Factory Reset

Chapter Seventeen: Captured again?

A cold feeling washed over Mason, his heart suddenly taking a dive into his chest. He had no idea why it happened, but the words that were uttered, even if he didn't hear them completely, scared him to his very core.

The words seemed to wash over all of them, as it would seem. Both Marissa and Axel seemed to wake up. Marissa woke up so suddenly that Hannah was nearly flung off of her as she bolted upright. Both seemed wide awake and feared dotted their eyes.

They all stared at the barricaded door, not knowing why they were so fearful for uttered words they barely heard. The very air itself was stained with fear. As it seems, blinding light emitted from the outside, shining directly into the once pleasantly lit store.

Three lonesome figures approached the main door, their outlines clearly indicating their species: Foxes. The air grew colder still, all being able to see their own breath as they breathed in sharply, hearing the main door begin to squeak open.

B-64 expected some resistance to the tons of furniture stacked against the glass door, but it just gave way easily. Mason knew it was not due to him not stacking properly, as he had meticulously made sure that every piece was sound and flush against each other.

The air took another dive in temperature, Hannah shivering alongside Mason and the rest. A lone figure walked inside, a strut to their walk that although wasn't imposing, still managed to cause dread seep into their very being.

B-64 was the first to stand up, mechanical whirrs and trills emitting from his parts as he stood. His entire body was numb to the core, but if what he was feeling was danger, he wouldn't hesitate to protect his Mason and his friends.

A soft buzzing sound emitted, alongside the blue haze of blue-hard light as his shield extended out from his arm, technicolor strobes of light emitting as the generator went into overdrive. The sheer dread that he felt caused it to overreact.

The fox stopped for a moment, turning his head to get a better look at the shield. He turned again, pressing a small device alongside his right ear, "Target confirmed and non-hostile. Defensive. Activate the anchors."

Soon after he finished saying that, B-64 felt a wave of energy pulse through his entire body. It felt like every molecule in him was being torn apart. He dropped to the ground, his shield fizzling like there was no energy to support it's generator.

An abhorrent noise spun through his head, tearing through his encoded sound blockers and sinking it's rotten teeth in his mind. It slowly began to fade as he felt energy being drained from his body, slowly evaporating until just a sliver remained.

Mason quickly rushed to his side, digging his heel into the ground and pushing up with his paws, managing to prop B-64 up on his shoulders as he was too weak to do anything resembling standing.

Hannah instantly shouted in anger, her little face deformed into a harsh display of child-like wrath. She screamed loudly for their heads, yelling so hard that as the fox began to walk towards B-64, she nearly shot her vocal cords.

Axel and Marissa sat, stupefied as they watched the fox walk up to Mason and B-64, finally breaching into the light of the store.

The fox was a light beige color, a fair cream under his jaw, and the tips of his ears seemed to be gnawed off. He was wearing what looked like a guards uniform, but somehow more imposing, like the aura that encapsulated it's being was forged from pure dread.

He reached up to a small earpiece in his ear, speaking, "Target nullified. Requesting Anchors be turned off." And they were, as B-64 felt somewhat better, but still not strong enough to stand on his own.