She Said Sorry To An Empty Car

Kiana was curious just like Azura, Lulu, and Selia. But hers burned deeper. She defied her instinct. She wondered about families, watched lives go by, and even talked with those brave enough to stop. Kiana's vigilant paws didn't chase micros, her nose didn't crave the sweet aroma of fear. Kiana didn't judge anybody—not even her friends. She understood them. She respected everybody's way of life. From the smallest human life, to Azura's love of ending them. But Azura wasn't here; Kiana was.

Back in her world, she'd always ignored the terrified micro in the kitchen. Even if Azura was hunting them. She'd gently nudge them behind the bookshelf, drop a crumb of something fresh and delicious, and lie to Azura with a straight face. "I have no clue where they went? Did you check the kitchen?" Azura's narrowing eyes knew she was lying, but she loved Kiana for it. She was genuine, she was herself.

Selia was saved three times. That was rare enough anywhere. But on their home world it was bizarre. Mercy was weak. Even Azura didn't understand it. But she didn't need to.

But today, she wanted something different. To walk along and experience the world on her terms.
She sought to see things without her friends' destructive edge. It was true, Kiana wanted to leave her mark on the city. But she wanted to hear it without the screams.
So today, she set out on her own. And it was a deserved change of pace.

She preferred to walk through open fields. If she took the roads, she knew she'd destroy them, along with countless lives. Forests made her skittish too, never knowing if an animal, or worse, a person was underfoot. The occasional warmth she would feel walking caused her to shiver with guilt. Please forgive me. I can't help it—but I cant just stay home all day.

After a short journey from her perspective, she saw a city, untouched by her friends. It looked large, definitely over a million individuals, all living their own lives. Her tail started wagging, a gust of wind uprooting weaker trees. Too excited to notice she walked towards the city.

She could see the nearby highway becoming chaotic. Cars collided from awestruck drivers. Some stopped, others veered off the road. Pedestrians bumped into each other fleeing to safety

"You don't have to worry! I just want to see your city." But her booming voice went unheard, or maybe ignored. They've seen Azura and Lulu at work, and Kiana has been with them before.

⁂

Elki's eyes were wide open. Both her hands and face were glued to the car's window. "Mommy, look at the big doggy!"

"Yes dear, he is really big." Marla kept her eyes on the road, answering casually. "Why is the car shaking? I just got it out of the shop."

"No Momma, she." The frustration could be heard in her tiny voice. She hated being ignored. "She is huge! Taller than a building."

Marla finally turned to look.
Her mouth dropped.
Too stunned to speak, she could only mouth the words.
"She is smiling. Like that bunny."
Her stomach sank while her toes and fingers tingled.

She didn't notice herself let off the gas, nor did she notice when the road turned.
She slammed into a telephone pole, snapping at its base.
Marla slammed on the brakes as her head looked ahead.
The hood of the car crumpled as it slammed into the wall of a building.
Elki flew into the back of the seat; jostled but unhurt.
The airbags deployed, stopping Marla from smashing into the steering wheel.

The noise of collision was lost among the rest.

⁂

A series of air-horns, once reserved for early warning of a military attack, echoed throughout the city.
Sirens filled the air from every direction as emergency crews went to work before she even took her first step.

"I guess they have only seen me with Azura and Lulu." Her heart sank. They didn't want to see her. And everybody was terrified.

She looked around.
Houses, apartment buildings, and roads; filled with cars and people.
She noticed a parking lot. It too was filled with cars but no people. Kiana lifted her foot, that was the safest way to go.
What if somebody is in their car?
She set her foot back down.
Just for a minute; looking for movement and listening for an engine.

Her toes landed and the ground trembled. Metal crumpled into a disc like a freight train compressing a coin. "I'm sorry." Her eye lashes and ears fell more with each successive step.
Glass shattered, the asphalt fractured, as she tip-toed through the parking lot. Lives were left upended as Kiana crushed cars into something one might mistake for a scab on asphalt.
They were lucky, they only lost their vehicles.

After a few steps she crossed it into a park. Her heels finally touched the ground again; relieved.
Guilt started to creep up on her. She just wanted to see them live their lives. But Kiana knew people were being hurt; just from their panic, from seeing her.
This much of a reaction... just from me.
She stopped to look at the city sprawl out before her.
But... they look so funny... how they scramble and panic.
Then the guilt came back, hitting her harder than that dump truck just hit that parked car.

She winced. Oh no! That collision didn't look good.
Kiana giggled awkwardly, a guilt-laden mix of horror and amusement.
"Please..." Her tone was soft and genuine.
"Don't worry. I'm not here to ruin anybody's day..."

She stopped for a moment, trying to think of a way to stifle the chaos. Trying to make things lighter she joked, "I guess a few car owners would disagree. If your insurance doesn't cover it-you have that here, right?-tell them to talk to me." It landed awkwardly, with a half chuckle. Her voice carried over the chaos but still went unheard.

"Really, I'm not trying to damage your possessions." She didn't know who she was even talking to. Maybe nobody, probably everybody. When you're tiny, you lose all control of the situation. "I'm just curious..." Pausing, she considered her next words carefully. "My friends—well, they... uhhh... like to play how they play."

