#tranquilizer

The crowd screamed and ran at the sight of Hero's monstrous transformation. Hero roared, a pained and animalistic sound. Their shaking hands grew to long and sharp claws. Their teeth, jagged and pointed.

Hero cautiously approached a mirror mounted on the wall, terrified by what they might find. They recoiled at the beast that stared back.

They fled, out the doors and into the crowded streets. More people screamed. Someone threw a can, and they yelped. Shots rang out.

"The beast is getting away!" Someone cried.

They darted down an alleyway, and they kept running until they felt well and truly alone.

Or, so they thought.

"Ah, so you're the one they're after," said a voice in the shadows.

Hero bristled. They knew that voice.

"Oh. Oh my," Villain whispered reverently, stepping into the light. "You're marvelous."

"It went this way!" A voice cried.

"You're not safe here," Villain said. They threw open the doors to an abandoned warehouse. "Quick, inside."

Hero scrambled into the warehouse doors, up the wall and into the ceiling rafters.

The Villain shouted, "It went the other way!"

The angry voices receded, and Hero momentarily relaxed.

Villain closed the doors and all looked around. "Well, that's not ideal."

Hero shrank back into the shadows. Villain couldn't see them.

Villain ran to an intercom mounted near the doors.

"Listen up," Villain called over the intercom. "My pet is loose somewhere in this warehouse. Whoever brings them to me unharmed receives a little bonus."

Their lackeys sprung into action, running back and forth along rows of shelving and in and out of the various shipping containers littering the warehouse. A few ran into each other in their haste.

"Where did you go?" Villain muttered, scanning the ceiling.

They locked eyes with Hero, who bristled.

"They're on the ceiling nearest the compactor," Villain announced over the intercom.

Hero jumped down and scampered across the concrete flooring. Two lackeys tried to head them off, and they ran towards a set of stairs. Two more lackeys blocked their path, and they jumped off the stairs and darted over the shelving, toppling boxes in their wake.

"Boss, they're too fast!" One of the lackeys complained.

"Get the tranqs," Villain said.

Darts whizzed by as Hero tried to shake their pursuers. They cursed themselves for seeking asylum from a villain of all people.

They dove down to a set of doors and launched at them, but they wouldn't budge. They looked for some kind of lock or obstruction, but too late.

Something hit their shoulder. They tried to wrench it out, much too late.

They snarled as Villain approached them.

"Sorry, darling, but I can't have you tearing apart my warehouse," Villain said.

Hero realized they were laying down. They tried to get up, but they suddenly felt so, so weak. Villain knelt down and pet them gently, peering into their terrified eyes. They tried to nip at the Villain's hand, but that didn't seem to deter them.

"Rest now," Villain said.

Hero whined and went limp.

When Leo felt the initial sting, he assumed it was the weeds and brambles lashing at his legs as he and Mikey fled to the trees. At the time he was too busy shoving his brother toward cover ahead of him to consider any alternative explanations; the exotic animal hunters were still on their heels.

After several minutes spent weaving false trails, Mikey hunkered down in the bushes to take a breather, surprised when Leo trudged over to drop heavily beside him. “Getting comfy? Maybe we can stake out here, use all these leafy greens as camouflage until they go away.”

“No, we need to keep moving. They probably expect us to stay grounded so instead we’ll, ah…scale the thicker areas of the canopy…fifty yards at a time.” Leo wished he sounded more decisive. Now that he was already sitting, a large part of him did want to just melt into the underbrush and hope it was over.

“Turtle Tarzans. They won’t see that coming,” Mikey agreed ruefully, hopping to his feet with an ease that had Leo hurrying to follow suit.

His legs skidded back out from under him without warning, scattering leaves and his orientation of the world simultaneously. If his vision weren’t pinwheeling, he would have seen Mikey cringe at his ungainly thud.

“Shh!”

“Sorry…I don’t know what’s…uh…” He trailed off, his train of thought slowing to a crawl. His joints had seemingly turned to jelly, nerves abuzz like they had fallen asleep.

Come to think of it, sleep sounded…very appealing right about now.

“Leo? Hey, are you good? Leo. Leo, why’re you zoning out on me?”

Prompt used: tranquilizer

Higher:

Wildfire by daylight: