Tutor Carraway and Zuo were immediately by her side, trying to calm her down. Her eyes rolled back and suddenly she was still. When she opened her eyes again, her eyes were empty and blank. She jerked away from their touch and didn't seem to comprehend their voices. When the tutor reached out to her, she attacked.
Zuo snatched Tutor Carraway out of harm's way, just in the nick of time, while speaking into his radio in code.
"What happened? What's wrong with her?" Tutor Carraway gasped in fright. "The last time I saw her like this was before the battle with the local beastmen. I thought she had gotten better and recovered from that?"
"The fight with the ferals outside might have triggered her," Zuo said, pushing the tutor behind him while he and Stacey circled the room, watching each other. "Beserker training has its downsides."
Stacey stared at the two potential enemies in front of her and wondered what was going on. She could hear fighting outside but she was trapped inside this room. Whenever she tried to get to the door, the stronger looking man in front of her would block her off. Why was he keeping her prisoner in here for? She had to find that… that… someone. She couldn't remember. There was someone that she hated and that she needed to kill. She might not remember now but she might remember if she managed to get out of the room.
More big burly men arrived. Wait. No, there were three well built women among them. From the way this group of burly people moved, they were strong. Very strong. Stronger than her. It was a pity. There was no way she would be able to escape with so many of them watching her.
That weaker man would be a good target to start with. If she took him hostage, they might allow her out of the room. It was a pity the entire group were acting as his shield. He must be the one controlling this situation and calling the shots. She would have to capture him in order to deal with these other men. But how?
Stacey paced back and forth across the room, looking for an angle of weakness. Trying to determine which of the strong men facing her was weaker than the others and gauge how she might take him down. Just because they were strong didn't mean that they were good at fighting.
"Stacey, calm down. It's alright."
But she was calm and she was alright. What were they talking about?
"Out," she said. She wanted them to leave her alone and let her out.
"Sorry, my lady, Stacey. We can't. You can't go out and we can't leave you like this. It's not safe."
What not safe? What wasn't safe was that they were on guard and looking as if they were about to attack her. She wasn't safe with them in here. Since she wasn't safe, she would have to make herself safe, even if she had to remove them herself.
"Out!"
"I'm sorry, Stacey. My lady, we can't let you out."
With a growl of frustration, Stacey darted between the strong men to get at the weak man who was hiding behind them. When that failed, she lunged for the door. Multiple arms caught a hold of her while she kicked and fought and struggled to break free. She was held down to the ground while a syringe was pulled out and prepared in the dim light.
Her arm was held down and a torchlight shone. A tourniquet was tightened around her upper arm. Someone caught her head and protected it so that she couldn't bite nor bang her head against the floor in her frustration. She was completely at their mercy.
Bah. She had made the wrong call and now she was going to have to pay for it.
"Hurry up."
"I'm trying. I need to find her vein first."
"Just jab her in a muscle."
"This one's not for intramuscular injection."
"Seriously?"
"The intramuscular one was more expensive. We didn't think we'd need it."
"Lesson learned. Don't cut corners."
"Let's get one for next time. That way we won't risk hurting her."
There was a sharp jab in Stacey's inner arm and she yelled in anger.
"Off. Get off!"
Something beeped a warning and the black wristband she was wearing vibrated in alarm.
"Her heart rate has spiked. Look how purple her face is. Her lips are going pale. We'll have to take her to the hospital."
"How long does it take for the tranquilliser to take effect?"
"Any moment now."
Stacey felt strangely lethargic. Darn those holey socks. They'd drugged her. She refused to take this lying down. They were trying to wear her down. Who wanted to wear holey socks? She was gonna get up. Beat them up. Sock 'em. Beat them all up. How dare they hole her socks? She'd sock their holes, she would. They could darn their holes themselves. Damn socks.
"Are you sure?"
"She's fighting it. She's strong."
Stacey fought the men holding her down with renewed vigour but the more she fought to get free, the heavier her limbs became. She was gonna darn them socks and pull them inside out. Beat up these strong men and teach them a lesson. How dare they wear her socks?
"Whoa. Look out!"
"Mind her head! Protect her head! We can't let her get another head injury."
"How strong is that sedative? Should we give her another shot?"
"One shot should be enough. We just need to wait for it to take effect. See?"
"Ah, she's starting to go."
"There we are, my lady. It's alright. You're safe here with us. Just go to sleep. Go to sleep. We'll take care of you."
Her vision spotted and blurred. She could feel her eyes starting to close. No! No. She refused. She was going to… going to beat… beat them… all… up...