Skye rested his head against the pillow of the hospital bed, restless beyond words. He wasn't sure what time it was - with no phone handy and no clock on any nearby walls, he almost felt like he was trapped in some strange limbo.

At the very least, the hospital was clean and didn't smell too strongly of disease. The white paint with teal décor gave the place a modern feel, contradicting everything Lower Miyatama stood for. Even the staff members were nice; a surprising number of the nurses were robots - less room for error that way? Skye wondered. It didn't bother him, rather, it further piqued his interest about mechanical citizens' roles in human society.

But that was about it. He was stuck in the hospital with nothing more than his thoughts, and the occasional flicker of pain.

It was a dislocated shoulder, the nurses told him. Skye was certain it happened when the monster had yanked him out of his room, seeing as that was when the first blast of pain erupted from his shoulder. The doctors had carefully resocketed the joint with what was the strangest feeling he'd ever experienced. It was still sore, but he'd been given some painkillers and a shoulder brace to ease the brunt of the pain.

As for his head, yes, it was a concussion. "It's not too serious. I doubt you'll experience any long-term issues," one of the nurses had told him. They'd done a thorough scan of his head with some unfamiliar hospital equipment, and found no bleeding around his brain. The external bleeding, however, required a few stitches.

Aside from all that, he'd been a bit banged up from the fall. His hip and the surrounding area had a few nasty bruises, but no other serious injuries.

Skye considered himself lucky, given the circumstances. The hospital staff still wanted to keep him in for at least a night to ensure there weren't any complications with his head or shoulder, which is largely what was taxing on his mind. His sudden absence from society couldn't have come at a worse time.

Those sharks... I need to pay them something by Sunday! But I don't know what day it is... probably Saturday, right? Fuck. He'd slept for some time after the nurses gave him the green light to do so, but he still had no idea what time it was.

Cassandra... she's probably worried sick. Not to mention Ray isn't exactly nanny material... I hope she's okay. And when the thought of finances crossed his mind, he forced out a small chuckle. Even if I have to miss work... at least the monster didn't take my bread rolls this time. Yeah, budgeting!

The jest was short-lived, though. He was still living paycheck to paycheck, and missing out on a single day of work would cost him dearly.

He sighed. When I get home... he thought, hesitating to make a future commitment. I'll call dad. I... I can't handle it here anymore.

He couldn't help but fidget his fingers around, trying to calm himself down. Not too long passed - five minutes, maybe - before one of the nurses approached his "room," which was little more than some curtains blocking off sight from other patients.

"Mr. Devereaux? You have a visitor."

A familiar thuggish bot stepped into view from beyond the curtains.

"Ray." Skye smiled.

"'Sup."

"Has there been any more pain or discomfort, Skye?" The nurse asked. "No complications?"

"Ah, it's been getting better with the meds you guys gave me. No sudden spikes in pain or anything."

"Okay, great. I'll check in with the doctor and we can probably have you discharged tonight."

"Nice!" Skye grinned again.

The nurse returned the smile. "I'll give you two some space." She walked out of Skye's room.

Ray stepped over beside Skye. "You got fucked up, son."

"Yeah. Yeah, I did."

"You good?" Ray asked, crouching down beside Skye.

"I think so. Minor concussion and dislocated shoulder. I got lucky."

"Like fuck you did. You'd have been monster grub without me. Fucking hell."

"Yeah... I can't possibly thank you enough, Ray. You literally saved my life."

"Hmph. Get me a good T-bone steak when you're outta here and we'll call it even. None of that synthetic shit, though. Real fuckin' meat."

Skye grinned again. "You'd probably get along with that monster."

"Like hell I would."

"It certainly seems to like me. I could hook you two up."

"Fuck off." Ray sat down in the seat just next to Skye's hospital bed.

"So, dude... what happened?" Skye inquired. "How did you... know?"

Ray crossed his arms. He went on to detail how he'd shown Gyro the bakery video, his reaction, and then the brief scouting mission that took place afterwards. He kept his voice quiet.

"Didn't really hit me that I wouldn't be able to go dive into a scrapyard looking for a giant creep with the boyfriend with me until we were standing right there. Called it quits when I saw the yard, but I had a hunch I'd be comin' back there soon," Ray explained.

"And Gyro said... that monster's persistent enough to keep coming back?" Skye desperately tried to convince himself that he'd misheard Ray.

"Yeh. It did, didn't it?"

