Chapter 16: Outcasted

Ms. Clare unlocked the front door and burst through. “Ferral!” She shouted. “Are you here?!” Ferral turned the corner of the kitchen. He was all bandaged up. “Hey, Ms. Clare,” He waved. “What happened?” Ms. Clare had been searching all over the city like a maniac for hours, looking for Ferral.

She couldn’t help but feel extremely annoyed that he’d been at the apartment the whole time. Having the police after him was just here and so casual. Ms Clare should’ve been livid…yet wasn’t. Instead, she dropped her bags, ran over, and hugged Ferral tightly. Ferral was a little surprised at first, but enjoyed the hug. Ms. Clare stroked his hair. “Thank God you’re alright. I was so worried.” Ferral reassured her that he was perfectly fine and made sure that he wasn’t seen by anyone on the way back to the apartment.

“Don’t worry, Ms. Clare,” He said. “I was only fighting another experiment that the Organization sent. Ms. Clare pushed him back to look him in the face. “That’s what I was worried about, you dummy.” Ferral chuckled embarrassedly, scratching the back of his head. “I see,” Ferral told Ms. Clare how he had brought her and given her medical treatment. To the best of his ability, of course.

Ms. Clare was at a loss for words, hearing this. Why would he bring someone who was actively trying to drag him back to a place he DOESN’T want to be here? She almost wanted to slap him, but kept her composure. He started rambling about this person, saying he gave her the name “Leona” and kept calling her “strong, amazing, and awesome.” This was the only time Ms. Clare had ever seen him show this level of excitement when talking about someone other than his foster mother. It was almost becoming irritating.

“And she said we’ll fight again someday,” He continued. “So you know what that means?” Ms. Clare shook her head. “No?” Her voice was genuinely unsure. Ferral slammed his fists together, a fire burning brightly in those amber colored eyes. “It means she’s gonna train to get stronger! That means I have to do the same!”

He ran off to the little gym that Ms. Clare had in one of the rooms. Leaving her utterly speechless. It wasn’t until after he closed the door that the thoughts started swirling in her mind. “D-Did he just develop a crush?” She took a much-needed seat on the couch. The more she thought about it, the more it made sense. Right? Ms. Clare smiled. “Heh, guess he’s starting to develop even more new feelings,” She rested against the couch, tilting her head back, and stared at the ceiling. “That’s good,” She continued. “It means he’s learning even more.”

She closed her eyes, taking a brief rest from the exhausting day she had endured. While Ms. Clare rested, another thought sped through her mind. Her eyes shot open. Why did he look shorter and have no fur?! Ms. Clare quickly got up to fish out the information from him.

Leona contacted the Organization with the small beacon they gave her. The end of it blinked with a blue light. After a few minutes, a metallic silver car pulled up in front of her. The door automatically opened, and Leona got in. As the car started driving again, the driver handed her a tablet that had a video call happening. She pressed the answer button, and Dr. Atlas popped up on the screen.

He had a satisfied smile on his face. “Hello, 1859.” He greeted Leona. “Hello, Dr. Atlas,” She responded. After their brief greeting, Dr. Atlas pushed his glasses up, inspecting all the bandages that were on Leona. “So, I’m guessing your little skirmish with 9320 ended in a loss?”

Leona looked away, not wanting to respond. Dr. Atlas continued. “Oh well, can't win them all, I suppose,” He shrugged. Leona was taken aback by this odd response, almost as if he wanted her to lose. His upbeat demeanor only furthered this suspicion. “Just give me another chance, sir,” Leona said. “Let me get stronger, and that idiot won’t stand a chance."

Dr. Atlas raised a hand to stop her talking. “No need, 1859,” He told her. “You’ve done more than enough.” The call abruptly ended, leaving Leona to stare at the black screen. Puzzled.

Once Leona got back to the Facility, she made her way to the medical room, and her wounds were patched up better. As she walked through the halls, Leona passed cells that housed some other experiments. A lemur, an armadillo, a falcon…and even a king cobra. Dante. The smug serpent slunk over to the glass, and a toothy grin curled the sides of his lips.

“Well, well, well. Look, it’s the real failure.” Dante cackled as Leona walked past his cell. She ignored him and kept walking. He continued egging her on. “I’m shocked, really. One of the great and mighty lionesses was so humiliated. I would simply die after such a defeat.

