"Where did Hikari go? Meow?"
Camilia hid herself in the vegetation as a cultist convoy lumbered past her. The booming of cannons and musket fire in the distance.
She had found herself following Hikari deeper into cultist territory.
The vegetation was getting thicker. In the distance, she could see the thick undergrowth of the Carla swamps.
"Hmrp. That stupid Hikari. Running off like that."
She had lost the scent.
"I should head back. it's getting dark."
She waited in the bushes, maintaining a low pouncing stance.
It was dark.
She got up and galloped in the direction back to RazenHeir territory.
The sound of her paws brushing against the grass below.
"Torches"
She slowed down her pace as she approached what appeared to be a cultist lookout post.
Prowling low in the vegetation.
The rattling of the grass in the wind covers the sound of her approach.
"hooded men."
She waited in the grass for two of the sentries to go to sleep in their tent.
Quietly, She approached.
Snap! Her paws sink into the man's neck.
Snap! Snap! She finished off the remaining two in the tent.
She licked her claws.
"Urk, disgusting. Rurrr…"
She hid in the tent.
Bang! A musket shot from nowhere, piercing the tent.
Camilia ducked. The bullet grazed her back.
She felt a burning sensation.
"Meow! I've been marked!"
She galloped in a random trajectory. Musket shots missing her.
"I see you!"
She swings her claw in the direction of the muzzle flares. A razer sharp wind rippled through the grass.
Camilia ripped out the fur where the aether fire struck her.
The next volley of musket shots missed her.
The assassins had lost track of their target.
Cautiously, they waded through the grass. muskets loaded in one hand, a fireball hovering above their other.
"Meow!" A claw came from below, piercing through the assassin's groin.
Bang! Bang! The other two fired, their shots hitting their former comrade.
Camilia slithered away in the grass.
The remaining two assassins drew their swords.
The wind around them stirred. Then they were hit with a barrage of razor sharp winds.
Their phasing magic allows them to dodge the initial blow but not the constant cutting of the razer winds.
They jumped in opposite directions.
"Meow!" Camilia appeared out of the dark and sank all her claws into the cultist.
The last cultist fires his musket and missed.
The winds died down.
The last remaining cultist threw a smoke bomb and ran for it.
A wind slash from the hack ripping into his cloak.
More slashes came from different directions. He held his ground.
Blood oozing from the flesh wounds.
He bled to dead.
Camilia looted them.
"Shiny. Meow."
She galloped away.
The vegetation became more sparse.
"Meow.. I'm tired. Too dangerous to sleep here but I can rest."
The beast kin curled up in the grass.
Her stomach growled.
She scratched the part of her body that was hit by aether fire.
A fresh layer of fur had already regenerated.
Her ears twitched.
Growl…. Her ears twitched. What is that sound? A guard dog?
Growl… It got a little louder. Thump! Thump! She could feel the vibrations in the ground.
She sprung up. "Run" Her instincts screamed.
She galloped at top speed. The growling got stronger and stronger.
The camp was still several miles away.
She could hear the beast growling behind her. She dared not look back.
It felt massive.
A barrage of aether fire landed all around here, exploding in a brilliant and deadly pink flare.
Panicking, Camilia abruptly steered to the right.
Thump! Thump! The sound of the beast's claws skidding on the grass.
The barrage of aether fire flying off in random directions.
Camilia felt the distance between her and the beast widening.
"He! Can't handle sharp turns can ya, Meow!"
The beast picks up speed again.
Before long, she sees the pinkish light of the aether fire lighting up the grass ahead of her.
She waited for the beast to charge up another barrage.
At the last moment, she made a sharp turn to the left.
It works. The beast fumbles again, growling loudly in annoyance.
It picks up its pace. Camilia jukes it.
It stopped.
"Ha! Suck it! Meow!"
Camilia cruised towards the camp, humming as she went.
"I can already smell the horsey meat."
Her little celebration was short-lived.
She heard a loud roar from behind her. Thump! Thump!
"Rurrr…! What now!" Camilia picked up the pace again, but this time, the beast was closing in fast.