"You tell me," Skye whimpered.

"...Yeh. So I went back last night. Didn't get your message 'til after that whole fuckfest, but yeh, I was out stalkin' that bastard." Ray leaned forward. "And I fuckin' saw some giant thing walk out of that scrapyard. I was fuckin' right. And it was fast. Couldn't keep up, but I had half a mind to know where it was going."

"The bakery."

"Mmm. I saw it in an alley just off the street." Ray paused for a few seconds.

"You didn't just shoot it then and there?" Skye whispered.

"Didn't like what I saw, Skye. Loops told me about this "shapeshifting" thing at Maroon or something. Didn't know what he was talking about. Didn't think it had anything to do with this."

"No..." Skye muttered. "You mean...?"

"When I caught up to it in that alley, it was real dark. Couldn't see it clearly, but it was big enough that I knew it was who I was after. Its silhouette against the street lights was all I could see, and it kept changing and shifting. Not moving around, but... fuckin' changing, dude."

Skye let out a long, drawn-out exhale.

"I'm gonna keep it real with you. This thing might be a serious fuckin' problem," Ray finished.

"So, like... again, why didn't you shoot it when you had the chance?" He frowned.

"Dunno, dude. Wish I did."

Skye whined a bit more, but decided not to push the issue. "Uh, by the way. How's Cass?"

"Fine. Probably kinda weirded out at having me there. But she was cool when I left. Front door's locked. So's your window."

"Good. Thanks." Skye breathed a sigh of relief.

"She's still shaken up about the whole thing. Asked me a bunch about how you were. When you were comin' home. Hey, y'all got a phone at your place?"

Skye thought for a moment. His phone was still in his room - Cassandra probably wouldn't barge in and answer it if someone called it.

"Nah, no landline or anything there," Skye answered.

Ray grunted. "Guess you'll talk to her when you get back."

"Yeah." Despite his casual response, his inner turmoil was only growing. She's alone without anyone to talk to, worried that her only immediate family - and guardian for that matter - is fucked up in a hospital with no way of knowing if he's okay...!

"I guess it might be a bit much to ask if you could look after her til I get out?"

Ray shook his head. "No can do, bud. Sorry. Got some shit I'm committed to this mornin'. Didn't even know what hospital you were in, but got lucky since this place was along the way."

Guess he wouldn't be able to walk me home either. "That reminds me, you got the time?" Skye asked.

Ray checked his phone. "1:10am."

"Sunday?"

"Yeh."

"Damn. Thanks." He'd have to figure out something for the loan sharks as soon as he got home.

"Speakin' of." Ray stood up. "I gotta bounce. Catch you online later, yeh?"

"Ah, yeah, sure thing. That was a pretty short visit."

"Ain't got much time tonight. Wanted to check on you though. Keep you posted and all."

"Well, I'm still glad you came!"

"No prob." Ray peeked out from the curtains encompassing Skye's room. "How the fuck you get outta here?" he whispered.

"Follow the exit signs on the ceiling...?"

"...Yeh. Okay. Thanks."

"A nurse could probably-" Skye began, only to realize Ray had already left.

