"...Kitten, oh kitten... time to wake up." Whispered the ever-taunting voice of the tiger villainess, Sonya.

As she was speaking those teasing words, T.K. had drowsily begun to stir, awakening from her drug-induced slumber. The young tigress glanced around the room through half-opened eyes. She quickly became aware that she was still hogtied and gagged (and still in her pajamas).

However, her surroundings had indeed changed. Instead of the soft, plush carpeting of her bedroom floor beneath her, it had now been replaced with a cold, shiny steel floor. The room she now occupied was surrounded by all kinds of computer monitors, as well as lots of other sinister looking devices.

This new location that she had been moved to sent a slight chill traveling from the top of T.K.'s ears to the tips of her toes, which were becoming somewhat numb from the rope wound tightly around them.

"So what do ya think of your new room?" Sonya chuckled softly as Morgus then stalked up beside her.

"Lgnht mmng GNNH!!" T.K. growled angrily as she resumed her earlier attempt to free herself by thrashing and straining against the bonds that held her.

"Hehe, catch a tiger by the toe, eh Sonya?" Morgus laughed in his usual rocky voice. This sad attempt at comedy by the large rock-man was responded to by an annoyed roll of the eyes from Sonya.

"...you're an idiot."

The white tiger-villain returned her attention back down to the still struggling T.K. and cracked another sick smile.

"Oh, now don't wear yourself out yet, kitten. After all, there's someone ELSE here that would like to see you."

"Hmngh?!" Was the tiger-girl's startled, yet stifled response. It was already bad enough that two of her most dangerous enemies in Morgus and Sonya had teamed up to capture her, so she wondered who else could've been involved in this.

The young tigress had no idea that her question was about to be answered.

'Ah, hello again, T.K. It really HAS been too long, don't you agree?'

T.K.'s ears perked up as she heard the mysterious voice address her. She strained to turn her head towards the doorway, and saw a man in a white labcoat standing at the entrance.

He was an older gentleman, completely bald and wearing small, round spectacles. The young tiger-girl recognized this man as the diabolical Doctor Sadarus, the villain that had tried time and time again to dispose of her.

"Shrdrrgsh?!" T.K. muffled in shock. She couldn't believe what she was seeing... Sonya, Morgus, AND Sadarus working TOGETHER!? T.K. knew this wouldn't end well.

The brave heroine began to jerk against the constricting ropes that bound her, even as the despicable doctor approached her. When he was within a few feet of her, T.K. had noticed that Sadarus was carrying some sort of rectangular shaped device in his arms.

"Well now, T.K., here's a situation you seem to be quite familiar with, although I must say... the pajamas are a nice touch. Very cute." Sadarus chuckled, making another microscopic blush cross the tigress' muzzle yet again. Was EVERYBODY going to make fun of her in her pajamas today?

Sonya and Morgus each let out a snicker of their own, but were quickly silenced when the bad doctor interrupted.

"That will be all, you two. You are dismissed." He stated in an elderly tone. Morgus attempted to speak.

"But, Doctor. I thought you wanted us to..."

"I SAID... you are dismissed."

Without another word, both Morgus and Sonya quickly found their way to the exit, not wishing to anger the aged doctor any further. T.K. watched the duo leave, then returned her gaze to Sadarus, rage burning in her eyes.

The dastardly doctor resumed his conversation with the tied and gagged tiger-girl as he placed the strange box down next to her.

"Now that we have a little peace and quiet, I can finally enjoy what will be YOUR final moments." Sadarus flashed a small half-smile as he continued to observe T.K. writhing and wriggling in front of him.

T.K. looked up at the doctor, still struggling, and from behind her gag she mumbled, "Wghnt dghu yngh mghng, 'fnghl mughmntph!?'

Sadarus chuckled slightly as he explained to the bound tigress just what he had in store for her.

"My dear T.K., I'm sure you're aware by now of my love of timer devices, are you not? Well, this one right here..." he said, patting the top of the device with his palm, "...is my newest, and most favorite creation thus far."

Despite the doctor's gloating, and the reality that she had made no headway in escaping this damnable hogtie, the fire inside T.K.'s heart burned even more fierce than ever as Sadarus continued to talk.

"This little gadget here is the first of its kind... this is an inter-dimensional transporter. Anything caught within its vortex is instantly sucked into another dimension... and now it's YOUR turn."

T.K.'s eyes widened with an emotion rarely displayed in the young tiger-girl... fear. Would this sadistic madman really send her to another dimension JUST to get rid of her? Apparently so, as Sadarus was now reaching for a button on top of the console, right next to the timer.

"Nghu, dnght dghn nht!" Screamed the heroic feline through the airtight gag, but it was no use. The devious doctor had already pressed the button, the timer lighting up and set for five minutes.

"Well, my worthy adversary, I've so enjoyed these last few moments we've shared, but I'm afraid that all good things must come to an end... have fun in another dimension... IF you survive the trip... hmm hmm hmm!" Sadarus laughed loudly as he exited the room, leaving the hogtied T.K. to suffer her fate.

...4:29, 4:28, 4:27...

The tigress fought against her bonds with every last ounce of resolve she had, never giving up.

...2:56, 2:55, 2:54...

T.K. watched the timer count down, precious seconds ticking away. Her heart told her never give up, and she didn't. She thrashed harder than she thought her physical strength would allow, but then again... she wasn't relying solely on her PHYSICAL strength... but her SPIRITUAL strength as well.

...1:00, 0:59, 0:58...

Suddenly, the young tigress heard a snap, and realized that one of her wrists was now free. With newfound determination, T.K. pulled harder, and was valiantly rewarded when her other wrist flopped down to her side. Now only her legs and toes were still bound, but as long as she could hop, she should be able to make it out in time.

But in all the excitement of freeing her arms, T.K. had lost sight of the timer, and once she saw it again, she let out a small muffled gasp.

...0:02, 0:01, 0:00...

The instant the timer reached zero, a beam shot from the red optic sensor on top of the machine, aiming itself directly at the tiger-girl's still bound feet, opening a glowing vortex beneath her.

Before she could make a move, T.K. started to fall through the abyss to what would most certainly be her doom, but suddenly...

************************

"Aaah!!" T.K. awoke with a start as she frantically looked around the room she was in, seeing to her relief that it was in fact her bedroom.

"(pant) (pant) ...a dream... it was all a dream." She sighed loudly as she caught her breath. Pulling the covers back, T.K. swung her legs over the side of the bed, placing her bare feet on the nice, soft carpeting as she stood up.

The young tigress proceeded to make her way to the bathroom, her claws making a slight clacking noise as her feet made the transition from soft carpet to hard tile, making her shiver a bit from the feel of the cold tile on her bare soles.

T.K. flicked on the light and made her way to the sink to wash her face, realizing she'd worked up a bit of a sweat in her sleep.

As she turned on the faucet and placed her hands under the cold running water, T.K. looked in the mirror and said to herself, "Thank goodness is was only a dream."

But as she glanced down at her hands, T.K. received quite a shock. She noticed faint rope marks around both of her wrists.

"But, that can't be. It was just a dream."

T.K. quickly reached down and pulled both of her pants legs up and saw the same abrasions around her ankles and even her big toes as well. The tigress looked back at the mirror and whispered...

"...or WAS it?"

.... The End