The cold metal itched her reddened wrists.
Calamity is lightly pushed into a see-through elevator. The doors slid shut quietly, a quiet ding following before a patrol member pressed a nine-belied button.
Open and long balconies from each flow had hanging foliage- most spider plants.
The bottom floor had tall pots with small trees and a fountain in the middle with live fish, lilies, and duckweed.
"I don't remember the pack house being this big." Calamity blurted in the crowded elevator.
Neith folded her arms and leaned toward her, "I think it's because there's no need to hide them anymore," She reasoned, "Gives architectures more reason to bump up the budget, make it pretty, and make it bigger."
The beta-son sipped from a metal water bottle, "More room for an infirmary, medical, canine affair offices, and other types of bullshit."
Calamity felt the elevator come to a slow and fluid stop- the doors dinging in warning before sliding open.
Immediately, they were greeted by a group of four werewolves in white hazmat gear.
White and sterilized suits baggily hung from their nondescript frames. They wore large breathing masks with a large glass window to see out of and tubes connected to oxygen tanks hung from a backpack.
Their gloves were bright international orange with tight tape to connect to the rest of the suit safely.
"Everyone must be separated," a deep male voice warned them, coming from the suited man standing in the front. "We don't know how contagious her lyssavirus may be, considering this unique circumstance."
Agitation and humiliation bubbled from the bottom of her stomach. Her body ached with stress, and a headache swirled around her forehead. She stood still in the middle of the small crowd.
Greyson threw his head back and groaned while Neith raised her eyebrows in concern.
Patrol members were taken out of the elevator one by one. The olive-toned woman didn't leave Calamity's side.
She gazed at her, "We only found out how dangerous it may be on the bus," Neith explained apologetically, "But I didn't expect hazmat suits and oxygen tanks..."
Greyson pushed past two men in hazmat suits and followed a nurse in a suit with a clipboard. They spoke for a short moment before leaving.
"Ms. Denwen," the same man who spoke before greeted her, "I apologize for... this. But we must separate her from everyone and monitor her state."
She sighed and hung her head. "I get it." She nodded. "The last thing we need to risk is a rogue outbreak."
With a tentative look over her shoulder- the Fulani braided woman shuffled out of the elevator and let herself be guided by another suited-up nurse. The duo glided down the same hallway as Greyson.
Nervously- she eyed the engineer in a hazmat suit. Perhaps he was waiting to shut down and fumigate the elevator?
Left to her own devices, with no support, the doctors suddenly looked nervous.
A suited male nurse bravely came forward with a large metal muzzle made for human heads. The mohawked woman's eyes widened.
"Uh? Fuck no!" She backed up, her chain wavering uncomfortably from her collar.
The doctor sighed, "Please, ma'am, it's safety protocol." He attempted to ease her, "The protocol is made for rogues acting like rogues... not ones behaving normally like you."
She pressed herself against the corner of the elevator. Her restrained hands pressed against her chest- ready to dodge any attempts.
"We'll take it off as soon as you get to your room," the nurse with the muzzle promised. "You said you were hungry. If you follow protocol, I'll promise you whatever you want to eat."
Her brows raised before furrowing in thought. She contemplated the rumbling in her stomach, whimpering for something meaty before her desires took over.
It was a deal made in desperation. Parents make similar deals with their kids- hoping they'll receive peace from their tyranny. The nurse had hope in his eyes- the eyebags and blank chocolate colour of his eyes made it clear he'd been on shift for a long time.
"Burger." She blurted, "Bacon burger... two patties."
Silence floated amongst the doctors and nurses. A nurse beside the doctor looked at him uncertainly, attempting to read his face for any distaste.
"... And a cola."
"What about water instead?" The nurse bargained.
"Double bacon burger and cola, or I'm going to act like a feral fucking dog."
Finally, the suited man sighed in defeat, "Deal."
Like a cornered animal, Calamity trembled as he approached with a raised metal muzzle. He pushed it onto her head, taking the straps and tying them securely around her face.
Her mohawk was pressed down by the straps- strands pointing out from any gaps.
