There were four of them, grayish in this half-light. Was this what she was, now? Why? Why would anyone bring her here and make her look like that? And for what reason?

The fallen pebble didn't distract them at all, fortunately. They were watching... gelatin? Well, it might look like gelatin, but it was waving tentacles and flashing a weird light, over and over again. Dit dit dit, dah dah dah, dit dit...

She moves without thinking, landing quietly behind the four and dashing between them, scooping up the gelatin creature in her free hand as she pivots, pointing her tiny blade at the four.

"Mine," Sam snarls, baring her teeth at them. A challenge, yes. Would they understand her? She couldn't be sure if she spoke English or whatever they spoke. Or if what she did was safe. Was this thing going to try to eat her? Maybe the four of them were staring with surprise at her for doing something so incredibly stupid.

But it flashed an SOS. If that man turned her into this, maybe he turned someone else from Earth into this light-blinking gelatin!

So what were these four going to do about it?

No, what was she going to do about it? 

"Oh god, I hope this was worth it...?" she said, bolting for the nearest tunnel with her prize.