Zion felt the growl rising in his throat, as his eyes foxed on the human who was now- stupidly- trying to approach him. They werew crouched down, hands out. Zion scoffed at their idiocy. They though that he was obedient enugh like a pet dog to not bite? The hand got closer, and Zion’s growl became louder. The other human that was watching form the doorway said something, and the human trying to muzzle Zion replied something back. She glanced over her shokder.
Zion lunged.
She screamed a shis teeth sank into her hand, the muzzle falling with a clack onto the floor. The tatse of iron filled Zion’sw mout, but he held on as she started slamming her other hand on his snout, trying to get him to pull away. The other human had moved, and Zion attempted to track him with the arm of the petson blocking most of his view. Something dark loomed in his peripheral, and suddenly a huge weight crashed into Zion’s side. He cried out, and the humanh snatched her bleeding hand away, backing quickly out of the room. Zion expected to hear more footsteps coming, but the halls were silent as he stared the male huma down. He was still gripping the chair, but neither one adred to kake the firt move. Zon watched as he backe dup slowly, brandisahing the chair as a shield. His hand snatched the lead from the wall, and the loop was around his neck before Zion could leap out of the way. He twisted and snarled, but the loop only tightened. The man yanked on the lead, cutting off Zion’s breath for a moment, and, still holding the chair, the ,man dragged Zion out of the room and dwn the hall. There was a smell of blood that permeated the hallway, and Zion tried to pause to sniff, but the nma yanked him harder. Hew didn’t think the girl had bled THAT much.
Zion scrabbled against the tile floors as he was dragged, but his claws couldn’t get a grip. The man was too strong, and too experienced dealing with dogs like Zion. The ones that didn’tr want anything to do with filthy, mange-eaten humans.
The man dragged Zion toward a door at the end of the hall, and Zion stiffrneed. The smell that leaked out of the room was a fetid mix of fear, urine, and sterility. Zion yanked harder, but the man’s foot connected with is rib cage, and that was all it trook to drag Zion into the room and slam the door shut. The man said something, and he began pushing Zion into a smaller room that smelled of oddly nothing. The lead cut into his neck, but his thick ruff gave him some cushion as Zion fought against the pull. The man raised the chair, and Zion howled as it connected with him again. A searing pain shot down his hip.
His heart beat faster as the panic started to set in.
While he was off balance, the man shoved him into the room and slammed the door. The lead was still around Zion’s neck, caught in between the door. His mouth set in a satisfied grimace, the man pressed a button and turned a lever.
There was a hiss above Zion’s head, but the air’s smell didn’t change. Zion paced, his chest heaving, his tail tucked as he turned around and around in the small room. He was getting lightheaded, and it felt like his chest was tightening. Zion froze.
The Death Room.
He had heard abut them, but not for a long time. There was something in the air that caused dogs to get weaker and weaker, until they finally collapsed, dead. That was why this room smelled of nothing, why it smelled of piss and fear.
It was a Death Room.
Zion tried to cry out, but his throat wasn’t working. He watched as the man blurred in front of him, tried to kake out the reality in the kaleidoscope of expressions that the man’s face took on depending upon what direction Zion was looking at him.
Bam!
Zion jumpe,d as sluggish as he was, as the man suddenly collapsed against the door to the Death Room. He twisted, but it was too late. Enormous jaws closed around his neck, snapping it at an odd angle. Blood sprayed the glass. Zion limped back, but the man fell away to reveal a dog he recognized. Ellaris was barking at him through the glass, but Zion couldn’t hear a thing, not even his own breating. The room shook as Ellaris slammed her fantastic bulk against the door, but it didn’t budge. Instead of ramming it again, she mouthed the locks that held the door in place. Zion’s vision swam, and he sunk doiwn to the floor.
Everything was going dark when a breath f frsh air washed over him, and largfe teeth clamped down on his scruff.
“Lupus…Zion…get…up!” Ellaris dragged him out of the room, straining him into th hall, where Zion gulped huge breaths of fresh air. As his vision slowly returned to normal, he was able to make out more of Ellaris than just a black blur.
She was a great dane, and great was certainly the right word for her. She was almost twice as tall as Zion himself. Ellaris sniffed him, her white chest lowering just a little, before she glaqnced down the hall quickly. Zion tried to see where she was looking.
“Ellaris, thanks,” he said, but the look in her eyes as she turned back to him was anything but greateful.
“Zion, save it. We need to move. Now. I’m not sure what’s going on, but…the workers are dead. All of them.” She licked her chops nervously, and Zion saw blood still staining her gums. “Something’s happened, and we need to…I don’t know, go somewhere. Not here.” She turned ervously, her whip thin tail waving slightly. Gulping a few more breaths, Zion forced his legs to stand.
