It's dark, it's very dark.... Azure's voice echoed throughout her head as she started to open her eyes, everything was blurry and bright lights shown in her face as her gaze switched from each shadow figure to another as many stood around her. Azure's vision came back as a bright light flashed moved her eyes and she snapped awake. The shadow figures backed up, flinching in fear and surprise as Azure staggered from her wounds and clenched her teeth as she looked around in confusion. She instantly saw the creatures before her. They were tall, some were skinny, some were larger. Most of them have fur uptop of their heads and some were bald and shiny. Azure glanced between each one of them as they surrounded her, their eyes full of fear as they stood there, frozen. Azure's own eyes were large with fear as new scents filled her nose and new sounds filled her ears as the fur along her spine rose. "What is it? Is it a large cat? That's the biggest cat I've seen in my entire life!" The creatures spoke as she noticed some clothe covered most of their bodies, probably from the cold weather, but she noticed that it wasn't cold at all, it was rather, warm. Azure too noticed that the ones near her wore different clothing, some had robes on and some even had some weird bags. Then, one of them leaned forward and reached out to her as she flinched back, gritting her teeth as pain shot through her entire body as the creature drew back slightly and frowned. "Do you need help?" He asked as his eyes were full of sympathy, then, suddenly, another creature stepped forward and smacked him with something small as he flinched back. "It is a new species of large cat, it cannot talk English stupid!" It had scowled as Azure narrowed her eyes at him before her gaze returned to the nicer creature who pushed away the taller one before reaching out once more. "Do you need help? What are you called?" He asked once more as Azure saw the completely calmness in his eyes. She saw that his spirit seemed to be locked up and imprisoned like a bird in a cage. It reflected her own. Azure nodded before she swallowed and continued. "I'm Azure." Azure said as the creatures gasped and backed away, she flinched in fear as she was injured and very vulnerable. The one before her simply touched her dark-colored pelt as she flinched back but let him touch her fur as she smiled and purred, he smiled back as the others stood there, shocked.

During those moments, they had thin, shiny, silvery things in their paws as flashes came from some of them which blinded her for a few seconds. Later, Azure was taken in on some kind of high-seated bed and was in some kind of large container-like place, but it was large and big enough for the larger creatures to sit as the nice one stayed at her side the entire time as he stroked her pelt, careful not to go near the wound as she lay on the bed with blood still trickling from her wounds. The large place shook here and there and sometimes, felt like she were flying but in this large thing, but soon, they came to a stop and the doors flew open as more of the same creatures were there. Azure squinted from the bright red and blue lights as the nicer creature rolled her out of the huge place and then, they went into some type of building. It was huge, lights filled the place, more creatures, both large and small, and some even as small as kits were there, gazing at her in wonder and fear. Azure was finally rolled into a room with a larger bed and she was gently laid onto it on her side as she flinched from the pain once more. The nice creature then started stoking her pelt once more and that calmed her. "It spoke? You say?" A new creature came into the room as three more followed, their mouths were covered with some type of clothe with a string attached to the back of their heads as they came over to examine her. They touched the large bone that was in her and she gave a warning hiss of pain as it hurt badly. "Yes, I had asked if it was called anything and it said it was Azure, something like that." He said as he kept stroking softly at her fur, she gazed at the others with narrowed, suspicious eyes as the white fur around her neck was too, smudged with blood. "Really now?" One of them said as they came to her and shoved its face into her's, she growled in irritation. "Azure? That's such a hideous name!" It mocked as the others laughed except for the nicer one, he glared at them hatefully like she did as she grit her teeth. Azure didn't like these creatures and she was sure they didn't like her either. "How stupid! You must be going out of your mind, Nick! You might be the one needing help! Not this cat!" They laughed at him as he just looked away in shame, he had stopped stroking her and could feel shame and anger coming from him. Azure clenched her teeth harder until she let out all of her anger. "Shut up you pile of craps! He's nice! Leave him alone you pieces of dung!" Azure spat as she rose to her paws, her claws dug into the bed as she watched their faces turn to confused and surprised looks as she glared at them. Even the nice one was surprised as he gazed at her, Azure smiled to him as if she knew he was thanking her. Azure turned back to the others before growling. "Oh! So you can talk! But with that kind of mouth, you'll never be able to live in this world!" The same one who first started this said as he put his paws onto his hips and smirked. Azure grit her teeth before a female creature, shoved them out of the way and pushed them out of the room. "Okay! Enough you bastards! Out of my room, go!" She said as she shoved them out the doorway and closed the door. She then turned back and rolled out a chair before taking a seat as the nice creature took a seat too. "So, Azure is your name? How do you know how to speak English? Rather understand it?" She asked as she had a calmer look upon her face. "I don't know what 'English' is, but I've been speaking like this for all my life. I've understood it all my life as well. Is there something wrong with it?" Azure responded as the female one widened her eyes in amazement. "So it is true that you can talk! Let's get off to a good start first. My name is Catherine, and this is Nick. We are humans."

