Hello my fine furs! I have returned for the next chapter of In My Time of Need! I'm actually extremely happy with how this chapter turned out, but if you guys see any problems that I should address don't be afraid to let me know down in the comments! Hope you all enjoy, and I'll see you at the bottom of the page! :D

P.O.V. Change: Zachary

My painful sleep was disturbed by the loud banging of a baton against the door of my cell.

“Up 431. We're moving out." The guard ordered banging a few more times on the door.

“Moving out? What's that supposed to mean?" I asked agitatedly as my sleep was interrupted.

“Not your place to ask questions. Let's go." His tone growing impatient.

“I can't even walk, what the hell do you want from me?" I pointed out the fact that my leg was pretty much still useless. The guard grumbled slightly as he glanced down the hall.

“Edna! Bring a wheelchair so we can move 431 from his cell." He voice reverberated off the walls.

“Would it kill you guys to use my name? It's Zachary just in case you didn't know, nice to meet you." I deadpanned as Edna brought the chair inside.

“How are you feeling?" She asked me as she glanced over my wounds, pressing gently on my stomach.

“It still hurts to breathe and my leg hurts but it's not unbearable." I replied, grunting in pain as I slid into the wheelchair off my bed.

“What's going on?" I whispered once the guard was out of earshot. Edna sighed, bringing the chair to a stop.

“They're moving you to a new location Zachary, I'm sorry." My face paled as she delivered the news.

“How is Nathan supposed to know where I'm at then? You said he would come back for me, how will he even know where I am?" I asked in a slightly panicked voice, feeling my breathing increase.

“Calm down, you'll damage your ribs further if you keep breathing like that. The trucks are very heavy meaning that they'll leave deep tire imprints in the ground. If and when he comes back it shouldn't be difficult to find the tracks." She responded. I nodded hesitantly, still not happy about being moved.

“Why are they moving us?" I pressed further, trying to get as much information as I could while I had the chance.

“For really the same reason that you don't want to be moved; they know he'll be back to try to get you out and they aren't willing to risk staying here." Edna replied as we began rolling down the hall once again. I nodded again before going silent the rest of the way.

I had no idea how far we would be going, and I could only hope that Nathan would be able to track us to wherever we ended up.

P.O.V. Change: Nathan (Nathan and others are behind Zachary's POV, this is still the day of the escape)

My head was throbbing as I felt my eyes flutter open and I was immediately met by a set of humongous yellow eyes staring straight into my own. I tried to move but a strong paw on my chest held me down with ease.

Following the arm to its owner I met the steely brown gaze of a german shepherd wearing a dark red shirt and a pair of black pants kneeling next to me. I could see the relief swimming in his eyes as he turned to the lemur.

“He's not feral, you can see it in his eyes." He spoke. His voice was strong, very leader-like. The lemur on the other side of me nodded.

“I thought so, Aubrey was right to bring him here." She replied. Glancing between the two, I finally found my voice.

“Where am I?" My voice was hoarse as I spoke, indicating my exhaustion.

“You're in our camp's medical tent, nothing to worry about. My friend Aubrey and I were out hunting when she found you unconscious in the grass. I carried you back here." The german shepherd responded.

The memories were slightly foggy, but I was able to recall most everything that had happen. I felt panic overtake me as I realized I was wasting time laying here. I pushed up harder against the large paw holding me down, but I wasn't going anywhere.

“Please, you have to let me go my brother is still there please I have to go save him who knows what they're doing to him right now please please please…" I trailed off as I began to hyperventilate.

“You have to calm down young one. Start from the beginning and we'll see what we can do to help." The lemur spoke in a calm voice which helped to calm me down slightly. Taking a deep breath, I began my explanation.

“My brother and I were captured a few years ago by scientists who were looking for a cure to the disease. We were immune to it, and our mother… passed away from a different sickness. The scientists found us and told us they would take us in, give us food and shelter, and protect us." I paused for a moment, taking another shaky breath. The lemur rested her hand on my shoulder reassuring me to continue.

“They performed experiments on us daily, fed us the bare minimum to survive, and beat us when we wouldn't listen or do what they said. I made a promise to my mother that I would protect my little brother, so I took most of his experiments as well. In return they gave us time to see each other each day, and finally I just… snapped. They hit him over the head for no reason, and I refused to leave the room because of what they did. I was so upset that they had to sedate me to bring me back to my room. I was so distressed about the whole situation that my caretaker Edna decided to try to break us out. The plan wasn't perfect but it worked… almost. Just before we got to the exit they started shooting as us trying to stop us. That's how I got this." Motioning to the wound on my ear.

“My brother wasn't as fortunate. He got hit in the leg and he yelled at me to keep going…" I paused once again, feeling the emotion start to overtake me.

“I ran… I ran like a damned coward! I promised my mother I would protect him, and I failed miserably! And now he's still there and god knows what they're doing to punish him." I finished, choking the last few words out. I never realized the paw that was previously holding me down had been moved to my other shoulder, the german shepherd doing his best to comfort me even though it didn't seem like his thing.

“Go let your father know he's awake." The lemur spoke softly to the shepherd on my other side, who nodded in response.

“No need. I heard everything." An even deeper voice spoke from outside the tent, and I immediately felt intimidated by the older german shepherd standing in the entrance wearing a tattered brown leather vest and dark brown pants.

“What's your name?" He asked me. I gulped slightly before responding.

“N-Nathan, sir." I replied hesitantly.

“No need for formalities. My name is Andros, leader of the Wild. The two next to you are Dendra the lemur who is also our medic, and my son Baron." He introduced me to everyone, and I was still too overwhelmed to make a snarky comment about the name of their group.