Her tone softened even further with a fragile and real; it was hard to fake. "But I am not like them." Her voice shifted again, like she was trying to convince somebody of something. "We came from a place where we were the normal size. And you were..." Kiana lingered on the thought. "Pests. We couldn't leave you unchecked." Part of her even yearned for that simplicity again. "If you had tiny creatures all crawling around your paws, you might step on some too." But was she trying to convince everybody—or herself?

The clock ticked a couple times before she declared: "Stay out of my way and you wont get hurt. I am not looking too crush you. I am walking up the main streets... You might need to repair your roads and infrastructure, but if that's all, you should be thankful. You're too fascinating."
She wanted to make sure they had fair warning and a proper chance to vacate the streets.

Then, she waited.
Ten minutes; she watched as the streets emptied to make way for a goddess.
She took her first step.
The pavement cracked, its resistance was almost nonexistent. Breaking through the ground flattened, pavement buckled before crumbling under her weight.
When her paw finally lifted, a perfect imprint remained. A new landmark.

By now the main street had been cleared, except for cars. But she didn't care about those, not anymore.
They... had their chance to move them.
Kiana said as much to convince herself to ease her guilt as she was pragmatic.

Boom—Boom—Boom.
A cube van dared to stand in the way of her paws. It was crushed beyond recognition. The furniture will never be delivered now, just obliterated into a mess of splintered wood, metal, and fabric.
Kiana winced.

Boom—Boom—Boom.
As her paw was about to land, a scream hit her ears. It was muffled.
Her paw stopped mid-air.
As she moved it aside, a family stood in horror. The parents shielded their children. They left their vehicles too late, to much in a panic about what to do.

Startled, Kiana dropped her paw on a taxi that was haphazardly left in the middle of the street. Now a just a sheet of crumpled metal, still hot from friction, it was now around an inch thick.
Kiana's head sank into her shoulders "Forgive me."

Cupping her hands around her eyes, she peered inside a building.
A family hiding was in the corner of their living room. They shook so much they almost rattled the glass as her breath fogged it up.

"Oops. I didn't mean to scare you. I'm not like my friends." Her voice was genuine but echoed throughout town. The city vibrated. People screamed.

The family she was looking at recoiled, rolling on the ground. They were coverings their ears.

Kiana could feel the blood drain from her face as shame took control. Her stomach turned. She had seen what size could do. What Azura and Lulu did for fun.

But it was much different for Kiana when she saw pain that she caused.
Her face drooped. Guilt consumed her.
All she could do was mouth the words, "I'm so so sorry. I really am."
My voice is as big as me. I can't forget this.

She continued on.
Thud. Whump. Crunch.
An ambulance's sirens were silenced forever as her paw pressed it into the asphalt.
"If these aren't empty..." Her voice was much quieter this time. Kiana shrugged her shoulders as her voice cracked just a hint. "That's... not what I wanted at all." Her tail stopped wagging. Now curled tightly against her legs.
I told them to move. Did I not give them enough time?

She let her gaze fall. Those belonged to somebody, I hope they were empty. Please be empty.
But in the end, her paws landed where they landed. And nothing survived under them.

She was too big for such a little city.
Kiana did what she could to not hurt anybody. It's all she wanted. But nothing could stop her from doing damage.
"Please keep yourself safe..." Her gaze covered the streets for any sign of movement.
She spoke, hoping nobody was still in the streets when they heard it, "Your city is so fascinating. I can't believe how small everything is."

She saw a group of furs and humans standing on top of a building. Watching as she stepped through the parking lot. "You folks sure are brave." Her gaze swept over the cityscape. "I don't see anybody else doing this."
She waved at them. They started cheering and waving back.

Kiana stood still for a moment and pondered the situation. Everywhere buildings housing hundreds, even thousands of people, all hiding from what they thought was an apex predator.
Well almost everybody. She smiled at the group and looked to a clock flashing downtown.

Atop a building, a clock read 11:35. The Temperature was 24 degrees (75).
The day was beautiful, like this city.

A nearby billboard proclaimed,
"Visiting Town? We know you'll love it as much as we love you!" A family accompanies the slogan, sight-seeing downtown.
Switching to the family getting their keys to their new home, "Make Garnett Bay Your New Home!" the text switching to, "New houses starting at Only Ꝑ999 000."

The smells of the city were different at this scale. They still smelled like the cities she was familiar with. But the scale was unfathomable. From every direction, the city lived, breathed, feared. She could smell cars, foods, even the forest she came from. From every direction smells hit, but it didn't overwhelm her at all.

She loved it. It was intoxicating.
Sniff-sniff-sniff.
What is that delicious smell?
Her body jolted in shock, eyes widening for a second then back.
No, not that. She knew what she liked and hated herself for it.
"Why does fear have to smell so good."

A soft voice, almost swallowed by the chaos, was screaming up at her. It was wrapped in a panic, just trying to reach her. Kiana's massive ears twitched as her head swung down and to the side.
He stood between two buildings in an alley. A middle aged man was waving his arms frantically.
Kiana knelt down, the force of wind almost knocking him over.

She leaned forward, now less then forty feet apart.
"You're about to step on the underground subway line!!"
His vocal cord was strained, yell as loud as he could. "Its packed with people."

She sniffed the air quickly.
Her body pulsed quickly with fear. Every hair on her body flared.
Its true. I can smell thousands coming up from the ground.