Chapter 201 - The Invasion Begins

I have to wonder...just why exactly have I taken this long to visit a zoo? Being here now and seeing such a wide variety of animals, I'm in absolute awe, and also just realizing how few species of animals I've actually seen until now. 

There were always a fair number of birds flying around inside the Sanctuary, and there were plenty of stray dogs and cats, not to mention rats and other rodents. Some of the parks have rabbits and raccoons and stuff, from what I remember. But other than that, there really aren't many other species of animals that live freely inside the Sanctuary. 

"Hey, pay attention to me too," Muttered Katie as she tugged on my arm with a pout, snapping me out of it while I was staring in fascination at the tiger exhibit. 

All the enclosures were pretty spacious, so yes, while they animals are technically caged, they've got plenty of room to run about and stuff. And hey, it beats the alternative of being extinct, right? 

"Oh, sorry about that, didn't mean to get lost in my world, my bad," I grinned sheepishly, as I patted her head. 

"No, I was just kidding, I'm glad that you're having a good time. Well, fine, maybe I'm just a little bit salty that you're not giving me any attention," She responded with a wry smile. 

"Guess I'll just have to make it up to you...well, not that I have any idea how to go about doing so, so you'll have to specify," I replied, as we then walked away from the tiger enclosure and continued roaming the zoo. 

"Nah, you don't need to do anything. It's not all that crowded here right now, so just being here with you is more than enough," She mumbled in a whisper, as she leaned her head against my shoulder, her arms latched around my left arm. 

"Wha-...h-hey, don't j-just suddenly whisper in my ear like that, it tickles," I stuttered slightly...her warm breath against my earlobe sent shivers down my spine and made the hairs at the back of my neck stand up, and I think my heart might have skipped a beat there too. 

"Hm? Oh, so you have sensitive ears, huh? Good to know...," She responded with a sly smile. 

"Uh, whatever you're thinking right now, I don't think I wanna know," I replied wryly. 

"No idea what you mean...hey, look, the reptile exhibit is up ahead, let's go check it out," She suggested, as a wide building came into view. 

"Huh, wonder why they're kept in a separate space from the rest of the zoo," I mused, as we headed towards the building. 

"Don't reptiles fall asleep if it gets too cold or something? Maybe they regulate the temperature to suit the reptiles in this building, though I don't think all reptiles need such careful maintenance. After all, we did see that crocodile enclosure earlier," Pointed out Katie. 

"Oh, right. By the way, I've been thinking, how come we humans have evolved as a result of the radiation, while none of these animals seem to have evolved from what they were before WWIII?" I wondered curiously. 

"Huh, that's a good point...maybe it's because they're living in captivity instead of in what could be considered a natural habitat? And besides, Mutants are the evolved result of animals that were directly exposed to all that radiation, right? As for inside the Sanctuary, maybe humans evolved because they were all aware of the danger that was constantly surrounding them, while the animals didn't because they had idea about what was going on outside?" Suggested Katie after mulling it over. 

"Wow, that all sounds pretty plausible to me. Yeah, it certainly makes sense. After all, it's not like we know the ins and outs of evolution or how it specifically works, it's not something that can be so easily studied...though now that the Mutants seem to be evolving further, maybe-," I began to suggest. 

"Hey, um, this is really fascinating and all, but...maybe we could talk about it later?" She smiled sheepishly. 

"Crap...I'm sorry, I guess I keep getting distracted, huh? I probably should have said this sooner, but...those short, fluffy twintails really suit you, you look adorable," I remarked, as she turned red and averted a gaze, before a slight smile appeared on her face. 

She really did incredibly cute, and that's putting things lightly...she was wearing a light red sleeveless top with a low back and black shorts that went about halfway down her thighs, above maroon tights that covered her legs and short black heels. More than the outfit though, her hair was what stood out the most to me. 

Her usual low ponytail is cute too, but seeing these alternate styles is pretty great in its own right...during our previous date, her hair was left untied, and today, twintails. Yeah, I'm definitely not complaining. 

As we continued heading through the reptile exhibit, and then onto the rest of the zoo, I couldn't help but get engrossed in and distracted by some of the animals we passed by, but for the most part, my focus was on her. 

