C20 Meow Meow Was in Danger

The sack appeared to contain a nerve anesthetic, as Meow fell unconscious shortly after being placed inside.

Approximately three hours later, Meow awoke to find itself trapped in a crudely made iron cage fashioned from steel bars. In the dim lighting, Meow observed that the room was cluttered with similar cages, each one crammed with various other creatures.

"A concentration camp?" Meow thought to itself. However, before it could further contemplate its situation, someone entered the room and grabbed Meow by the collar.

But at this point... even if Meow were asked to speak, it likely would remain silent.

The reason being, outside the iron cage was a colossal laboratory! At the heart of the lab stood a surgical table specifically tailored for small animals.

Meow's cage was situated on a table not too far from the surgical bed. A pair of large hands clad in orange-yellow chemical-resistant gloves grasped Meow by the scruff of its neck, disregarding its struggles, and yanked Meow from the cage.

Never in its life had Meow been handled so roughly. It flailed its paws in an attempt to escape the grip of the person, but to no avail. Ultimately, Meow was pinned down on the surgical bed, lying on its back with its limbs restrained by small shackles.

"Project... 25, small mammal transformation experiment..." A deep, unfeeling male voice echoed to Meow's left, prompting an involuntary glance in that direction.

There stood a middle-aged man with a Mediterranean look, approximately 168 centimeters tall, sporting round, gold-rimmed glasses indicative of severe myopia. He donned the same white lab coat as Moorer, his aged face etched with weariness, seemingly immune to the charm of an adorable creature like Meow.

Behind the Mediterranean man, a dark green chalkboard loomed. In the faint light, Meow noticed a significant number of mammal pictures on the left side of the board, each encircled neatly with white chalk and connected by an arrow to a central photograph of a human.

"Is he planning to turn us into humans?!" Meow thought, startled. At that moment, it saw another arrow behind the human photograph, but in the dim light, Meow couldn't discern the image that lay beyond.

All it could make out were a pair of massive paws and two stout tusks. But before Meow could examine them closely, the protective suit's large hand forcefully turned Meow's small head back around.

Experiment number 256, research project: mammalian evolution towards humanoid form, culminating in the development of a controllable Death Claw...

Death Claw??? What is that?

"Initiating experiment..."

The massive flashlight above Meow's head suddenly illuminated, its intense white light so blinding that Meow couldn't keep her eyes open. Shortly thereafter, a syringe was forcefully plunged into Meow's chest. Amidst severe pain, Meow gradually lost consciousness around eleven at night...

In Vage, at the campsite of Moorer and his team.

Bella, who had been sleeping deeply, clambered out from the backseat of the car.

She had overindulged in soup at dinner... and now needed a late-night bathroom break.

To prevent her escape, Moorer had pondered and ultimately decided to have her sleep in the car, locking the door behind her.

But how could such measures contain the professionally trained Bella?

With just a few deft movements of her fingers, she unlocked the door.

Escaping wasn't impossible, yet it wasn't straightforward either.

If you considered it difficult... the three combat-ready individuals were sound asleep. Not only escaping, but she could easily dispatch all three of them, and the cat wouldn't be a hindrance.

If you considered it easy... the camp's gate was securely closed, the walls stood over four meters high, and Moorer, ever shrewd, might have set traps along the wall. Unlike Ashes, who could scale walls with ease, a hasty exit could spell danger for her.

Moreover, to be honest, she didn't feel as desperate to escape as when she was first captured. Her current life was relatively easy; she didn't have to dart through the city, surviving by crossing other survivor groups.

This small team offered the companionship of a charming pet and a handsome man who was very much to her liking, luxuries she never had in the DS organization.

Yet, serving the DS organization came with the perk of unlimited resurrections, eliminating the fear of death, humanity's greatest dread. The bustling towns filled with survivors made her feel as though she was still part of a civilized world, something this small team lacked.

"Isn't there any way to have the best of both worlds?" Bella sighed, pondering the possibility.

On her way to relieve herself by the city wall, Bella tripped over a metal object.

"What's this?" Driven by curiosity, she retraced her steps and located the object that had caused her stumble.

It was the same metal disc Ashes had discarded earlier that morning.

By the light of the moon, Bella could make out the object clearly. She was delighted, showering the metal disc with kisses.

Now, she could finally identify what it was.

It was an emergency teleportation portal device, capable of tearing through the space on the device to create a circular portal with a one-meter radius. This portal was set to a fixed location: the military base in Bear City.

The DS organization had recently developed this technology, so it was understandable that Moorer and Payson were unaware of it.

