Echo (Percy)

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It was so dark. So so dark. Drip...drip...drip...The sound of water coming through the gun shot roof. The animal gnawed on the cold, metal bars, her mouth coated in dry blood. Whimpering, she circled her cell like she'd done more than she'd like to think about, collapsing in the right handed corner of her prison. Apart from the bobcat, the prison was pretty empty. No one else was behind bars and there was no guard..um...guarding. She was actually starting to wonder how she got here.

Sauntering up to the bars, she started her routine off again, gnawing on the metal bars which were coated in a layer of saliva. No teeth marks showed on the metal though as the bars were Sabertooth proof since Manic entered the glass dome. No matter how hard she chewed, nothing dentied the bar. The only thing that happened was her gums bled from the constant chewing.

Bored to hell, she circled her cell once again, the grey walls seemingly closing in around her. The darkness swallowed her as she collapsed in the left handed corner of the cell this time as her coat blended with the blackening blackness. No windows let in the sun...if there still was a sun out there. Maybe that's why she was alone? The dead sun had killed them all but her. Had the curse of the world laid on her? No! No! The bobcat could not afford to think like that. Someone was out there and they are going to rescue her in the near future!

Hopefully...

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Percylla was generally not someone who stuck her nose in the business of others without reason. It seemed today that there was a reason to do so. Curiosity never killed this cat as she slowly went to the entrance of the building with her head down. There were no guards it seemed, and the one occupant there was seemingly small or she would have either heard or seen it by now.

Her large form slowly crossed the doorway with her large ears perked forward, and attentive as she surveyed the scene. Empty... empty... empty... empty.... empty... Again empty... empty... Wait! She stopped a couple of feet just before the opening of one of the cells as the scent of the other feline finally wafted into her nostrils strong, and true. That, and the glistening of saliva on the bars would make her halt any day.

Slowly, the mute moved forward, and stared into the depths of the cage with half closed eyes to see a form curled up in the darkest reaches of the cage. God... why was it always a cage. Percylla could feel memories of the 'cage' coming back to her, but she forced such feelings, and thoughts out of her mind before huffing slightly. It may upset her slightly, but she was still curious. Why was such a small creature held up anyways? She needed to know.

Slowly, she moved over to the door of the cage, and pressed a paw against it to see how strong it was. It jiggled slightly at the lock which made her head tilt to the side. That was faulty. Her ears perked backwards further as she stood, and pushed both paws against the door, and violently she started to shake it back, and forth. Her claws dug into the metal or at least attempted to as she shook it harder, and faster with a determined twinge in her brow. Slowly, the cage's door seemed to give more, and more until the bars were bent forward just large enough for the feline to get through. A sigh escaped her as she backed up, and waited for a response.

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Creak. Creak. Creak. The bobcat's furry ears pricked up, her head picking up off the cold, concrete floor. A lioness came into view. She raised a paw, pushing on the metal bars. Her amber eyes watched the lock as it rattled against the gate. The gate and lock were faulty - she knew that. She'd tried several times to bend and batter the metal but no matter how hard she tried, the feline just wasn't strong enough. The jail was yonks old and the gates on mostly all the prisons had eroded away or rusted so much that a fly could break it but she seemed stuck in the only one that she couldn't break.

She watched the lioness, sit back and figure out a plan before the feline stood up and pressed both paws against the bars. The lioness shoved her weight against the gate, violently rocking back and forth to shake the gate. Slowly, the door to freedom opened in the form of a small, bobcat sized bend in the bars. Smiling, she pushing herself up off the floor effortlessly. Walking towards the gate, Georgia leapt through the hole, wiggling her bum slightly to help her with momentum so she didn't get stuck halfway through.

She coughed slightly, staring at the feline. She was a large lioness that was the colour of auburn-tan with a pure-white underbelly, the turf of her tail an ashen brown in colour. She looked as if she measured 7ft 9in in length and didn't look exactly chubby, measuring up around 350 lbs. Her height looked around 3’9 at the shoulder. The one thing that Georgia noticed was her offset eyes. One was the normal colour lions usually had - amber - and the other was grey-blue in colour. Her body was covered in scars, some new and some old and faded. "Thanks," was all Georgia could say.

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She was so small. Percylla's torn ears slowly perked forward before she put her head down so she was level with the other she cat with a slight tilt in her head. Her head slowly twisted, and twirled back, and forth before she nodded her head at the thank you. It was no problem is probably what she would say if she could actually respond to her. Slowly, she turned, and pointed her nose towards the door before she slowly start to make her way out of the building. Staying there to long could get both of them caught by the 'Fulsi' or whatever they are called.