And the more I looked at her, the more I felt like I just couldn't look away. Regardless of whether she's being expressive or a blank slate, regardless of what she's wearing, regardless of how she ties her hair...regardless of any of that, the undeniable fact is that she's incredibly beautiful. 

And as I found myself thinking that, she glanced in my direction, and as our eyes met, I felt my heart skip a beat and my face heat up... 

"Kilzachs? Are you okay? You seem a bit flushed," She said with a look of concern, as she placed her palm on my forehead. 

Oh, I guess she doesn't realize that I'm blushing since, from her perspective, she hadn't done anything to make me blush right now. Okay, no, this feels way too embarrassing, I don't want to be the only one who feels like this...!

"Yeah...I'm fine...," I whispered in response, before leaning down and kissing her as I cupped her cheek in my hand, and then pulling away and adding, "Come on, let's keep going."

"O-okay...," She nodded in bemusement, as the tips of her ears turned red and she partially covered her face with one of her hands. 

So cute...

We made our way over to the primate enclosures next, and I have to say, monkeys and apes just look like innocent versions of Monkes and other primate Mutants. 

Most Mutants tend to look like warped versions of their animal counterparts, but now that I think about it, the primate Mutants don't look all that different to normal primates, except for the exaggerated claws and fangs. 

"Oh, looks like we've covered nearly all of the enclosures," I realized, as we came across a map of the zoo and I gave it a quick scan. 

"Yeah, you're right...I feel like I haven't had nearly enough time with you today though," She sighed in disappointment. 

"Huh? Just because we're almost done with the zoo doesn't mean that the date's over...we've still got plenty of time left in the day, after all," I responded with a raised eyebrow. 

"You really mean it!?" She perked up eagerly, her eyes lighting up. 

"Mhm, of course I do. Come on, let's rest up a bit before we check out the rest of the zoo, we can figure out what to do next afterwards," I suggested, as I nodded at a nearby bench. 

"Yeah, okay, that sounds good," She nodded with a smile, before we headed over and sat on the bench. 

She scooted over close to me, her shoulder pressed against mine as she leaned her head on me. 

"I've, uh...never really planned an outing like this before, I hope it's not been too boring," I remarked sheepishly. 

"Are you kidding me? I'm having a great time," She sighed happily in response. 

"Glad to hear it," I replied with a quiet sigh of relief. 

"Hey...I love you," She then whispered irresistibly, before lightly nibbling on my earlobe, causing me to inadvertently let out a slight gasp in surprise.

"I-I, uh...," I stuttered, my mind blanking out for a sec. 

"Oh, wow, your ears really are sensitive, aren't they?" She giggled, before staring at me with a warm, glowing smile, which made me feel...just so happy... 

"Katie, I-...," I began to respond, when suddenly, I was cut off as a slight yet deep rattling and rumbling echoed out all around us.

No, not around, it was coming from above us, and echoing around. Before I could even try to figure it out, the sky above us seemed to flicker, in a glitch-like effect... 

"What the...? Hey, you don't think...that something's happened to the Sanctuary's dome, do you?" Frowned Katie, as we stared up at the artificial sky in confusion and dread. 

"No...there's just no way...I mean, the dome's supposed to be over thirty meters thick, and with all the external security measures, the internal vacuum layer, and the Dampening Field, it shouldn't be possible to-...," I started to deny in disbelief. 

"THIS IS A SANCTUARY-WIDE ALERT...WE HAVE AN EMERGENCY!" Suddenly came a voice over the speakers, "WIGHTS HAVE INVADED THROUGH THE SOUTH QUADRANT, THE SANCTUARY DOME HAS BEEN BREACHED! EVERYONE, EVACUATE IMMEDIATELY, THIS IS NOT A DRILL! I REPEAT...!"

As the voice continued to warn and urge us to evacuate, I felt a mix a shock, disbelief, anger and frustration... 

"What are you waiting for, Kilzachs? Come on, let's get to the South Quadrant!" Exclaimed Katie, snapping me out of it. 

"Right, let's-...wait, what?" 

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