In a dark cell, seemingly in some sort of basement, sits Ali, who has just woken up. She still has the muzzle on her beautiful face, and her hands are cuffed in front of her with what appear to be extremely durable restraints, resistant to any attempt to cut the chains.

  She gnces to the side and stands up, realizing she’s not alone. As she approaches, she notices Kaia and Sarah—two people she doesn’t know yet but who feel strangely familiar.

  “...Where are we?”

  Kaia gets up, looks at Ali, and simply shrugs. She, too, is cuffed like Ali, and the same goes for Sarah.

  “Looks like a basement… I haven’t seen any jailer yet. There’s just… Hey, what’s your name, blondie?”

  Sarah stands up and introduces herself quickly.

  “Sarah Hearts… I’m from Neko City.”

  Ali observes Sarah for a moment longer, feeling like she recognizes her. Her first theory is that Sarah might be part of the Firebirds, so she asks:

  “Do you also have a tattoo shaped like a bird on fire?”

  Sarah nods quickly, confirming Ali’s theory.

  “I’m Ali… And the maid over there is Kaia, who’s traveling with us.”

  The blonde stares at the maid for a few moments and raises an eyebrow.

  “...You look a lot like Jane… Sorrowman?”

  The maid tilts her head to the side before replying without hesitation:

  “Oh yes, that’s my twin sister. I’m also from Neko City.”

  “Well, nice to meet you… Your sister’s a friend of mine.”

  Kaia smiles, but Ali interrupts this seemingly off-topic exchange, bringing the focus back to the situation at hand.

  “Ladies, we need a pn to get out of this cell. If it’s the Martyrs who captured us, there’s a good chance they’ll try to kill us…”

  Sarah looks confused when Ali mentions the Martyrs and can’t help but ask the others what they mean. Kaia ends up giving her a brief expnation of what she knows about the group, and Sarah nods.

  “So that’s the Martyrs… Maybe Dena has information about them. I always feel like she knows everything.”

  Kaia clearly knows Dr. Dena, but Ali doesn’t seem to recognize the name. However, that isn’t the most important issue right now. The priority is figuring out a way to escape.

  “These cuffs are incredibly tough—there’s no way to break them, and the door looks solid, like steel…”

  The three girls start exploring the basement, but there’s nothing in the area. The only thing Sarah finds is a heart-shaped pin she instantly recognizes, and she can’t help but let out a small sigh.

  “Zy… she was here…”

  Sarah carefully pces the pin into one of her pockets and returns to the others.

  “My friend… Zye was here. I found her pin.”

  Ali and Kaia exchange gnces before looking back at Sarah. They share their findings, but unfortunately, neither of them has discovered anything useful. Suddenly, the door swings open, and a guard enters, pointing directly at Ali. He’s armed with a pistol.

  “The wolf, you’re coming with me.”

  Ali gives Kaia and Sarah one st look before stepping toward the guard, who leads her away. She is marched through brick-lined hallways that resemble the sprawling tunnels of a massive basement—or worse, an underground city filled with byrinthine passageways.

  The guard eventually brings Ali to an office, opens the door, and forces her to sit down before leaving her alone, locking the door behind him. The room is nearly empty, containing only a simple table and a few chairs. The air is stale, and the space feels suffocating.

  After a few minutes, a mist begins to fill the room. Something seems to be taking form in the chair opposite Ali. As the mist clears, it reveals a woman with rabbit ears—and not just that, but angelic wings as well. She smiles.

  “Welcome, little Firebird.”

  Ali can’t help but shiver as she looks at her. Angels are divine beings who serve the gods. The one sitting before her is likely a servant of Bunnae, the goddess of Rabbits. The rabbit angel wears a crisp white shirt and a short bck skirt. Her wide smile sends chills down Ali’s spine.

  “...An angel? What are you doing here?”

  The angel suddenly teleports behind Ali, gently stroking her ears. She begins whispering softly in her ear.

  “Protector of Lupa, the wolf goddess… little Firebird, Ali… you’re wondering what I’m doing here, aren’t you?”

  Ali nods, her ears trembling from the touch. She jerks her head to escape the unsettling caress.

  “Well, let me tell you—I am the leader of the Martyrs. I control this group under the command of the goddess Bunnae. And you, little wolf, are going to become one of us.”

  Ali shakes her head violently, refusing to yield to the person holding her captive.

  “Why would I ever join your cult of degenerates?!”

  The angel grabs Ali by the hair, making her yelp in pain. Her voice remains calm but ced with menace.

  “Because once my pn is complete, you won’t be ensved… This world is meant to be ruled by one species alone: the rabbits. And all the Martyrs who join me will have the privilege of dominating the world. Isn’t that a marvelous reason to join me?”