"Let's see if the wind can support your speed, Moew!"
Camilia coats herself in a vortex of wind.
She changed course. The wind boosting her speed.
But the beast was still kept up.
"meow! Where is the help?"
She turned sharply again, but the trick no longer works. The gap was gradually closing.
Camilia released the winds around her, leaving the gale.
She turned to face the beast.
The beast leapt into the air, barreling down on her.
Camilia darted forward, allowing the beast's momentum to carry itself past her.
The full horror of the flesh hound came into her view.
Slimy furless flesh, wrapped in vines with pink flowers blooming all over its body.
The flowers on its legs began shifting itself back onto its head. Tendrils with flowers on their tips appeared about the hound's twisted, faceless head.
"Ya don't even have a mouth, how would you bite. Meow!"
The dozen tendrils on the beast charged up their aether fire. Camilia dashed towards the beast, starling it. It raised one of its claws, slamming it into the ground, but could not catch the slippery windranger before she disappeared under its belly.
The ground around the beast lit up in brilliant aether fire.
The beast shuffled its legs, but the nimble beast kin was able to match its movements. After another barrage, the vines on its body began shifting, tendrils started appearing below its belly, sharp tips sprouting out of their ends.
"Uh oh." The tendrils thrusted towards the ground, penetrating through the soil as the beast kin hopped from side to side to avoid it.
"Meow!" Camilia darted back out from under it, dodging the tendrils. Once she was out of the tendril spears' range, the tendrils on its back re-emerge and charged up its aether fire.
"Meow!" Camilia darted around as the aether fire landed around her. "Back under! Back under!"
She dodged another swipe from the beast.
Being under the beast's belly, she readied herself for another barrage of the spearing tendrils.
"When is help coming meow!?"
The tendrils formed, thrusting themselves against Camilia.
"Rurrr… ! " The barbed tendril grazed her skin.
But she could not stop moving, once she does, she's dead.
She narrowly dodged another barrage of tendrils before making out from under the beast's belly.
The beast's claw came into her view. It's too late to dodge.
She was sent flying by the impact of its claw. It felt like her gut was beaten by a steel pole arm.
She landed in the grass, tumbling and rolling, briefly blacking out.
When she opened her eyes, she saw in horror the light of aether fire on its tendrils.
Her body feels heavy. She had burnt through most of her energy.
The aether fire landed all around her. No direct hit, but she had to tore off some more of her fur that caught fire.
The beast charges up another charge. "How are ya not running out of mana. Meow!"
Camilia stayed put, the barrage misses her.
Another barrage, she watches the trajectory intently and repositions herself.
The beast roars in annoyance. More tendrils started appearing on its back.
"You got to be kidding me!"
The aether fire lighting up the area, revealing the tortured squirming flesh of the flesh hound.
Camilia crouched low, building up spring in her legs and watched as the aether fire built up.
She shivered at the cold wind blowing into her, bracing for the oncoming barrage.
A shadowy figure appeared above it.
Stab! A massive claymore pierced right through the beast's torso. The built up aether fire in the beast's tendrils were released in all directions.
A giantic body landed on the beast, mounting it by grabbing onto the handle of her claymore stuck right through the beast's chest.
"Hikari..!" The beastkin cried out in joy.
The beast roared, the tendrils turned to Hikari.
Hikari swung her sword in a wide sweep releasing a crescent of fire setting all of the tendrils alight.
The beast roared as it tried in vain to shake Hikari off.
"Quiet."
Despite being larger in size, the beast was unable to shake off the giantess.
More vines started growing out of its body to replace the severed ones. A stream of flames emerged from Hikari's palm, burning away the vines as they appeared.
"Bad Horse."
Hikari poked away at the beast's legs with her burning sword. The flesh abomination's strength weakens as its flesh was cut.
Eventually, the beast collapsed onto the ground.
Hikari thrust her sword into the beast and ripped out its core.
"Woah! That was awesome. meow! I wish I could fight like you." Camilia crawled up to Hikari and rubbed her fur against her boot.