The mute made her way out with her sides slowly swaying from her size. Surprisingly, she had gotten bigger since she had gotten here, and more muscled because of a steady supply of food. Most shifters seemed to be somewhat emaciated when she saw them or thin, ad she seemed to be the exact opposite of everyone else. She kept herself healthy through her eating habits, and fit by the amount of travel, and run ins with other shifters that she may have encountered during her time around this place known as the 'Menagerie.' The name itself seemed like a really bad joke.

The crazy eyed female made it outside safely with a certain swagger to the sway of her sides. She was still curious about the other feline, and why she was there, but was still smart enough to get out of the place where the other feline was confined. Percy moved into the cool air as she looked up at the graying sky with a puff from her wide nostrils. Her naturally large eyes narrowed as she looked behind her to see if the bobcat was following her. A deep breathe came out of throat before she continued walking.

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The lioness nodded her head down to her as if to say no problem before standing straight to her full height and looking towards the door. Dim light shone throught the exit, giving Georgia's mind the sudden spur of freedom. The lioness seemed keen to move as if something was about to jump out and attack her. Maybe something was going to attack. Georgia had no idea of the strange, new surroundings and didn't have a clue what type of creatures lived outside the cage.

The silent one slinked forwards, her body swaying as she walked. The bobcat followed tentatively, not sure what might be lurking. It could be a trap for all she knew but followed anyway, not really wanting to question her rescuer. Her mind drifted, noticing that the feline wasn't exactly thin looking. Maybe there was promise in this new land - food for all creatures. Georgia looked at her own chubby belly, thinking she couldn't really say much as she wasn't exactly slim either. The bobcat enjoyed food and ate whenever she could but spending however many days meant that her stomach had emptied and she felt...hungry. Maybe this lioness could teach her the ways of survival out here.

As her paws grazed the first of the bare land since arriving here in the Menagerie, she felt kind of disappointed. In the bobcat's mind, this was going to be a field full of fresh spring grass with food galore grazing upon the paddock. But no. The ground was bare and dull, almost grey from the lack of sun. Trees surrounded the jail, making it seem quite and enclosed area. They were tall and big, blocking out the sun from the ground below. The only light came from the small, round gap in the tree top that spotlighted the jail as if it were some kind of trophy. She snorted, a cloud of fog appearing in front of her, reminding her how cold it really was outside. She was starting to like the comfort of her jail now and was very tempted to run back inside again.

Staring forwards, she watched Percylla turn around to check that she was following. She nodded her head at the feline, listening to the deep throated breath she drew before continuing her walk. The spotty feline followed her, her eyes darting about, searching for danger lurking in the shadows. Now she was really regretting leaving the safety of her prison cell. At least it was warmer. A gust of wind blew at the two cats, making Georgia shiver violently. Her body was not yet used to the glass dome's temperature. Why of all places had she ended up here? No food, no light, cold conditions. There was probably too much water and a lot of mud too! Urg...I hate my life...

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This place was barren, yes, but it was easy enough to get out of the territory from here, but they needed to move quickly before either a storm took hold or someone saw them. She must have been put there for a reason, and it was probably best to get out of the area as soon as they possibly could. A deep grumbled left her at the thought of moving faster, she may be muscular, but moving faster than a walk was never something that she particularly enjoyed. Her tail flicked to the side in annoyance as she turned to look back at the other she cat.

They needed to move fast, and the best way to do it was to either carry or have the other feline ride on her back like a horse. Percylla sat there thinking for a while with her ears twitching forward, and backwards, almost like they were radars so she could keep an eye on any creatures that may be near by. There may not be anyone in sight, but it was easy to hide in such a place. It was barren yes, but the worse enemies hid amongst the rolling banks, and slopes of this damned desert.

Ever so slowly Percy pushed her front down so her rump was in the air, and she was crouched in the front. She eyed the smaller feline before letting off a deep chuffing sound before pointing her nose at her own back as if telling her to get on her already. Come on. Come on. The girl needed to get on her back if she wanted to get out of here, and find a good abundance of food. It may be winter, but there would be some kind deer that were moving around outside theses borders. She could sense it.