The two told her many things about the humans and so on. Azure tilted her head to them. "Where am I?" She asked Catherine and Nick. "You're at a vet, it's where injured animals are treated." She explained as Azure's gaze hardened. "I have to get back to my brothers." Azure said determinedly as her ears went flat against her head. "You have brothers?" Nick said as Azure nodded. "They're just like me, but they're twins and they look different from me." Azure told them as worry replaced the hardness in her gaze. Then, they finally noticed her pure black eyes and her pure white pupils as Catherine nodded before continuing. "What's wrong with your eyes? Are you going blind?" She asked as Azure's ears rose and she shook her head. "No, they've always been like this." Azure said as she continued in her head. Ever since Ghost made me a monster.... Nick looked at her in wonder. "Really? That's odd, usually, we'll see the normal eyes of what a cat would have, like colored eyes with black pupils." Nick said as he stroked her once more. "But anyway, we need to get rid of that bone." She said as Azure glanced down at it and her gaze darkened. "How did this happen?" Nick asked Azure but Catherine hushed him and gestured for him when Azure looked away and flattened her ears against her head. "Just stay here, I'll be back with the tools." Catherine said as she led Nick out and the two left the room as they closed the door behind them. Azure sat there on the bed as she turned her gaze towards the window. Azure sat there for a few moments as she looked out the window. Please, may Silver, Jet and all my friends be safe.... Azure said to herself as her face grew worried. May Ghost leave them be....

After the surgery to remove the bone, Azure had woken up and told Catherine and Nick that the bone wasn't a normal bone, it was a magic bone. "My father, Ghost, attacked me with it and it may sound weird to you humans, but me and him possess magical powers unlike any of you humans do." Azure told the two as she sat in the bed still, the bone this time was gone and stitches were placed on the two areas of her body that were pierced open. "I guess, but what about your spine? It was shattered where the bone first pierced, how are you still alive after that?" Catherine asked as she narrowed her eyes at the cat before Azure's ear twitched and she responded. "I have healing powers as well, and I guess they activated on its own and used some of my father's bone attack to heal my spine, if that makes sense." Azure answered as Nick and Catherine nodded, Nick tilting his head.

The next day was completely different from a normal day in her neighborhood. Birds tweeted, dogs barked in the distance, she could see a very bright orange-yellow light filter through the shades of the window. Azure laid in the bed, a blanket over her as she gazed at the window which was closed. "Azure? Are you awake?" Azure recognized the sound of Nick as the door swung open and he stepped into view. Nick held a bowl in his hands and stepped over to her as she smiled up to him and rose to her paws. "Wait! You shouldn't—" Nick said but stopped himself when he saw Azure rise up perfectly. "I shouldn't move? What? You think I'm still gonna be sulfur-ing after that?" Azure said as Nick stopped and started laughing as he smiled. "Oh! So you're that type of person—cat, I mean." Nick said as he set the bowl onto the stone ground as Azure came up to him. "What is this?" Azure frowned, sniffing at the hard brown stuff before jerking her head back in digust. "It's cat food." Nick said as he calmed down after laughing, he wiped some tears away as his face grew worried. "You don't like it? I thought you would since you're a cat." Nick said as Azure gazed up to him. "Nah, I'd rather prefer some ketchup, not really hungry." Azure said as Nick stared at her in surprise. "Okay, I'll get you some, wait here." Nick smiled to her before taking the bowl of pellets and going out the door once more as she sat in the center of the room. Azure looked around and thought, then she heard a voice echo through her head. "You'll never be able to protect them.... You'll only put them in danger...." Azure snapped her head around to see where the voice was coming from, she recognized Ghost's voice as she drew her lips back in a deep snarl full of venom. "Where are you? You coward!" Azure spat as she whipped around, trying to find him. "Show yourself!" The she-cat snarled as she lashed her tail and her left eye started glowing. But then, Nick burst through the door, he held a bottle of ketchup in his hands but fear and worry shown in his eyes as he glanced around before his gaze turned to Azure. Azure's eye instantly returned to normal as she turned to him. "What happened?!" Nick said worriedly as he rushed over to Azure. "N-nothing, just, my thoughts got the better of me." Azure said as she looked away, sitting down as she tried to calm herself, her ears against her head. "Don't make me worry like that ever again!" Nick sighed in relief before handing the bottle of ketchup to Azure as she took it and smiled up to him gratefully. "Thanks."

End of Chapter 8