each other and getting messages between us was difficult and dangerous. Mum didn’t like to risk it. We also needed to plan. We had been looking after my half brother for four months now at mum’s request. Dad had disappeared for about a week and didn’t tell me anything about it. It was odd, he always took me everywhere. When he returned, it was with the two orbit old cub. I love the little guy so much and he was a joy but I was beginning to feel that this life was too dangerous for him. Even with Dad to guide us, we had had too many close calls recently. They were getting close again. Ever since I was a cub myself, I had been taught to be independent and had learned by my fathers side, taking over almost seamlessly from him when he couldn’t make appointments. Dad was my advisor and friend the only one I could really rely on when things got dicey.

Seth shouldn’t have to live like me. He wasn’t even a Myath. And as long as mum raised him, he wouldn't turn out like all the other superior Courtiers. Mum, Dad and I would give anything to prevent him becoming like that. Courtiers of any race usually held the strongest view about “purity”. Unfortunately, they also held the most power. Though mum was a Courtier, she somehow had been able to escape the views of her family.

Mum was late and I had a bad feeling. I always trusted my instincts. They’d always paid off in the past and I knew not to ignore them. Dad was close by, his gaze searching, alert. He felt it too. Scanning the landscape again, I kept one eye on Seth as he crawled around in the grass and explored. He always brought a smile to my lips no matter the circumstance. My brother was the best thing in my life. Something flickered in my peripheral vision and I went on high alert, tense and all senses stretched out. It came from the shrubbery close to the forest, close to Dad. I gave a light cak to get Dad’s attention and flicked my eyes to the spot where I had seen movement. I crouched low to the ground and stared. I saw Dad crouch low and inch forward. Out of the corner of my eye, I checked on Seth and saw him pick up on our tension. I watched with approval as he went still, watching me for instruction. He was a smart cub.

Slowly, with all the stealth I could muster, I glided toward the disturbance, circling round to the left so I had the higher ground. Dad nodded and signalled me with his right ear to wait for his count. I got ready to attack just in case but kept tight control. You really don’t want to start a fight you can’t finish. Easing forward, I saw a figure laying out, unmoving. I hesitated. This could be dangerous. I looked to Dad again for guidance, but he couldn’t see the figure from his position. I didn't want to vocalise again, what if the figure had been followed. As least they didn’t look like they were in any condition to attack if they didn’t appreciate a couple of Myath close by. Easing closer still, I tried to get a better look.

“No!” With a smothered cry, I stumbled forward and reached out to the figure. “Mum!!”

Dad started and flew forward, scooping her up into his arms, the tears streaming down his face. She was torn apart, covered in blood. Was she even alive? Tears filled my eyes but I couldn’t let them fall. I scanned around again, looking for any enemies. Seth was still waiting for my signal and I flicked an ear to tell him to come over. He needed to stay close in case Mum’s attacker was nearby. Dad was distracted, desperate in his grief he muttered into her hair. “Feenya. Feenya no!”

Seth settled next to me, quiet in his fear, hackles raised and tail puffed. I blinked slowly at him, trying to calm him a little and looked back to Mum. The tears finally spilled over. we edged closer.

“Mum?”

My Dad looked up at us and Seth jumped a little and tried to move toward her, but I held him back. He shouldn’t see this but mum would want to see him again. Her last visit had been months ago and he’d grown so much. Tiny mews of distress left all of us but I tried to rumble gently to reassure Seth. I couldn’t quite manage a purr. Dad gently rocked her and I tried again to wake her.

“Mum? Can you hear me? C’mon open you eyes, Seth wants to see you” I choked out, waiting with bated breath, desperate for a response.

Eventually, she stirred. Her eyes cracked open and they were dull with pain and sadness that sliced straight through my heart. I knew. We all knew. She seemed to focus after a moment and her eyes went wide is disbelief. She must be confused.

I wouldn’t give up, not yet. “Mum, hey.” I smiled through my tears. “Can you tell us what happened? Why aren’t you healing?”

Mum opened her mouth but no words came out. She tried to swallow. It was clear that her every move was an effort. As well and the wounds, she looked half starved and was probably dehydrated. It was a wonder that she had survived. She flicked her eyes between the three of us, joy, relief and sadness mixed up together.

“Mum, we need to get moving. You could have been followed.” I glanced around again, just in case my words proved true. They wouldn’t have let her go easily.

Mums gave a minute shake of her head and laboriously lifted her head to rest on my cheek. I nuzzled her as more tears spilled over. My heart was aching, already grieving. Leaning down further, I brought my face closer to her.

“Please try mum. Please” I whispered desperately. “We need you”.

Mum gave a brief smile. Dad just stared at her, crying silently. I almost thought I heard his heart break right there. He lowered his head to rest his brow on hers and I finally accepted that these were my last moments with my family. I rocked back and forward and let out a low wail of pain.

“Mum.”