Animation Source Forums

Katya had been slumped over in what she now called her prison. Her brown eyes were closed, her body trembling like a leaf in the wind. She had always been fearful of humans, and being handled by them was too much for the Dalmatian to handle. Her neck still throbbed from where she had tugged against the metal chain they had put on her. She desperately wished to be out of this awful place, to be back on the streets. And where was Chase?

The thought of her friend going through all of this too didn't make Katya feel any better. She opened her eyes and looked around, searching for Chase's familiar face. It wasn't long before she heard his desperate call, and she responded, her heart pounding. "Chase!" she barked back, relieved to hear his voice. "I'm over here!"

Chase nearly passed out from the relief that came with hearing Katya's voice. "Thank god! You're okay!" Chase responded. He could now rest knowing that Katya was alright. "You sound nearby," he said in a softer voice. He pressed his ears to the wall on his left to try and hear the familiar movements of his spotted friend. He wasn't sure, though. After all, he hadn't known Katya for that long. Just a little while, if you thought for enough time.

And eventually, though his mind was still on Katya, his muscles and the other half of his brain were slipping. He found himself gnawing on the fence again, trying desperately to get out but to no avail. It's no use, he firmly told himself. Although he was still biting and clawing at the metal. It seemed to be gaining scratches and wear, but it wouldn't budge or break. And that made Chase frustrated. Even more so than earlier.

Before he even fully knew what he was doing, Chase felt a sharp pain shoot up his shoulders and across his back. And even a bang at his forehead as he attempted to run into the gate using his own body. Maybe the weight would do something, a part of his mind reasoned. Or maybe you're just becoming desperate, the other deflected.

"Chase," Katya said, having heard banging and gnawing sounds coming from where she had heard his voice, "you have to calm down. I'm just as scared and frustrated as you are, but hurting yourself won't help any. You have to wait and save your strength, okay?"

Chase was about to charge into the fence again when he heard Katya's voice reminding him to come back to reality. Well, perhaps not directly, but just hearing it jerked him out of his trance. "Yeah, you're right," he said, and slowly but promptly lied down right where he had been standing. He groaned as he realized just how hard he had hit himself against the metal. He could have seriously injured himself had it not been for Katya.

"Thanks, Katya," he said. "I don't know what I was thinking..." Chase reflected upon the moment, but still was confused about his reasoning. He remembered the voices in his head, but he didn't seem to recall why he was listening so intently to them. Maybe it was because he would do anything to escape. "Katya, how are we supposed to get out?" He asked grimly, quietly, and hopelessly.

"They're gonna have to take us out of here eventually," Katya said. "When they do we'll take our chance and fight back. Then we'll escape."