“Hello? Is anyone there? Sevastopol! Come in!” a metallic voice echoed through the room.

“Owwie…” Cannoli groaned. Her head was throbbing, and a thousand lights were blinking at her from all angles. She peered around the room and realized a dozen things all at once.

First, this wasn’t Ni Island. Or anywhere she’d been in Nyarlea, for that matter. It was like a big metal box with smaller metal boxes holding lots of lights and unfamiliar sounds. Thick threads ran from some of the contraptions to the walls, and that voice kept repeating the same thing over and over.

Second, her vision and hearing seemed…strange. Everything came in with a clearer focus and vivid detail. She could count the threads beneath the metal and pick out every color. Every syllable that the voice called out was punctuated and precise through the static.

Third, was she just imagining it, or was everything very far away? As if she was towering over it from a few extra heads higher than normal. Maybe it’s all just really small…

“Nani the fuck?” a familiar timbre hissed from a nearby room. “Can you keep it down? She’ll hear you!”

Ravyn! That meant Cannoli wasn’t alone after all! That’s great! She swerved her head back and forth and was nearly knocked back with the motion. Goodness, why did her head feel so heavy?

“We haven’t had contact in hours, Sevastopol. What’s going on over there?” the voice replied.

“What isn’t going on in here, baka?” Ravyn growled.

Cannoli’s gaze finally landed on a wide… door? Okay, really, why is the door short, too? She thought it was a door, at least. It didn’t have a handle, but it wooshed open when she stepped toward it. She squeaked and hopped back, waiting to see if something was waiting for her behind it. M-magic?! When nothing happened, she chanced a few hesitant steps, then ducked through and padded her way outside into a long hallway. A loud spark to her right startled her, and she jumped. More magic??

“Shit. I have to go. Stop calling.” There were a few clicking noises, and the metallic voice was silenced.

Cannoli moved away from the sparks, her tail dragging on the ground behind her. When did my tail get so long?

There was a dull thud from inside the room Ravyn was occupying, and Cannoli’s attention snapped away from her tail. What if she’s been hurt? The door wooshed, and she tip-toed inside. Well, she thought she was tip-toeing inside. Her footsteps were definitely quiet, but her feet didn’t seem to make the same motion she was used to.

“Ravyn?” Cannoli called. The sound that escaped her was a low, guttural snarl. Is my throat stuffy? She coughed, and it translated into a dull roar. With a confused blink, she shook her head. If Ravyn’s hurt, she needs help first. Worry about yourself later.

However, as Cannoli peered around the room, she couldn’t find Ravyn anywhere. But… But I just heard her! She knelt to look beneath the metal desks only to find another bevy of wires. A quick check behind the boxes also turned up empty.

“Ravyn,” she called, softer this time. It was the same twisted snarl as before. Urk. Maybe she was in another room? Her hearing had improved quite a bit, so it was possible she’d gone into a room too early. Plus, who knew how things echoed with all this metal around?

Cannoli wandered outside, back into the hallway. The thing that had sparked so loudly before was still flickering with dull light, but the sound wasn’t nearly as bad. Didn’t they have anyone to fix that around here? As she moved to inspect it, she caught her reflection in the window shielding the room she’d started in. She raised her hands—no, these were claws—to meet the reflection.

Is this really me? Am I… am I a Defiled?

Her head was enormous—a long, bulbous shape that protruded far beyond her back. Everything else was sinewy and lithe. Hardened muscles shaped her thighs and biceps, then led to thinner calves and forearms. Three strange protrusions on her back reminded her of skinny chimneys, and her tail had thick ridges shooting out from the base. Kind of like a gigashank’s.

I can’t be a Defiled! I’m still Cannoli! Her thoughts were still very much her own. Nothing compared to the blood-thirsty Defiled and Encroachers they’d encountered so many times. Maybe… maybe this is magic, too! Ravyn should be able to change me back!

Just as she’d thought it, there was a tink sound, and a tiny piece of debris slid across the floor.

“Shit. Shit, shit, shit,” Ravyn cursed under her breath.