With this device, Bella could now flee the area, but she wasn't ready to leave just yet. She wanted to use her captivity as an excuse to rest for a couple more days.

After tucking the portal generator into her clothing, Bella stealthily made her way back to the car once she was done.

...

Meow Meow felt something wet and warm licking its face.

A pungent scent of blood emanated from the source, rousing Meow Meow from its slumber. It couldn't resist opening its eyes.

What Meow Meow saw was a gaping maw of deep red with sharp fangs, and a massive tongue that clumsily probed its face.

Holy crap! A wolf!

With a screech, Meow Meow tumbled and scurried away from the wolf's jaws, cowering and shivering in a corner.

The creature was an adult male gray wolf with a whitish hue. To Meow Meow, it seemed to exude the very essence of the Grim Reaper.

Only then did Meow Meow notice a silver bracelet fitted around its left paw and neck, each with a small green light blinking.

"Shh... Be quiet..." The wolf surprisingly uttered human words. The voice was reminiscent of a robust 17-year-old male, similar to Payson's but with a deeper resonance.

"...You... You can talk?" Meow Meow asked, quivering. Despite being a cat, it couldn't shake off its instinctual fear of such a vicious predator.

The gray wolf nodded, "In a way, we are akin. Rest assured, I have no intention of harming you…"

Meow Meow noticed that the gray wolf had a similar device attached to its neck and paws, indicating it too was an experimental subject that had been captured.

Now, the wolf and the cat were confined in a room, sealed off by an electronic lock far beyond their comprehension.

Meow Meow propped herself against the wall, attempting to scratch at the electronic lock before shaking her head in resignation.

"It's no use, we can't get out..."

"There is another way out, but... I can't manage it on my own..." the gray wolf said, gesturing to the wall behind them. A small window was set into the wall, just large enough for Meow Meow to squeeze through.

But the window was at least two meters off the ground, a height Meow Meow couldn't reach in her current state. They would need to cooperate.

The gray wolf stood up, bracing against the wall. Standing at roughly 1.8 meters tall, Meow Meow climbed up the wolf's body step by step. Finally, with a gentle leap from the top of the wolf's head, Meow Meow successfully perched herself on the window ledge.

"So, I can get out... but what about you?" Meow Meow asked from the window, looking back at the gray wolf. Outside, Vage Village seemed close by, and it wouldn't take long to run back.

Meow Meow could almost taste the freedom, but she didn't immediately leap down. She was contemplating how to rescue the gray wolf.

"See that, cat... There's a small door below this window, barred shut from the outside with iron bars. All you need to do is kick those bars away, and I'll be able to get out," the gray wolf explained.

Meow Meow nodded, then leapt down with a swift motion. Following the wolf's instructions, she located the iron bar securing the door. Yet, as her paws touched the bar, ready to kick it down, she hesitated.

After all, it was a wolf on the other side... What if it attacked her once free?

But it had just saved her! And if it had wanted to eat her... it could have done so already...

With resolve, Meow Meow steeled herself and forcefully kicked the iron bar away.

The rusty metal screeched as the small door swung open, and the gray wolf, squeezing its body through the narrow opening, emerged into freedom.

Under the moonlight, the gray wolf and Meow Meow raced across the terrain, eventually coming to a halt on a secluded hillock far from any structures. There, the wolf and the cat sat side by side on the slope, bracing themselves against each other as the cold wind caressed their faces.

Vage was just a short distance ahead, and Meow Meow could already catch the familiar scents wafting from the village.

"Um... Brother Wolf, what's your name?" Meow Meow inquired.

"Nightshade..." The wolf responded, eyes closed, savoring the sensation of the chilly breeze on his face. "And you?"

"Um... I'm just Meow Meow... I don't have any other name..."

"Meow Meow... That's an easy name to remember... Uh... Thank you for helping me escape." If wolves could blush, Nightshade's face would be flushed with red.

"No... there's no need for thanks... If anything, I should be thanking you..." Meow Meow felt the same gratitude.

Nightshade rose to his feet, declaring, "I must go now... Your friends are waiting below. May we meet again if destiny wills it!"

"Um..." Before Meow Meow could bid him farewell, Nightshade had vanished into the night. All she could do was whisper a goodbye to his retreating figure.

By the time Meow Meow made it back to camp, it was well past four in the morning. The sky was beginning to lighten, yet everyone was still asleep.

Meow Meow perched atop the city wall, feigning nonchalance, but her mind was adrift, filled with thoughts of the wolf she had just encountered.

"When will we... meet again?" Meow Meow murmured to herself, lost in contemplation.