“Where did you come from?" He asked me.

“There's a lab somewhere around here, but I'm not sure how far I ran…" I trailed off as I tried to remember.

“I know where that is. It's about 5 miles out to the northwest, probably a couple hour's trip." A new voice spoke from behind the overbearing shepherd. A fluffy grey head topped with a set of large ears poked its way beside Andros.

“I'm Aubrey, the one who found you waaaaay out in the middle of nowhere." I nodded my head gratefully at her, unsure of what to say at the moment. The larger of the two shepherds grunted in response.

“Good to hear, I'd like a squadron to go out tomorrow to inspect the laboratory and see what we can do about getting his brother out of there." He directed the last part towards me.

“If you're feeling well enough tomorrow you are welcome to accompany them but for now you need to rest and allow Dendra to tend to your wounds. When you're hungry, just let somebody know and someone will bring you food. And Aubrey, please do me a favor and find some clothes for our guest…" He trailed off slightly, and it was then that I realized I was completely exposed without even knowing it. Blushing madly I rushed to cover myself with my hands and tail.

“Sorry, they took away my clothes when they brought us to the lab." I said embarrassed. Andros disregarded the question with a flick of the tail.

“It's not an issue, we'll find something for you to wear. If you need anything just let somebody know. And once again, welcome to the Wild." He finished before leaving the way he came in. Aubrey left as well to find something for me to wear.

“Do you need me to stay Dendra?" The shepherd next to me asked.

“As long as our guest promises not to put up a fight?" She directed the question at me.

“I won't, I promise." I replied, and the shepherd nodded at the two of us before leaving as well.

“Now Nathan, I do have a few questions to ask and I'd like an honest response for each one. It's nothing too personal." Dendra told me, and I nodded in response.

“How old are you?" She asked simply. “17… as far as I know at least. I haven't looked at a calendar in a few years." I replied. “When was your birthday?" She asked. “November 3^rd, 2022." I responded. It wasn't a question I was asked often and it felt nice to remember.

“Today is December 10^th, 2040, meaning you turned 18 about a month ago. Happy late birthday." She said amusedly.

“Now on a level of 1-10 how does that wound on your ear feel?" I barely heard her question as the words sunk in. I was in there for more than three years… and I'm an adult now? I thought to myself.

“Nathan? Are you alright?" She paused her questioning.

I nodded, “Yeah sorry, just a little overwhelmed by that. I can't believe I was in there for over 3 years of my life…" I responded, still shocked by the fact that I was technically an adult now.

“Do you have any recollection of anything before the time you got captured?" She asked me quietly. I thought about the question for a moment, racking my brain for anything.

“A few things here and there, but everything else is just a big haze." I replied honestly, and she nodded, seemingly satisfied with the answer.

“Moving to the question I asked before, on a scale of 1-10 how would you rate the pain of the wound on your ear?" She prompted. I tested it out by giving it a quick flick as well as swiveling it in a couple different directions.

“Probably a 3 or a 4, I can feel a little bit of movement missing that was there before though." She nodded at my response.

“Nerve damage more than likely, it should not affect your hearing any though. What about the other wounds, I patched up most of the other cuts and bruises you had." She asked. I paused for a moment, glancing at my splotchy coat that was littered with various cuts and bruises from different experiments.

“I stopped feeling those a long time ago. I just stopped noticing them after a while." I replied, feeling somewhat depressed again. I received a look of sympathy from the lemur before our session was interrupted by Aubrey poking her head inside.

“I found some clothes for you. I wasn't sure what you wore so if you don't like them I can try to find something else." She said as she dropped the pile in front of me. I looked over the clothes, a pair of green boxers and some khaki shorts, as well as a plain dark blue shirt.

“No this is fine, thank you." I told her. She nodded and left once again. I gave Dendra a sheepish grin look who rolled her eyes with a smirk before turning her head away from me.

I stood up for a moment to pull the boxers and shorts on before sitting down once again to pull on the shirt. It felt extremely strange to be wearing clothes again, but I would be lying if I said I hadn't missed it.

“You wouldn't happen to have a mirror would you?" I asked Dendra suddenly. She reached into her pile of things next to her, pulling out a large glass shard.

“This is all I have." She said handing it to me. I felt anxious as I peered into the mirror, having the chance to see my reflection for the first time in a couple of years. I was shocked by the dead blue eyes that were once full of life that stared back at me, not believing that they were my own. My orange and white fur was tattered and matted in many places, dull from having not been cleaned in a while.

Taking one last look into the mirror, I handed the glass back shakily to Dendra before staring at the ground for a few moments.

“Not what you expected to see I presume?" She asked me quietly. I shook my head in response, turning my head to meet her gaze.

“No, I was expecting it… just not prepared for it." I replied, biting my lip anxiously.

“Thinking about your brother?" She questioned.

“I can't help it, I worry about him all the time." I responded.

“Andros is sending a group tomorrow to get him out, not to worry. They wouldn't hurt him knowing that he might be the only cure for the disease. They don't know how many of us there are out here." She replied.

“Us?" I asked, confused about what she was implying.

“The ones immune to the disease. We've all come together to support each other, and I would hope that would join us as well." She said.

“Right now my only mission is to save my brother. After that, I'd be happy to. I have no home to return to after all." I told her sadly.

“You do now." She smiled reassuringly, patting my leg. I smiled gratefully at her before letting my muzzle widen in an exhausted yawn.

“You should rest, Baron told me you were deadweight when he brought you here." Dendra suggested. I nodded at the advice, laying back down on the cot and closing my eyes, falling into a restless sleep.