“What about the others?”
“Escaped. Out. Prowling. They killed a lot of the workers.” Ellaris’ eyes were dark. “I think it’s best we leave as soon as we can. As far as I can tell we’re safe, but the humans…” Ellaris licked her chops nervously, a small string of drool dropping to the floor. “I don’t know what it was. Did you feel it, Zion?” Her eyes were pleading.
Zion paused, thinking. The memory of the woman’s bloodied hand popped back into his mind.
“I think I did. But I was too scared to really act on it.” Ellaris nodded.
“I knew it. Something’s happening. Can you walk yet?” Waving his tail in mock annoyance, Zion pranced down the hallway, giving Ellaris a look as he turned around.And the n he looked into the adoption room.
The smell of blood reeked throughout the rows of cages, most lying ajar. There were a coupew lumps on the floor, and Zion felt his stomach heave as he realized that they were human corpses.
“Yeah. It’s that bad,” Ellaris said beside him, aiming him jump. “Let’s get going. The door must be open, because nobodies here anymore.” Zion followed Ellaris as she made her way carefully through the facility. Zion still felt a repugnant niggle in his belly at the bland, sterile floors and uniform walls. Everything was too…square. At the desk in the front, two corpses lay. One was slumped behind the counter, whilke the other must have tried running. Zion and Ellaris stepped carefully around that one as they padded toward the doors. Ellaris paused, before rising to push the door open. Zion slipped through and she quickly followed before the door closed on her. The next door was the same, and finally Zion and Ellaris were in fresh air. Zion breathed in deeply, closing his eyes and savoring the feel of breath rushing into his chest.
The streets looked normal enough. The only odd part was that it was quiet. There were no humans anywhere. Ellaris was sniffing around carefully, but she shook her head at Zion’s quizzical gaze. Not waiting for the question, Ellaris set off at atrot down the street. Zion followed, scanning the houses and cars lining the streets for any other people. AS they were passing by a house overgrown with bushes and plants that had now turned into weeds, Zion stoppe,d pricking his ears. Ellaris did, too, and followed as Zion carefully crept closer.
There was a definite shuffling emanating from the back of the house. Zion glanced at Ellaris, and she took the lead. As threy crept closer, they heard grunts and yips. Ellaris suddeny burt form the bushes, and Zion followed, almost bumping into her haunches as she abruptly stopped. Zion peered around her.
The dog looked at them with a blank stare on its face, it’s owners head in its mouth.
Zion felt sick.
“Um.” Ellaris was also frozen. The dog dropped the head and trotted over to them, casually sniffing Ellaris’ rear like he hadn’t just been mauling his owner’s corpse. “Hey!” Ellaris snapped at him, her teeth suddenly pulled back to reveal teeth that even a doberman pitbull, as this dog seemed to be, would shy away from.
“Hey hey, no need to go mean on me, daney. I’m no harm, see?” Abruptly the dog roled onto his back, his light underbelly fully visible. Ellaris dropped her act; at that display, she didn’t have any other choice. She glanced over toward the dog’s owner.
“He’s dead,” the dog supplied helpfully.
“You…did….did you…kill…him?” Zion struggle dto get the words out, his mouth dry.
“Yeah, of course I did. Old bastard was the meanest guy you could ever meet. Starved me half the time and whipped me the other, keeping me chained up outside in all weather. He was gonna let me in, and I finally took the opportunity to tear that sucker’s limbs off.” The dog’s tongue lolled, and Zion felt very uncomfortable. “My name’s Petre by the way, not ‘bitch’ or ‘bastard’ like he thought,” Petre said, jerked his head in the direction of the corpse. “Idiot. I’m not a girl,” he stated, spinning so they got a good look at the fact that he was still intact. “So, where’d you guys come from? I haven’t seen you around at all. And is that blood?” Zion realized Petre was looking at him, and looked down. There was a red stain on hs chest fur, most likely from the woman he had attacked.
“Dude! Who’dja kill?” Zion shied away from Pretre’s bright eyes.
“U-um, Ellaris, I-I think we should…go…”
“So soon?” Petre’s tail drooped.
“Come with us.”
“What!?” Zion satred at Ellaris, shocked. He took a step back, his tail lowering. Ellaris’ eyes were slightly gazed, and as she talked she wasn’t blinking.
“We can use the help, Zion. Any dog who can kill a huma is worth their kibble. Besides, it could be dangerous just us two. Who knows why it’s so quiet.” Ellaris blinked, and her eyes were suddenly back to normal. As freaked out as Zion was, her points were infallible.
