Ryia slowly returned to the waking world. The first things to register to her mind were the sounds. She could hear sobbing, groaning, and hushed voices speaking with quick, frightened words. The second sense to register was smell. The scents of urine, feces, and unwashed bodies mingled with the stench of blood. It was nauseating. She slowly cracked her eyes open and saw a roughly carved, gray stone ceiling some two meters above her face. The ceiling was crawling with colorless moss which seemed to imitate a small amount of light. The light was dim, but it was enough to see colors clearly. Ryia blinked blearily and raised her hands to rub at her eyes. She quickly stopped when she saw her hands. Her fingers and palms were liberally coated with oily grit and some small amounts of blood. She blinked in confusion, 'What?'

A loud clang from her left caught her attention. She turned her head toward the noise and her mind made sense of what her eyes discovered. She was lying on her back with her right side close to the back wall of what looked like a large, old fashioned jail cell. The right wall of the cell was composed of what appeared to be solid rock, as if it were carved straight out of a single colossal boulder. The left wall was revealed to be all but identical to the right wall. The front of the cell was covered with thick bars and a single door was set into the bars. Beyond the door was a hallway leading off to the left and right where she assumed other cells container more people. Scraping sounds alerted Ryia to the proximity of movement within the cell. Her eyes caught sight of nearly ten other people in the cell with her.

The others, except for a girl lying near Ryia's feet, were already awake and staring nervously at the cell's door. Ryia noticed that every one of the other people in the cell with her were women and that they were all naked. The fact that she was naked was shocking in the utmost. It set her thoughts spinning wildly, 'We're naked! Why are we naked? Why did the Rakshasa take our clothes and leave us alive?' She also realized that all the other women looked to be between the ages of sixteen and thirty-five.

Her mind began conjuring horrifying thoughts and images of what might be in store for she and the others. She had heard the stories about how the terrorist group ISIS had taken over different territories and what they had done to the women and girls they captured. Girls as young as ten years old were given away as property to older men as 'wives' and all captured women of child-bearing age were given the same treatment. Older women were simply murdered outright. It was not difficult to imagine what happened after the girls were given away as sex slaves.

Ryia suddenly remembered the Rakshasa she had seen reaching for her before she passed out. The recent thoughts of the horrors of the terrorists perpetrated mixed with her memories of the Rakshasa caused Ryia to shake with fear. Her thought swirled in terrible circles of what might happen to her and the others. The legends of Rakshasa told of them being heartless beasts who feasted on Human flesh. There was supposed to be no end to their depravity. A sharp bark jarred her out of her thoughts and brought her back to her present situation.

Following her ears, she looked toward the cell door. There stood one of the Rakshasa looking around at her and the other women. Ryia pushed herself onto her feet and grabbed the cold arms of the girl who still had not awoken. She hauled the girl over to the other women huddled against the right wall. Some instinct told her that there was safety to be had with others and she obeyed that part of her mind without a thought. A pair of arms from behind Ryia grasped her sides just under her arms, holding tightly onto her.

The Rakshasa at the door of the cell turned its head to the side and growled in a guttural language. Shuffling sounds echoed down the hallway in front of the cell door. Four more of the creatures came loping down the hallway and into the women's line of sight. The Rakshasa by the door removed a set of keys from its belt and jammed one into the cell door. The lock squeaked and clicked ominously. The monstrous beast pushed the door open and the four behind it entered the cell.

The women huddled as far against the wall as they could, fear coursing through the veins of every one of them. Ryia was on the side closest to the Rakshasa and she pushed ever farther into the arms holding her, as the beasts crept closer. She picked out details from each one despite wanting nothing more than to be as far away from them as she could be. She realized that their legs were almost comically short compared to their arms and as opposed to the reverse knee joints she was expecting to see on a canine like creature, the Rakshasa had knees similar to that of a person. It also seemed odd that the Rakshasa were wearing clothes yet they had thick fur coats. There was one thing that really grabbed her attention though. The Rakshasa not only wore clothes, but also had belts. On those belts hung what looked like weapons. One had a mace, one had what appeared to be a small axe, one had what could only have been a stout club, and the fourth had a long knife. All the weapons were made of bronze, iron, or wood. Ryia did not have time to ponder the crudity of the weapons though.

Instead of reaching for the women, the Rakshasa knelt down and grabbed the unconscious girl on the floor. Before her mind even registered what she was doing, Ryia realized that she had thrown herself bodily forward, away from the arms holding her and toward the four Rakshasa. To Ryia's infinite surprise, the four beasts quickly backed away. They snarled and barked harshly at her, but they had indeed backed away. Ryia did not have time to think about what their response could have meant. She screamed at them flailing her arms wildly trying to frighten them away from the girl on the floor. As quickly as she could, she grabbed the cold girl under her arms and pulled her close. She backed up with the other women behind her and yelled at the four Rakshasa, "You're not getting any of us! Get out of here!"

The four that had backed away from Ryia all turned and looked toward the one who was still holding the cell door. It was like they were looking for guidance. The one holding the door growled and barked several commands while gesturing to the women. The four Rakshasa in the cell slowly crept forward, toward the women.

