The Matriarch smiled and gazed into the younger woman's eyes, and replied in the same language, "I'm not made of glass, Desta. I decide when I need to leave. I also decide where I go and when. I am not so old or decrepit to need you looking out for me. Am I understood?"

The younger woman nodded and lowered her eyes respectfully. Aiman and Acharya shared a look with Mary, Tara, Malikah, and Asclepius. No one asked what was said, the younger woman's expression told them what they needed to know. The subservience of the Bultungin to their Matriarch would always be a bit jarring and alien. But they weren't here to judge their allies' culture or their hierarchy.

Mary broke the awkward silence asking, "What's going on with the rest of us? Did anyone one else make it?"

"Good question," Acharya asked as he reached for where the radio he carried used to be. "Umm… did anyone happen to catch a radio, that just so happened to fly off me?" He got nothing but heads shaking in his direction, "Well that's a problem. I guess for the time being, unless someone finds us, we're on our own."

"Then I suggest we keep moving, we continue with your people's plan and sweep each floor on the way up," the Matriarch stated.

"There's nothing else we can do, let's go," Acharya said cheerfully.

They moved down the hallway at a steady pace, they were moving with more caution than they had before the explosion, but they didn't want to sacrifice too much speed in that effort. If the Matriarch was correct and the vampires were watching them, and he had to assume they were, then no amount of speed was going to help them here. Still, taking a thousand years to sweep a floor wouldn't help either, so they moved at an increased pace, sacrificing some security for time, a worthy trade off in this place, one he would make every time if given the option.

The werewolves took point and the Bultungin were clumped in a loose group behind them, protecting their Matriarch. Acharya pushed open a set of double doors and moved into a wide conference room that ran perpendicular to the hallway they just exited. The werewolves entered, but before the Bultungin could follow a set of steel doors sliced through the air of the open doorway, slamming into place and locking into the floor, sealing the werewolves in, and the Bultungin out.

Aiman struck at the steel with his claws and tried to rip open the door, but the curtain of steel separating the two groups was thick and his claws made only minor scratches. He couldn't budge the doors even with his Enforcer strength.

Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site.

"You were saying something about a 'fun house,' Tara?" Acharya asked.

Tara shook her head, her black and brown fur fluffed out around her neck with the sudden movement, "I had nothing to do with this, don't look at me like I somehow spoke this into existence."

"I never said you did," Acharya said with a smile, "but 'fun house' seems to be a perfect way to describe this place."

"Something's wrong," Malikah said suddenly. Her nose was to the air and sniffing.

Acharya had learned long ago to never question his people, and right now his Tracker had his full attention, "What?"

Malikah shook her head then her eyes narrowed, "Its sleeping gas, some sort of sedative, and a powerful one. If we don't get out of here, we'll all be asleep in about twenty seconds."

Aiman needed no further convincing. He took off at a sprint down the long boardroom, sprinting on all fours, heading straight for the double doors at the far end of the room. He pulled up short of the doors and punched his fist into them.

The bone crunching sound that reverberated across the room was felt by all of them. Aiman, forever the stoic only let his now useless and shattered claw lay limply by his side. The faux wood of the double doors was shattered, but past the brown splintered hole, they could see gleaming stainless steel, presumably the same as the doors that had locked them into the boardroom in the first place.

Aiman turned around and faced his pack. Pain was written all over his features and body posture, "It would seem that I am in need of healing, Asclepius."

The pack Healer headed over to their Enforcer, but before he got halfway down the table, his steps faltered and he sank to his knees. He tried to get back up, hauling himself up by the boardroom chairs lining the table next to him, but stumbled, and fall onto his back, his eyes struggled to stay open, but he lost the fight quickly and fell asleep where he lay.

Aiman was next and fall backwards against the wall, before teetering over and falling to the floor.

One by one the pack fell asleep, powerless against the invisible gas. Malikah was able to resist it the longest, and as she sank slowly to her knees, she couldn't help but think, if the vampires could gas them why only use sleeping gas? Why not kill them outright?

"Slaves,"

Malikah looked over to see Acharya's eyes were closed, but he was answering her unasked question, "Kenneth wants to break us, to dominate us to his will. He wants... to…" a huge yawn split his face open and interrupted his speech. Malikah let her eyes close too. "wants to… do whaaat he couldnn't do to Ansuya….he wannntss slavvve…sss…"

The werewolves succumbed to the gas and slept. Malikah didn't dream.

* * * * *

"Matriarch, what happened?!"

"Where did those doors come from?"

"How do we get to the werewolves?"

The Matriarch was suddenly under a barrage of questions and concerns from her people.

"We have to get you out now!" it was Desta again.

"We can't leave the werewolves in there, we don't know what's happening," It was a male, one that she couldn't remember his name, Negash, or something.

"Are we really going to leave them?"

"Enough," The Matriarch stated coldly.

All of her people grew silent at her word.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.