  Ali feels a wave of dread wash over her. A world ruled by rabbits? The thought is incomprehensible. Her pride as a wolf won’t allow her to bow to another species.

  “I will never join you. I’m no foolish wolf.”

  The angel lets go of Ali’s hair and smacks her on the back of the head, visibly irritated.

  “Fine. Then prepare to submit. I only need one of you to join my cause to disrupt Lupa’s pn. Guard! Take her away and bring me the blonde!”

  The guard nods and escorts Ali out, leaving the angel alone in the office.

  Pov Taiwo (A-B)

  Taiwo was in her office, reviewing the various morning affairs, when someone knocked on the door. She granted them permission to enter.

  The person who entered was Ladi, her chief advisor. She pced a file on Taiwo’s desk and quickly reported:

  “We have news about the girls you’ve been looking for. They were spotted at the Kayode port. They were arrested alongside what seems to be their friend for transporting an illegal weapon.”

  Taiwo opened the file, which contained photographs. As she examined them, she instantly recognized the individuals—they were the ones from her dream. She was certain of it.

  “These are the girls I’m searching for. Do we know their current location?”

  Ladi shook her head quickly.

  “Negative, Madam Prime Minister. The van that was supposed to transport them to the Kayode police station never arrived, and they’re not at the station either.”

  Taiwo gripped the pen in her hand tightly. The two girls she had been searching for had vanished, and she still had no information on the other two. She suspected that something—or someone—had intervened in their capture.

  “Send my secret agents to the port and into the city. We must find them at all costs.”

  “Understood, Madam!”

  Ladi nodded and exited the room. Taiwo rose from her chair and gnced at the calendar hanging on the wall, which was filled with notes.

  The names of several leaders were listed, as the week marked a significant event: the grand assembly of southern nations. This gathering, held every five years, served as a ptform to discuss international retions and establish new trade routes. Many heads of state had already arrived, and Taiwo had greeted and met with them, including the Queen of Felicity, the Prime Minister of the Empire, several sultans from various Emirates, and the King of Virham.

  This was undoubtedly a critical moment for the kingdom, and Taiwo remained vigint. The friendships between the southern nations were fragile. While the wars had ceased, the wounds each country bore were still fresh.

  A single political misstep could reignite a rge-scale conflict, and Taiwo was determined to ensure peace for her kingdom and its people.

  Another knock came at the door. Once again, she was granted permission to enter. This time, it was a giraffe man—one of her diplomats.

  “Madam Prime Minister, the prince and princess of Kuwar are in the reception hall.”

  Kuwar was an Emirate located to the southwest of the kingdom, naturally separated from it by a vast river. Retions between the two nations were good, with trade treaties bringing significant benefits to both sides.

  Taiwo descended to the reception hall, where a small entourage awaited—ten individuals in total, including eight armed guards in military uniforms and the prince and princess. The prince greeted her with a broad gesture.

  “Sam, Prime Minister. I trust you are well.”

  Taiwo gave him a polite nod.

  “Yes, I am very well, thank you. How was your journey?”

  “Wonderful. Your kingdom has such beautiful ndscapes.”

  Taiwo smiled as she shook the prince’s hand.

  “Thank you. We do our best to preserve our environment as much as we can.”

  The prince chuckled before shifting to a more serious tone.

  “Now, let’s speak frankly. Oil prices are beginning to rise, and I will have to increase our rates. I hope we can negotiate a deal that benefits us both.”

  Taiwo ughed nervously. She was reluctant to alter the existing agreement with the Emirate but didn’t want to explore alternative sources of oil either.

  “Yes, of course. We can discuss this in my office during the coming week. For now, I imagine you must want to rest. My diplomat will escort you to one of our most luxurious hotels.”

  Pov Kaia (B)

  In the celr, Kaia and Sarah were busy coming up with a pn to escape. They had searched the area multiple times but found nothing they could use. Kaia shook her handcuffs—they were so heavy that she could barely move her hands. She could have tried to pick the lock with Sarah's heart-shaped hairpin, but it seemed like an impossible task.

  As Kaia walked along the wall, an idea suddenly struck her. She stopped by the light switch, looked at her handcuffs, and smiled. Turning to Sarah, she nodded slightly. Sarah quickly joined her.

  “I’m guessing the guard who took Ali will come back to grab one of us. Maybe we can try surprising him. Turn off the lights and use the handcuffs to knock him out. What do you think?”

  “That’s not a bad idea. We’ve got nothing else to try anyway,” Sarah agreed. She used her elbow to turn off the light, plunging the celr into complete darkness.

  The girls waited silently for the guard to return with Ali. Time dragged on, but finally, they heard the key turning in the lock, and the door creaked open. Ali entered first, followed by the guard.

  “The blonde, it’s your tu—”

  The guard didn’t even finish his sentence. Kaia struck him hard on the head with her heavy handcuffs, sending him to the ground. Kaia and Sarah immediately jumped on him, raining blows with their handcuffs until he was unconscious.