The cold metal pressed against her calloused skin with familiarity. The handcuffs, collar, and muzzle made her feel like a criminal.
Calamity was eased out of the elevator and guided into the hallways.
The walls were white, and random modern paintings lined them. Marble tile made heels and dress shoes echo clicks and taps- different live potted plants set in random spots.
A male nurse guided her while a doctor caught up to walk beside her, "You don't need to be concerned, ma'am." He told her.
She flashed him an irritated look, "Oh, yeah? How so?" She taunted.
He gritted his jaw but held back rude words, "That collar tells me you're protected under the Rogue-Infected-Relative law... RIR for short."
Her squished and weird hairstyle bounced with each step. She gazed up at him with a weird look, "You mean this shitty thing is protecting me?" She furrowed her brows, "I call bullshit."
The doctor huffed and gazed forward, "Contain your hatred for at least a moment." He advised.
He adjusted his hazmat suit, which was clearly uncomfortable to wear. "Family members give rogues that collar after a judge gives a positive verdict," the man told her. "It lets patrols know to leave the rogue alone and, if it's roaming free, to contain it and return it to its containment site."
Through her hazy loathing... there was sense to everything. She wasn't being chained and wrangled like a wild animal- but they still followed the required protocol.
Her containment site was the grave... and her brother was the one who set the grave up.
Travis is mourning the loss of his younger sister.
Her handcuffed hands moved up to grip her tight collar. Its dangling chain irritated her; the tightness made it moist and tight underneath, but if it weren't for the collar... the patrol may have killed her.
"Why'd this happen, anyway?" Calamity hissed, "I thought rogues were just... smelly rabid dogs without a pack."
The doctor sighed, clearly irritable. "That's what we thought."
"That's what you... thought?" She furrowed her brows.
"The disease hit some individuals—but it wasn't spreadable. We used to mix up wolves with no packs and rogues with the disease." He described it thoroughly: "Wolves with no pack are generally called packless or immigrant wolves."
She guessed that makes sense. Either way, they both smelt weird and abnormal.
Calamity sighed as she kept moving along.
The woman was guided into a unique hospital room. A sanitation room was first- but was not activated as she was pushed through it.
She entered a regular room with a bed in the middle, a tall window with a curtain, and two bedside tables. Numerous outlets lined the wall behind her bed.
The trick? one wall was completely made of glass. In the middle of it, closer to the ground, was a box made to easily exchange meals or items without going through the sanitation room.
"This sucks." Calamity blurted.
A female nurse had to forcibly stop herself from smiling in response. The doctor who walked beside her watched the nurses do their job.
Lightly pushed toward the bed by a male nurse- she finally sat down. "Burger?"
He sighed, "Yes, yes... best we can do is have a chef make it here."
Calamity swung her legs onto the bed and laid on her back, "Still a double bacon burger... don't forget the cola." She pointed at him.
He raised his hands in mock defeat, "I put in the order on the way here."
"Right, I'll go contact Dr. Ullinn." The male doctor suddenly blurted and turned around, not wasting a moment longer in the bubble room.
"Who?" Calamity turned toward the male nurse- the last one left after the female nurse left alongside the doctor.
He cleared his throat and prepped the medical machinery, "He specializes in Roguis Lyssavirus- which is what you have." The man curtly explained.
She sank further into the bed- blankly staring at the ceiling deep in thought.
The entire situation was brand new. She felt like a walking disease- one that could spread and render anyone around her into bloodthirsty zombies. How could anyone want to be around her without hazmat suits?
Will she never have skin-to-skin contact ever again? Maybe she'll become a rare medical project who never sees the outside world again.
Unbeknownst to her- the muzzle was clipped off. She only realized what the nurse did when it was pulled out of her vision.
"Please leave me alone." Calamity blurted and rolled onto her side- facing away from him.
He sighed and fiddled with the straps, silence floating between them.
"Try your best to settle in, okay?" That was all he said.
The automatic door to the sanitation room pushed open loudly from behind her. The sound reminded her of sci-fi doors in spaceships opening.
And, finally, she was alone.