There she is! Cannoli whipped around to where the sound originated, just in time to see a green jumpsuit and a fluffy red tail disappear into the wall.

… Into the wall?

Cannoli trotted forward, pulling up short just as a metal circle wound its way closed. It was very small—it would just barely fit her head and body inside. Why would Ravyn go in here? But a clamoring from inside suggested that Ravyn was, in fact, climbing through it. Maybe she’s in trouble?

“Ravyn! I’m coming in!” The words were garbled by a throat that clearly couldn’t speak catgirl. I probably shouldn’t talk. She inched closer to the circle, and it whipped open. It was lit by very few lights, but when Cannoli blinked, her vision adjusted, and she could see everything as clear as day.

She bent at the hips and slipped her head inside first, then the rest of her body. Once inside, she realized that her feet worked best if she kept them on her tiptoes, and she skittered along the painfully narrow duct.

“‘Give space a try,’ Matt said. ‘It’ll be fun,’ Matt said. Kuso. Baka. Fuck this,” Ravyn’s soft cursing reverberated against the walls, bouncing around the corner to Cannoli’s sharp hearing.

Space? Matt? What’s going on? More questions than answers cropped up as she traveled. The familiar scent of Ravyn’s perfume lingered in the passageway, hinting that Cannoli was getting closer.

How do I talk to her if everything I say sounds so scary? She wondered.

Eventually, Cannoli lost the trail of Ravyn’s perfume, replaced only by the smell of smoke and something burning. I swear I was getting closer.

“You are becoming hysterical. Please, let us talk this out,” a blunt, mechanical voice announced beneath her.

Cannoli looked down, realizing she’d crawled on top of a grate that allowed her to see what transpired below. A blue man marched forward, glowing red eyes focused on Ravyn.

“Of course I’m hysterical, you thick-headed robot!” Ravyn shrieked.

‘Robot?’ Is that another weird word like ‘baka?’

“If my services do not meet Seegson's standards, please log a complaint,” the blue man replied, briskly marching toward her.

“Leave me alone!” Ravyn buried her hands deep into her pockets.

Cannoli didn’t like how the ‘robot’ held its hands out to her as if ready to grab her.

She needs help! Cannoli kicked open the grate with one powerful leg, then dropped down on top of the blue man. He crumbled to the floor with her weight, and Cannoli realized she’d smashed one of his arms flat. The fluid that leaked from the joint was white. Humans don’t bleed white.

Ravyn was already halfway down the hallway, shrieking, “You deserved it, motherfucker!’

She’s right there! Cannoli sprinted away from the dazed blue man, catching up to Ravyn in five long strides. Ravyn looked over her shoulder and grimaced, another slew of curses spilling from her mouth.

Cannoli scooped Ravyn up beneath the arms, then spun her around, so they were face to face.

“Change me back!” Cannoli squealed, but it came through as a terrifying roar.

“H-hey. Let’s talk about this, okay?” Ravyn said quickly. “We won’t get very far without me, you know?”

“I know, just—” more guttural grunts.

Ravyn patted her head. “Good alien. Nice, alien. Please let me fucking go, alien.”

“I want to, I just—” When Cannoli opened her mouth, a second, smaller mouth emerged, inches from Ravyn’s face.

Ravyn screamed. There was a wall of fire. Cannoli screamed.

And then the world went black.

“Ravyn, help!” Cannoli squealed. Cold sweat covered her back and drenched the inn’s thin blanket.

“Help you what?” Ravyn grumbled next to her, clutching Ball Gag close to her chest. “You’re the alien.”

Cannoli blinked. When had Ravyn snuck into her bed? And… had she just said alien?

Running her hands through her damp hair, Cannoli shook her head clear of the dream. Maybe it was just the heat getting to them both. Buttons hopped into her lap, his glimmering eyes searching Cannoli’s face.

“I’m okay, Buttons,” she giggled. “Let’s get some sleep, hm?”

She smoothed her hand over his back, noting some of the bumps on his tail. I sure hope Buttons doesn’t look like that when he grows up. After a quick pat between Ravyn’s ears, Cannoli fell sound asleep.