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Percylla sped up her walk, the bobcat trotting along quickly to catch up with the feline's long strides. She turned back to look at Georgia, sitting down. Her tail swished in annoyance as she thought about where to go next. Suddenly, she arose, staring at her. Georgia watched her care fully as she slowly pushed forwards into a 'Let's play' position with her rump in the air. Eyeing her up, the lioness looked towards the small bobcat before looking at her back.

Sensing she needed to hurry up, she cantered up to the lioness, launching herself into the air into a small jump, landing lightly on Percylla's back. "Okay," she said in a straightforward voice, plonking her backside on the cat's back carefully. The feline seemed to know something Georgia didn't so she felt the feline rise and move off.

Trying not to tract her claws into the lion, she used her hips and flexible skeleton she had to move with Percy and not against her. She lowered her head so they could move faster, wondering if it would help with her balance too. It did...almost. She wobbled a little as the feline quickened but she didn't fall off like she'd thought so she had a little celebration inside her head before a scent hit her nose. It smelt...familiar.

Deer. The image popped into her head as she realised what they were heading towards. Finally! A chance to hunt for something to eat. No one had fed her in that prison of her's and she felt as if she was wasting away almost. She wasn't, of course. She came into the dome overweight so perhaps the time in the cage had helped her a little.

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Her stride was long, and powerful, but had a strange smoothness about it as she continued to gain speed. Her tail slowly rose in the air, and flicked back, and forth. Her large ears twitched back against her head as she seemed to get faster, and faster. Her large nostrils flared as she moved gracefully through the land as her eyes stared off into the horizon. It would be a while until they made it out of the territory, and onto neutral ground, but she could already smell the fresh scent of game slowly coming back into the landscape. She could feel a curl in her belly, and lightness in her step that was not there before. It took a full hour, and a half for her to get to the border, and she did not seem to be that tired as she moved into a trot once she was past it.

Unceremoniously, she shirked her shoulders, and shook off the other feline before looking at her, shaking her head, and stalking off. She needed to find food, and she could still feel the scent of deer fresh within her nostrils. She took off into a lumbering trot on a very used game path before coming to a stop fifty yards away. At this time of day, deer were all bedded down, and sleeping. She was just lucky enough to be near one of their bedding areas. She pushed herself into a deep crouch before stalking deeper into the forested area. Her mismatched eyes narrowed further as she slowly grew closer, and closer to her intended prey.

She was never the most graceful creature, but as of late she had found herself lighter on her feet. Her movements were softer, and she could move silently at a faster pace. She could see the portly form of the deer curled up, and sleepily chewing in a dazed state. It was not long before she was mere feet away from the unknowing creature. She pounced forward, and a distressed animal call was heard. The struggle was quick, and it was not long before she slowly started to drag the food out of the wooded area back towards the feline she had carried all this way.

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Slowly but steadily, the large lioness gathered speed. She felt every step the feline took as Georgia cowered low on her back for aerodynamic purposes. Her ears flicked back, now liking the noise the rush of wind was making as it hurried past her. Percy's strides were gentle and graceful, even at the speed they were travelling at and it almost made the bobcat fall asleep. As the neared the bordered, the slight wisp of game passed her nostrils, making her ears prick for a second before they fell back down from the force of the air.

Finally, after a hour and a half, the feline came to a halt to gather her breath before trotting forwards beyond the border even more. Eventually though, Percy got tired of carrying her weight and shook, knocking Georgia off balance and onto the floor. Gathering her body off the floor, the bobcat looked at the lioness sweetly, the lioness looking back with more of an expressionless face. Gently, she shook her head before stalking off, leaving the bobcat alone. The fresh scent of deer was so strong now, Georgia felt herself slavering. She wanted to follow, to help, but she stayed put. If Percy had wanted her help she would have said or signed or something...wouldn't she?

Lying down, she waited for the lioness to come back with her first meal since entering the glass dome. The smell of death suddenly, filled the air, the fresh, bloody scent catching her wandering attention. She sat up, ears pricked, as the wind blew a sound of rustling trees toward her. The lioness had half carried, half dragged the dead deer's corpse to her, dropping it on the floor in the clearing that they were in. Gratefully, the bobcat nodded her head, saying a pleasant "Thank you" to the lioness before burying her dry, furry muzzle into the fresh flesh. She teared the deer apart, enjoying the meal. It was tender and young making the meat tasty than if the deer was an old one. She made sure she left enough for Percy as she had done the hard work but she needed to fill her empty stomach. Being locked in that cage with nothing hadn't helped her and she had come out skinnier than she was when she was put in.