I love that idiot.

~~~

About 20 minutes later (at least, by Skye's estimates), the doctor who'd been taking care of him popped in to give him a final checkup before informing him that he'd been discharged from the hospital. They gave him a couple of spare painkillers to take home, and told him that the shoulder brace should stay on until a follow-up appointment with his doctor.

Conveniently, it fit snugly under his favourite shirt and coat, so it wouldn't be cramping his style.

The hospital seemed fine with dropping him on the street with no special means to get home, however. He pushed the admittance doors open to be greeted with crisp early morning air, and with a quick look around, he found an intersection telling him he was at 71-38 street - not too far from his favourite food strip, but way farther than he'd like to be from home.

He started his trek home, heading straight for the ultraloop near 67-40. The streets were eerily quiet, save for the occasional vehicle driving through the city. Even if he was only a few blocks from familiar territory, navigating Miyatama in the silent darkness was something Skye hoped he'd never be doing again.

The only illumination throughout the underside of the platform city were occasional street lamps and the flickering billboards on the sides of buildings - a familiar environment, to be sure. Maybe he was too used to his usual route-to and-fro work and his preferred shopping outlets, but it felt like the majority of the city was very similar, if not identical in general appearance.

Only two blocks away from the station, a group of neon figures loitering on the opposite side of the road paid Skye some unwanted attention. It started with a wolf-whistle, before a synthesized voice shouted out "got any parts to spare for us, sweetie?"

Threshers.

"I wish," Skye nonchalantly called back, lowering his voice to try and sound tougher. His response seemed to have satisfied them, as they turned back to each other and continued mumbling among themselves.

They probably already scanned me anyways. Even though threshers were a very prevalent and dangerous gang, they weren't known for targeting unmodified humans. Skye managed to keep himself in check without freaking out too badly.

Aside from that chance encounter, his trip to the ultraloop station went uninterrupted.

Clack-clack-clack. His footsteps descending the subway stairs sounded more like stomps with how loud the echo was.

As expected, nobody was present in the waiting area, but the shuttle wasn't there either. Though, while sitting down, he noticed a nondescript homeless person in the corner of the station, sitting among a few garbage bags.

Skye exhaled and looked down into his lap. He didn't have any of his possessions on him - wallet, keys, phone, or his lighter, which would've be working wonders to calm his nerves right about then. He had no way to call anyone, not even a way to get in his own home, unless Cassandra was still awake by the time he got home.

I don't want to have to try to wake her up. I'm sure some person banging on the front door in the dead of night won't scare her half to death or anything.

Skye looked up and around the empty station, searching for something to help him pass the time. "Fare exempt route," he whispered to himself, reading the first signs his eyes came across. "Stand back two metres from ultraloop line. Klein's Bar & Grill, 67-41 street." Other things of note included a fire extinguisher in the corner of the station beside a maintenance door, a pair of bright yellow advertisement signs on the far end of the tunnel, and, of course, the tramp in the corner of the room he was avoiding making eye contact with, so as to not incite a conversation.

"Wha-" Skye gasped.

He instantly locked up. The homeless man in the corner of the subway was gone, and in his place was that very same monster from before, staring at him from the darkness.

That can't be right. No way. No fucking way. He shut his eyes for a couple seconds, praying he was seeing things, hoping his mind was just playing tricks on him. It's just stress. I'm overstressed.

He opened his eyes, and it was still there.

"No," he breathed. "No, no, no..." Skye continued. He stood up from his seat. "H-how? Where did you?!"

"Kyeh-heh-heh. Imagine seeing you here!" it taunted him.

Hyperventilating. Heart pounding. Skye started running backwards, keeping his eyes locked on the creature, only shifting his gaze to look for the staircase out.

"Ah, ah! I wouldn't run if I were you. See, I've already eaten tonight," the monster explained as it slowly walked towards him.

Skye slowed his pace for a moment.

"But if you start running, I'm going to get excited, and I'm sure I can make room for seconds." It flashed a wicked, hungry grin.

Skye didn't know if he could trust it. It had just tried to eat him just a handful of hours ago. It was walking towards him, with nobody else around, and it had that horrible smile with intent clearly displayed.

"Don't get any closer!" Skye yelled, clenching his teeth. "I'll fuck you up!" he bluffed.

"Ah, ah! Are you trying to threaten me? It wasn't very hard to put you in the palm of my hand yesterday."

"My guard was down," Skye explained, "and that will never happen again!"

Another hollow laugh from the monster.

"I don't want trouble, okay?" Skye pleaded. "I won't hurt you if you don't hurt me. Okay?"

It stood still and growled. "Why don't you sit down so we can talk about your friend who shot me." It held out its hands towards the nearest bench.

Skye gulped. There truly wasn't any escape from this situation, was there...? The staircase was only a few metres away, but that thing would catch up to him in an instant... and if he tried to scream, it would surely silence him before anyone came. There was no telling when the shuttle would arrive, either...

