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Chapter Seven

I glanced at the keeper, groaning. He kneeled down next to me and started to feel my rumbling belly. I pawed at his wrist, moaning. I squirmed under his warm hand, growling. He tapped my stomach, poking and prodding at it.
After he was done, he stood himself up and left. I continued to fake moan and groan, rolling around.
A few keepers came back and picked me up. I jumped a bit, shivering in fear. "It's okay. No need to be scared, Taliku." One of the keepers said as they placed me on the blanket Ratanic was carried out on. I was bounced around a bit on the blanket as they walked towards the door. I groaned, turning and twisting in place. "It's okay, buddy." A keeper said, stroking my back. I laid still as the noticed they had entered the room beyond the door.
Yes!
I was set on a cold, shiny table. The keepers started to chatter, I listened. I couldn't understand them, so I just laid there.
Soon enough, they left. I sat up, onto my paws. I looked around. Around the table, against the walls, were counters, with different devices and tools. I blinked a bit, the lights on the ceiling shining bright. I started to walk towards the edge of the table. I almost tripped off, my pads slipping on the smooth metal. I latched my paws onto the edge of the table and looked down. The tiled floor didn't look to far down...
But is there anything else lower?
I glanced around again, slightly scared. A big, gray can with a plastic bag in it was sat by the edge of one of the counters.
If I can jump to the counter, I can get into that can.
I started to crouch down, glaring at the counter that was close. I sat there for a minute, building strength.
I jumped up, landing short of the counter. I tried my best to latch my claws onto the slippery surface, making scratching noises. I finally got my paws on the top of a cabinet and climbed onto the counter, gasping for air. I sighed,
This isn't going to be as easy as I thought.
I slowly started to walk over to the ledge closest to the can, trying my best not to slip. I scratched and skidded my claws against the cold metal, trembling. I finally got to the end, and I flopped into the can. Crash! I whimpered, my head hitting the hard can. I got a face full of plastic, huffing in stress. I started to shake the can around, trying to tip it over.
After a few minutes, I finally got he can on it's side. I got to my paws and shook the can off. I sneezed, looking around. The counters and table were now much taller than me. I was surprised, looking up in awe. I started to trot towards the door, my claws clacking against the tiles. I pressed my nose against the door. It slowly creaked open, leading me into an empty hall. The lights were dimmed, and many doors aligned the corridor. I looked to my left. A huge, glass door leading to a long path outside the metal habitat was placed at the very end of the hall.
I started to run towards it, happy.
An exit! An exit!