Ryia held onto the girl and leaned her head over the girl's shoulder glaring at the creatures. The Rakshasa did not back away though. As they got close enough, two of them reached out and grabbed the unconscious girl's legs with their freakishly long arms.

Ryia struggled to turn the girl away, but her arms were no match for the strength of the Rakshasa, "No!" She grunted through gritted teeth as the girl began to slip from her grasp. Ryia felt the hands of the other women on her shoulders and waist. The other women were pulling her toward the rest of their group. The Rakshasa pulled harder and the cold, unmoving girl slipped further out of Ryia's fingers.

Ryia suddenly froze as it clicked to her, 'Cold?' As soon as she registered the thought, she slackened her grip and the Rakshasa pulled the girl from her hands. The other women yelled and screamed at the retreating forms of the monsters, but Ryia's voice was not among them. Her focus had turned inward, 'Cold.' Ryia looked at her hands and clutched them to her chest, 'She was cold. She...' Ryia bit her lower lip, eyes watering as the truth sunk in, 'She was dead.'

* * *

Diamond Tooth closed the cell door, quickly locking it before following his Guard Dogs back through the hallway and into the side room where the doctor was waiting. He hated doing what he had just ordered his Guard Dogs to do. The fear in the eyes of the creatures could not be argued, but he had his orders. Doctors were extremely rare among Diamond Dogs and ones that did exist were to be obeyed by all in matters of health. The doctor had ordered that the most injured creatures be taken from the cells and brought to the room he had taken for himself. Diamond Tooth had tried to persuade the doctor to go into the cells so the creatures could see what he did and have a chance to cooperate. The doctor had ignored Tooth's suggestion and Tooth had not been surprised. He knew the doctor very well and the older dog always thought he was right. There was no convincing him otherwise. The tiny bit of knowledge of a Diamond Dog doctor was pitiful compared to those of other species, but he was the best one available.

Diamond Tooth followed behind his Guard Dogs as they carefully carried the creature into the side room and laid it out on the mat that the doctor had set out. Tooth was fairly sure the creature was dead, the one he had carried back to the cell had been warm. He fervently hoped his Guard Dogs would be able to find all the creatures. The trespassers had ran screaming throughout the old tunnels and his Guard Dogs were sniffing them out.

The doctor waiting in the room was an older dog, almost completely grey through his coat, but his mind was still sharp enough for the job. He laid out his red clay jar of maggots, his jar clay of leeches, his huge assortment of herbs and poultices, and his surgery tools all against the furthest wall. He knelt down next to the creature as the Guard Dogs backed away bowing. Diamond Tooth watched with interest as the doctor worked.

The old dog reached out with his paw pads and touched the bottoms of the creature's feet. He stopped as soon as his sensitive paws touched its skin. He grumbled and turned his head toward Diamond Tooth, "When you were bringing them back here from the tunnels, you had to touch them right? Were they warm?"

Diamond Tooth nodded, "Slightly cooler than we are, but yes they were." His brows furrowed in concern, "It's dead... isn't it."

The doctor huffed through his jowls making them billow outward like curtains in the wind, "Well after the beating your Dogs gave it, I suppose I would be dead too."

Tooth snarled down at the elder doctor, "My Guard Dogs did not beat these... these things!"

The doctor snarled right back, bearing his teeth, "This one is dead!" The doctor lowered his jowls, "I cannot say with certainty what killed it though. This creatures is covered with bruises, that much I see, but I am examining a being like none I have seen before. I need a live one to compare it to. To think that I can help these creatures the same way I do Diamond Dogs is ignorant. It would be like saying that a Kavim doctor could help a Diamond Dog the same way I do."

The doctor shook out his top half letting out a growl while doing so, "Bah, this is useless. Your Guard Dogs cannot simply throw around injured creatures they know nothing about." The doctor pointedly ignored the whines of the nearby Guard Dogs, "Let me gather up my things then take me to the cells where the injured ones are. I don't want them moved."

Diamond Tooth pointedly ignored the fact that the doctor has just ordered the same thing he had already suggested. Instead he gestured to the dead creature, "What do you want me to do with this one? The live ones are my responsibility. Once they Pass Through The Veil to the Place Beyond Places, the decision is no longer mine."

The doctor hummed as he packed away his tools, "My examination is over for now Tooth so we may speak more personally. Take it back to the ones it was with before. Maybe we can see how they deal with their dead. This one Passed Through The Veil under your watch. Governor Scar Nose will not be happy when you tell him. If these creatures came from another land, another nation we know nothing about, it could mean trouble. You know as well as I do how much we are hated."

Diamond Tooth lowered his ears, "I did my best, Father. What more could we have done?"

His Father, Long Tooth, sighed through his nose, "Everything. Had you left them in the tunnels, blind as they were... they would probably all have Passed Through The Veil in a few days, which would have been your fault. Since you intervened there is no way we can claim ignorance in this. If their nation comes looking for them... well that would be your fault too." Long Tooth straightened up, "Lead on, commander." he spat the word like a bitter taste, "Let us ensure that no more of these creatures Pass Through The Veil on my watch."

Author's Note

Let me know if you spot any typos.