The monster finally took its gaze off Skye for a moment as it walked over to the relatively tiny bench and sat down. "I'm waiting," it growled.

"F-fine... okay..." he submitted, cautiously walking over to the same bench. "Just... please don't hurt me..."

No response.

As Skye stepped past the monster to the other side of the bench, he braced himself to be grabbed and tossed into the air in an instant, as if he was walking towards his execution.

But he sat down beside the horrible creature without any such incident.

Skye lowered his head and tucked his hands between his legs. "Here I am, talking with a giant monster that tried to kill me yesterday. It doesn't feel like this is real anymore. Why aren't I shitting my pants right now?"

"You should be."

"Yeah. Maybe." Skye's head was swimming, and his whole body felt just the slightest bit numb. He was genuinely surprised he wasn't crying. "I've all but accepted my fate at this point."

"That's why I like you. You're fun."

Skye felt a strange sense of relief upon hearing those words. If it liked him, maybe it really didn't plan on ending his life then and there.

"Human. Tell me your name," it barked.

"...Skye. And... you?"

"Me?"

"Do you have a name?"

"My name... is Zev. And it's MY name!" Zev snarled, lurching forward in their seat. "Not that... Red..."

Skye flinched as Zev exploded with sudden fury. "Sorry, sorry...!"

Zev stared forward, growling for a few long, drawn-out breaths.

"U-u-um... what did you want to talk about?" Skye asked, peering over at Zev through the corner of his eyes.

"Ah, ah. Your friend shot me."

"Did he...? Um, because... if I may say... you don't look injured." Skye never really had a chance to see if Zev was hurt at all, but they certainly weren't acting as if they were suffering from multiple bullet wounds.

"Guns can't hurt me. It's the principle behind it. I don't like being shot, human."

"R-right... I understand."

"I'm here to exact revenge." Zev looked down at Skye with that familiar, hungry smile.

Skye shuddered, ready to jump to his feet the moment Zev moved another muscle. "Y-you... you said you weren't hungry!"

"Kyeh-heh-heh! I'm not going to eat you. What I want is information. Your friend has a date with my stomach, and you're going help me arrange it."

That was the tipping point for Skye. He could feel the tears welling up in his eyes and his lips starting to quiver. The mental image of Zev killing Ray - or, any of his friends - was too much to bear, and he could hardly contain his emotions.

But he sucked it up the best he could. There was no telling how Zev would react to an outburst of any kind, and that fear pushed him to keep it together.

"Don't... hurt... Ray. Please, I... I couldn't send him to his death...!" he whimpered between breaths, focusing all his effort on keeping himself intact. He knew Ray could hold himself in a fight by all means, but there was no telling what Zev was capable of. If Ray's gunfire had almost no effect...

Zev slowly turned to face Skye. "Ray? Ray... very good. Now, tell me about Ray."

"I... I can't! Go sniff him out yourself...!" Skye quickly fell from terrified to dejected.

"Revenge makes you humans even more delicious. I want to savour it. I want to know WHO my next meal is. So tell me, Skye, about your friend Ray." Zev brought their face down closer to Skye, and they didn't sound especially pleased.

...Humans? Wait... does Zev not know that Ray is a robot? Did he not see Ray last night?! A last-ditch plan hatched in Skye's head at that very moment.

Skye sniffled. "He... plans on meeting me tonight. On the street outside my home. You already know where that is." He shut his eyes and grimaced.

"Kyeh-heh-heh-heh. Good. Go on..."

"He has... short brown hair, light skin... and he usually wears a blue coat and green shirt. And he's always got a gun."

Zev smiled again. This time, it was a face of satisfaction rather than carnal hunger. "Ah, good. As for you... tell me what happens, Skye, if your friend is not there tonight."

"...You'll eat me instead." Skye looked away.

"Tell me what happens if I find out you have been lying to me."

"S-same... thing...?"

Zev leaned down mere inches from Skye's ear. "I know where you work. And I know where you live. You will never escape."

Skye didn't dare budge. He tried his best to hide his shaking limbs. "Yeah," he peeped.

"Any funny business... and you're back on the menu."

With nigh perfect timing, Skye could hear the ultraloop coming down the tunnel.

"Th-that's my ride," Skye said, hoping to get some sort of permission from Zev to leave.

"Going so soon? I'm hurt," Zev laughed, finally leaning away from Skye's head.

The ultraloop came to a very quick stop at the underground station.

"Leave, then," Zev commanded.

Skye instantly stood up and power-walked over to the shuttle, occasionally glancing over his shoulder to make sure Zev wasn't following him. The giant creature hadn't moved - it was just grinning wildly at him.

Skye walked down the centre aisle of the shuttle, getting as much distance as possible from the ultraloop's doors. As said doors closed, Skye flopped onto one of the seats, ensuring he didn't bump his sore shoulder.

Relief allowed him some room to breathe, while tension and fear kept his body rigid. His eyes were stuck wide open and his stress took the form of tears rolling down his cheeks.

There were only a couple other people on the shuttle that morning, both of whom were preoccupied with their phones on distant seats. Skye was thankful - he didn't want anybody to see him in such a state.

The ultraloop began accelerating.