“That looks bad…”
“Trust me, he got the best deal out of the four of us…”
Kayen and Phovos glanced up at the fleshy machinery above them, Phovos signing in disbelief and Kayen feeling too embarrassed to ask what the machines were actually doing. Tubes and pipes fed in and out of rose-tinted cells, each one containing a Temthan or Temthan-like being. The tubes would lead off into goodness knows where, taking various fluids with them.
“Still looks bad.”
“It is. But at least they’re drugged into being happy.”
Phovos eyed each cell, trying to peer inside, but the frosted, gooey, semi-translucent material that made up each cell was too hard to see through. Occasionally, the material would flicker, giving a brief insight to the cell’s contents.
“We need to find Timik.”
Kayen nodded, then started looking around, rubbing his neck occasionally. For some reason, he ached all over and he didn’t know why. Maybe it was because he had been basically been Phovos’s crutch. Or maybe it was because he hadn’t eaten in a while, and the only thing he’d had to drink was some indescribable liquid he had found, so his body was protesting.
Thankfully, Timik was a pretty unique-looking Temthan, with cream and purple scales and an odd pair of spikes on his shoulders. The problem was that there were several cream-looking creatures in several pods all close to each other, and neither Kayen nor Phovos could tell which one was their friend.
“Maybe we should just free all of them…” Kayen muttered.
“What, and trigger any potential alarms?” Phovos sneered. She was walking better now, but she was still limping. She’d try and jump up to get a closer look at the cells, but every time she landed she’d grunt in pain.
“I broke you out and nothing happened…”
“Good point.”
Phovos started looking around for something sharp. There was no way she could claw through the weird material, but if she could make a hole, she could at least peer inside. Kayen had wandered off, but that didn’t matter. He was probably checking the other cells in case they’d missed Timik elsewhere.
But after a little searching, all Phovos found was old, fleshy tendrils that the organic machinery had clearly shed.
Suddenly, something moved. A wave of golden liquid washed over Phovos as the pods all opened up, revealing their contents. The beings inside were drugged and naked, with suction devices covering their prone areas.
“What the ever loving fuck is all of that?” Kayen screeched as he looked away.
“Milking machines…” Phovos wiped the slime off her face. Just having it contact her skin made her feel a bit weird. She felt… happier, maybe?
“But…” Kayen stutted. “Like, a third of these beings look male…”
“They still have things worth milking…”
“Like wh- Oh. Oh…” Kayen fell silent. Phovos spotted him wandering back through the gloom and reddish lights. “That’s absolutely horrible.”
“Yep…” Phovos sighed. With the pods open, she could clearly see who was who. Timik was hanging in one of the closer pods, his tongue flopping about.
Kayen stood next to her and looked up at Timik. He was quite high up.
“I assume you want to climb on my shoulders to cut him down?” Kayen asked.
“Yes, I do.”
“Not the other way around?”
“You weigh more than me.”
“True.”
Kayen sighed, then kneeled down so Phovos could climb on his shoulders. He groaned awkwardly as he straightened himself out. Phovos then grabbed onto the edge of the cell that contained Timik, using her claws to grip the cell walls tightly.
“Get ready to catch him.”
“Wait what-”
Before Kayen could properly react, Phovos cut Timik free, first by cutting the tubes that were feeding in and out of the poor Temthan, then by slicing through his restraints. Timik fell freely, landing on top of Kayen. It probably would have hurt more had Kayen not already been in pain.
“Fuck you…”
“Sorry, I didn’t think he would instantly fall…” Phovos leaped down and helped Kayen out from under Timik. Immediately, Timik began to stir. He rolled over, growling and snarling. He started sniffing the air, then looked directly at Phovos. He realised that he wasn’t somewhere good and shook violently, trying to clear his head.
“By the Allbirther… You saved me…” Timik groaned, then fell silent, realising what he just said. But he didn’t start talking again, not until Phovos and Kayen tried to help him to his feet. While he accepted Kayen’s help, he pushed Phovos away.
“Timik.”
“Please. Give me a minute…” Timik kneeled down, holding himself tightly.
“What’s wrong?” Phovos asked.
Timik grunted, shying away from the Ksithan. “I saw you, you’re battered but still beautiful. And all I thought about for a second was… was… I don’t know. My instincts nearly took over, and if they had, I probably would have tried to fuck you…”
Before Phovos could say anything, Kayen was grabbing them both by the shoulders and pulling them away.
“Guys, we need to move. There’s something heading our way!”
Phovos glanced at Timik. Neither of them said anything. They didn’t have time to. After a handful of sighs, they got up and followed Kayen down the hallway, not sure what the little Skyavok was suddenly so afraid of.