  Ali watched, visibly a bit shocked, but relieved and happy that they had managed to overpower the guard.

  Kaia searched through the guard’s belongings and found a key. She quickly used it to free Ali first, since her own handcuffs were impossible to unlock with her restrained hands. Once Ali was freed, she helped Kaia and Sarah, and the three girls were finally unshackled and ready to escape.

  They crept cautiously into the corridor, attempting to stay as quiet as possible. However, they encountered another guard, whom they quickly neutralized. Ali grabbed the guard’s weapon, being the most experienced in handling firearms.

  As they made their way up to the surface, they encountered several more guards, battling their way through. The pce was enormous, with countless corridors branching off in different directions. They had no map, no clear path to follow, and they decided that the best course was to keep moving upward, believing the exit had to be at the top.

  After what felt like an eternity of wrong turns and dead ends, they finally came to a stop in front of a dead end. On the wall to the side, Sarah noticed a lever. She pulled it, and a hidden passage opened before them, leading to another celr. This new passage was concealed behind an old wardrobe.

  The girls climbed an old staircase leading out of the celr and found themselves in an abandoned living room. They cautiously stepped outside the house, gncing around. They were still in the Kingdom, but they had no idea where.

  They didn’t have much time to figure it out, though. The guards pursuing them burst out of the celr behind them.

  “There are way too many of them,” Ali observed, gncing at Kaia and Sarah for a pn. A direct confrontation was out of the question. Their only hope was to run.

  Kaia quickly proposed an idea. “Let’s split up. If we can divide them, we might have a better chance of losing them.”

  Sarah and Ali nodded in agreement. Without hesitation, they each ran in a different direction. Ali headed south, Kaia went east, and Sarah took the west route.

  Kaia sprinted as fast as she could, two guards close on her trail. They were dressed as city guards, but Kaia couldn’t tell if they were members of the Martyrs disguised as guards or if they were real guards working for the Martyrs. Either way, it didn’t matter now.

  She crossed a bridge and turned into a narrow alleyway, counting on the twisting paths to throw the guards off her trail. Left, then right—she made random turns in the hopes of confusing them. Finally, she spotted a wooden fence and used her semi-cat agility to slip behind it and out of sight.

  Kaia crouched down, hiding behind the fence. Her chest heaved as she struggled to catch her breath. It had been a long time since she’d run so hard. She slid down to the ground, her back against the wooden pnks.

  For now, she was safe. But the chase wasn’t over, and she knew she couldn’t stay hidden here for long. She needed to think of her next move—and fast.

  .. ..  .  .

  Pov Eliana (A)

  Eliana woke up in the bed of a motel, her eyes fluttering open to find a figure sitting by her bedside—a bck-haired demi-cat watching her intently. Still dressed under the covers, Eliana blinked in confusion, her memories of the previous night hazy and fragmented.

  “You’re finally awake? After what those bastards did, I’m not surprised. My sister went down from the same type of tranquilizer, though I’ll admit, it’s curious. My sister passed out immediately, but you… It looked like you resisted for longer. Sara, any thoughts?”

  Sara, who was seated at the desk reviewing her notes, sighed and shook her head.

  “I can’t find anything definitive. But if you ask me, I’d guess the tranquilizers were designed for demi-humans. After all, the Kingdom is 80% demi-human—it wouldn’t surprise me if that’s the case.”

  “And… who are you?”

  Eliana’s voice was hesitant as she looked between the two women, completely lost. They exchanged gnces before introducing themselves briefly. Their expnations seemed to ease Eliana’s initial distrust, helping her feel more at ease with the people who had taken her in.

  “So, you’re Firebirds as well? Yes… I remember you now. When I first arrived in the city, you were already there…”

  Mikki nodded in confirmation.

  “That’s right. My sister and I are Firebirds. Sara, our friend here, is helping us. She’s a fountain of knowledge, just like her mother.”

  Sara beamed proudly at the compliment, and Eliana quickly asked another question.

  “Do you know anything about our enemies?”

  Both Mikki and Sara shook their heads, clearly still in the dark about the identity of the antagonists in this story. That prompted Eliana to recount what she knew about the group.

  “They’re called the Martyrs.”

  Sara’s expression turned contemptive, her brow furrowed as she tried to recall any mention of such a group.

  “Maybe my mother knows something about them. I’ll send her a message,” Sara said, pulling out her device.

  Mikki nodded in agreement before turning her attention to the map she had purchased.

  “We’re just a few kilometers from the capital. The tracker shows that Sarah is somewhere in the city. The closer we get, the more precise it will be.”

  Mikki looked at Eliana and gestured toward the bathroom door.

  “Go get changed. We’re leaving in an hour.”