“Alright, I guess. But we don’t know where we’re going, so-“
“No prob, boss! I’d probably just wander around aimlessly, but daney’s right. Always better to travel in a pack!”
Is that what this is then? Zion thought wryly.
Zion lunged.
She screamed a shis teeth sank into her hand, the muzzle falling with a clack onto the floor. The tatse of iron filled Zion’sw mout, but he held on as she started slamming her other hand on his snout, trying to get him to pull away. The other human had moved, and Zion attempted to track him with the arm of the petson blocking most of his view. Something dark loomed in his peripheral, and suddenly a huge weight crashed into Zion’s side. He cried out, and the humanh snatched her bleeding hand away, backing quickly out of the room. Zion expected to hear more footsteps coming, but the halls were silent as he stared the male huma down. He was still gripping the chair, but neither one adred to kake the firt move. Zon watched as he backe dup slowly, brandisahing the chair as a shield. His hand snatched the lead from the wall, and the loop was around his neck before Zion could leap out of the way. He twisted and snarled, but the loop only tightened. The man yanked on the lead, cutting off Zion’s breath for a moment, and, still holding the chair, the ,man dragged Zion out of the room and dwn the hall. There was a smell of blood that permeated the hallway, and Zion tried to pause to sniff, but the nma yanked him harder. Hew didn’t think the girl had bled THAT much.
Zion scrabbled against the tile floors as he was dragged, but his claws couldn’t get a grip. The man was too strong, and too experienced dealing with dogs like Zion. The ones that didn’tr want anything to do with filthy, mange-eaten humans.
The man dragged Zion toward a door at the end of the hall, and Zion stiffrneed. The smell that leaked out of the room was a fetid mix of fear, urine, and sterility. Zion yanked harder, but the man’s foot connected with is rib cage, and that was all it trook to drag Zion into the room and slam the door shut. The man said something, and he began pushing Zion into a smaller room that smelled of oddly nothing. The lead cut into his neck, but his thick ruff gave him some cushion as Zion fought against the pull. The man raised the chair, and Zion howled as it connected with him again. A searing pain shot down his hip.
His heart beat faster as the panic started to set in.
While he was off balance, the man shoved him into the room and slammed the door. The lead was still around Zion’s neck, caught in between the door. His mouth set in a satisfied grimace, the man pressed a button and turned a lever.
There was a hiss above Zion’s head, but the air’s smell didn’t change. Zion paced, his chest heaving, his tail tucked as he turned around and around in the small room. He was getting lightheaded, and it felt like his chest was tightening. Zion froze.
The Death Room.
He had heard abut them, but not for a long time. There was something in the air that caused dogs to get weaker and weaker, until they finally collapsed, dead. That was why this room smelled of nothing, why it smelled of piss and fear.
It was a Death Room.
Zion tried to cry out, but his throat wasn’t working. He watched as the man blurred in front of him, tried to kake out the reality in the kaleidoscope of expressions that the man’s face took on depending upon what direction Zion was looking at him.
Bam!
Zion jumpe,d as sluggish as he was, as the man suddenly collapsed against the door to the Death Room. He twisted, but it was too late. Enormous jaws closed around his neck, snapping it at an odd angle. Blood sprayed the glass. Zion limped back, but the man fell away to reveal a dog he recognized. Ellaris was barking at him through the glass, but Zion couldn’t hear a thing, not even his own breating. The room shook as Ellaris slammed her fantastic bulk against the door, but it didn’t budge. Instead of ramming it again, she mouthed the locks that held the door in place. Zion’s vision swam, and he sunk doiwn to the floor.
Everything was going dark when a breath f frsh air washed over him, and largfe teeth clamped down on his scruff.
“Lupus…Zion…get…up!” Ellaris dragged him out of the room, straining him into th hall, where Zion gulped huge breaths of fresh air. As his vision slowly returned to normal, he was able to make out more of Ellaris than just a black blur.
She was a great dane, and great was certainly the right word for her. She was almost twice as tall as Zion himself. Ellaris sniffed him, her white chest lowering just a little, before she glaqnced down the hall quickly. Zion tried to see where she was looking.
“Ellaris, thanks,” he said, but the look in her eyes as she turned back to him was anything but greateful.
“Zion, save it. We need to move. Now. I’m not sure what’s going on, but…the workers are dead. All of them.” She licked her chops nervously, and Zion saw blood still staining her gums. “Something’s happened, and we need to…I don’t know, go somewhere. Not here.” She turned ervously, her whip thin tail waving slightly. Gulping a few more breaths, Zion forced his legs to stand.
“What about the others?”