Leona stopped and whipped around, her brows scrunched. “You lost too, you dumbass,” She snapped back. Dante chuckled. “Yes, but the difference is I don’t care. You lionesses and that bastard Leonidas deserve to be knocked down a peg or two.”

Dante continued. “Heh, and it looks like you got your ass handed to you.” Leona sighed, composing herself. “It’s hard to fend off a mindless, barbaric savage,” She replied. He rolled his eyes. “That’s your story, and you’re stickin’ to it? We both know he’s not as dumb as he looks. Well, sure, he’s a dumbass, but he learns…very quickly.” Leona scoffed, brushing off such a comment and finally continued walking.

He wasn’t wrong, Leona thought. Ferral was able to catch up and even surpass her in such a short amount of time. As she rounded the corner, Leona was stopped by her pride. “Oh, hey, guys.” She awkwardly greeted, but they all looked with disgust. Leona was confused by their sudden cold shoulder.

One of the lionesses replied. “Sorry, but like, did we give you permission to speak to us?” Leona took a step back, bewildered. “I…don’t understand…”

“I’m sorry, do you hear something?” Another lioness added. “No, do you?” “I don’t.” “Me neither.” They all agreed with one another.

Leona started to become increasingly irritated. “Alright, what’s going on? I am the head lioness. You should be treating me with respect.”

A man’s voice responded from behind the group. “Correction, you were the head lioness.” His voice was strong and imposing. Filled with nothing but confidence. It was Leonidas, the only male, and the leader of the pride. He walked out of the group, staring daggers at Leona. His icy gaze sent a chill down Leona’s spine.

Leona had a feeling this would happen, but maybe they wouldn’t have pestered her about it and assumed she got the job done. But the pride seemed to already know. So how could they have found out? Perhaps it was only a test to see if she would slip out, that she lost. Leona calmly replied. “What are you talking about?”

Leonidad took a step forward, making Leona take one back. “Don’t act a fool. Doctor Atlas told us all about your fight with that trash who stays isolated.” He took another step forward. “And how you lost.” Leona took a few more steps back, gritting her teeth. Was this Dr. Atlas’s way of punishing Leona? Is that why he was already in a good mood?

Leonidas continued. “The fact you lost to a literal nobody,” He shook his head. “A failure lower than trash.” Leona finally snapped back, “Ferral is much stronger than you think!” It was such a sudden outburst, even she was caught off guard. Leonidas raised an eyebrow, the lionesses behind him whispering insults about Leona.

“Ferral? It has a name?” You could hear the utter disgust in Leonida’s voice after asking. Though his face remained cool and stoic. Leona swallowed a little before taking a few steps forward. She slammed her foot down, “That’s right, and so do I. My name is Leona.” No one replied.

The lionesses exchanged glances before bursting out laughing. “You actually let that thing give you a name?” “And it sounds so tacky.” “Guess it’s a perfect name for a loser like you.” Each one took jabs, continuing their obnoxious and snobby laughter.

Leona’s face got even more flustered. “Shut up! Shut up, or I’ll-” Before she could make her threat, Leonidas moved closer, his cold stare stunning Leona stiff. The other lionesses also stopped, practically feeling the pressure Leonaida gave off. He grabbed Leona by the collar, pulling her close to his face.

“Or you’ll do what?” He growled, “You’re weak, worthless. Another piece of trash, just like the Failure.”

Leona clenched her fists, wanting so bad to sock Leonidas across the face. But she knew if she did, things would not end well. He was much stronger than her, the strongest experiment in the Failcity, as a matter of fact. The fact that the other lionesses were there also did not help the situation. All Leona could do was curse in her mind.

Leonidas pushed her away. “Starting today, you are exiled from this pride,” He declared. Leona widened her eyes. Leonidas continued. “Don’t act so surprised. And don’t expect to ever come back. I don’t keep or take trash.” He turned and walked off, the lionesses following suit. Some of them looked back at Leona, then turned back around laughing.

Leona was left alone in the hallway. She clenched her fists so tightly that her claws dug into her hands, blood dripping out from the sides. Leona seethed through clenched teeth, looking almost on the verge of tears. That night, Leona stared up at the ceiling of her personal cell. Still pissed off. She had a feeling this would happen, but even so, that didn’t really soften the blow. She thought back to what Ferral said. About joining him and being free. The more thought she gave it, the idea intrigued her. After all, there wasn’t anything left for her here. Leona sat up, silently nodding her head in agreement with Ferral’s words.

She finally spoke quietly. “Yeah, I’m getting out of this place.”