“Escaped. Out. Prowling. They killed a lot of the workers.” Ellaris’ eyes were dark. “I think it’s best we leave as soon as we can. As far as I can tell we’re safe, but the humans…” Ellaris licked her chops nervously, a small string of drool dropping to the floor. “I don’t know what it was. Did you feel it, Zion?” Her eyes were pleading.
Zion paused, thinking. The memory of the woman’s bloodied hand popped back into his mind.
“I think I did. But I was too scared to really act on it.” Ellaris nodded.
“I knew it. Something’s happening. Can you walk yet?” Waving his tail in mock annoyance, Zion pranced down the hallway, giving Ellaris a look as he turned around.And the n he looked into the adoption room.
The smell of blood reeked throughout the rows of cages, most lying ajar. There were a coupew lumps on the floor, and Zion felt his stomach heave as he realized that they were human corpses.
“Yeah. It’s that bad,” Ellaris said beside him, aiming him jump. “Let’s get going. The door must be open, because nobodies here anymore.” Zion followed Ellaris as she made her way carefully through the facility. Zion still felt a repugnant niggle in his belly at the bland, sterile floors and uniform walls. Everything was too…square. At the desk in the front, two corpses lay. One was slumped behind the counter, whilke the other must have tried running. Zion and Ellaris stepped carefully around that one as they padded toward the doors. Ellaris paused, before rising to push the door open. Zion slipped through and she quickly followed before the door closed on her. The next door was the same, and finally Zion and Ellaris were in fresh air. Zion breathed in deeply, closing his eyes and savoring the feel of breath rushing into his chest.
The streets looked normal enough. The only odd part was that it was quiet. There were no humans anywhere. Ellaris was sniffing around carefully, but she shook her head at Zion’s quizzical gaze. Not waiting for the question, Ellaris set off at atrot down the street. Zion followed, scanning the houses and cars lining the streets for any other people. AS they were passing by a house overgrown with bushes and plants that had now turned into weeds, Zion stoppe,d pricking his ears. Ellaris did, too, and followed as Zion carefully crept closer.
There was a definite shuffling emanating from the back of the house. Zion glanced at Ellaris, and she took the lead. As threy crept closer, they heard grunts and yips. Ellaris suddeny burt form the bushes, and Zion followed, almost bumping into her haunches as she abruptly stopped. Zion peered around her.
The dog looked at them with a blank stare on its face, it’s owners head in its mouth.
Zion felt sick.
“Um.” Ellaris was also frozen. The dog dropped the head and trotted over to them, casually sniffing Ellaris’ rear like he hadn’t just been mauling his owner’s corpse. “Hey!” Ellaris snapped at him, her teeth suddenly pulled back to reveal teeth that even a doberman pitbull, as this dog seemed to be, would shy away from.
“Hey hey, no need to go mean on me, daney. I’m no harm, see?” Abruptly the dog roled onto his back, his light underbelly fully visible. Ellaris dropped her act; at that display, she didn’t have any other choice. She glanced over toward the dog’s owner.
“He’s dead,” the dog supplied helpfully.
“You…did….did you…kill…him?” Zion struggle dto get the words out, his mouth dry.
“Yeah, of course I did. Old bastard was the meanest guy you could ever meet. Starved me half the time and whipped me the other, keeping me chained up outside in all weather. He was gonna let me in, and I finally took the opportunity to tear that sucker’s limbs off.” The dog’s tongue lolled, and Zion felt very uncomfortable. “My name’s Petre by the way, not ‘bitch’ or ‘bastard’ like he thought,” Petre said, jerked his head in the direction of the corpse. “Idiot. I’m not a girl,” he stated, spinning so they got a good look at the fact that he was still intact. “So, where’d you guys come from? I haven’t seen you around at all. And is that blood?” Zion realized Petre was looking at him, and looked down. There was a red stain on hs chest fur, most likely from the woman he had attacked.
“Dude! Who’dja kill?” Zion shied away from Pretre’s bright eyes.
“U-um, Ellaris, I-I think we should…go…”
“So soon?” Petre’s tail drooped.
“Come with us.”
“What!?” Zion satred at Ellaris, shocked. He took a step back, his tail lowering. Ellaris’ eyes were slightly gazed, and as she talked she wasn’t blinking.
“We can use the help, Zion. Any dog who can kill a huma is worth their kibble. Besides, it could be dangerous just us two. Who knows why it’s so quiet.” Ellaris blinked, and her eyes were suddenly back to normal. As freaked out as Zion was, her points were infallible.
“Alright, I guess. But we don’t know where we’re going, so-“
“No prob, boss! I’d probably just wander around aimlessly, but daney’s right. Always better to travel in a pack!”
Is that what this is then? Zion thought wryly.