The Bloodforged Kin

"Must go now, before dawn. One more challenge."

"I don't know if I can do another one."

"Not for you. This one is mine. But first," Maisy padded over to where the bear's body had previously been. She batted at a large object on the ground. Tess walked to stand beside her, identifying the huge, crimson-black lump of flesh on the ground.

Goliath Ursine's Heart (Consumable):
Eating the heart of the Goliath Ursine grants the user a permanent +3 strength boost to the one that slew the creature. The heart must be eaten in its entirety immediately after battle. This item cannot be shared.

"Do I eat that?"

"You must."

"I see it'll make me stronger, but does it have any negative side effects?"

Tess felt emotions from Maisy that conveyed something akin to So what?

Tess lifted the organ that was the size of her head, turning it left and right. Well, no time like the present.

A part of her recoiled at the first bite, but the largest part of her relished in the still-warm blood running down her throat.

The two huntresses ran through the night, pushing for every ounce of speed. Trees blurred by faster than the eye could follow and they twined between them on pure instinct, the hair's breadth distances between them and the trees as wide as a highway to their agile forms. Tess didn't miss the glances Maisy threw at the sky when it peeked through the foliage. With every brightening moment they poured on even more speed.

Their mad rush came to a skidding halt as they slid to the edge of yet another clearing. Tess looked on curiously, wondering what had spurred this relentless charge.

There, sitting on a large pile of furs, was an orange tabby cat even bigger than Maisy herself. Deep scars ran down its face, and its piercing green eyes regarded them even as it cleaned itself.

"Mate?" Tess sent.

A mental shrug from Maisy. "Mate. Intruder. Enemy. Subject."

"Which is it?"

Another shrug. "All. None."

Tess stepped forward with her partner, only to be rebuffed by a tail whip to her chest. "No. Mine."

"I already have a mate," Tess laughed mentally.

Maisy twisted her head and Tess swore she saw the cat smile. "No, he comes to challenge. Must defeat him before the sun rises or he becomes king of my territory. He has come to take what's mine."

"You only had until sunrise? Why did you let me waste time with the bear? We could have done that after!"

A mental shrug of indifference was the only response before Maisy stepped into the clearing. She moved into clear view, then sat gently before bending to clean her legs and paws. The sire cat paused and some unknowable communication that Tess could only guess at passed between the two. The male stood, then hopped off the pile of trophies Maisy had collected over her time here. He padded to her, circling her slowly, sniffing as he did. Tess didn't fully understand what was happening but she could read the cocksure, haughty confidence as he inspected every side of her. His every movement read Submit. I am stronger. This is mine. YOU are mine.

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Maisy, it seemed, disagreed.

A frenzy of claws, teeth, and magic tore the clearing to shreds. They each had magical attacks and forms of protection on their fur, but even so tufts of fur and sprays of blood erupted from every fast exchange. This wasn't a constant melee, it was a series of non-stop, rapid guerilla attacks that happened so fast that they were only decipherable from the after images left on Tess's retinas.

"Are you getting this Fara?"

"Oh yes!" The girl sounded breathless at the display.

"Good. I want to rewatch this in slow motion later."

"So do I! Many times! I'm learning so much!"

A sharp sliver of blue-yellow light broke across the surface of the world, lighting the tops of the trees. The controlled chaos below intensified, hissing and snarling growing in volume. Tess saw movement and looked around in amazement as the circle was suddenly populated by all manner of beast. None were fighting - many were, in fact, making room for others to watch. This was a battle of royalty, and the subjects had arrived to see who would seize the crown.

The rays dipped lower as the sun rose, the battle below reaching a penultimate moment of intensity that filled the space to bursting. Animals were nipping at each other now, while others made uncomfortable, throaty noises. Even Tess felt her adrenaline spike, the urge to rush out there and rend, tear, and bite almost too much to bear.

"Fara, can you take care of this?"

"Oh. Yes, wait one moment."

Tess felt her emotions dampen as Fara reduced the adrenaline pumping into her bloodstream. She breathed a sigh of relief just as a loud THUMP vibrated the ground underneath her, making her jump. The underbrush was a cacophony of leaves and branches breaking as animals scattered in fear.

Tess pumped a fist into the air and almost howled with excitement. The tabby's bloodied head was pinned to the ground under one of Maisy's paws, her long claws stretched to rest millimeters from his swollen eyes. She lowered her head, placing her teeth ever so gently onto the back of his neck. A low rumble reverberated from her throat as her teeth dug into the fur, then stopped.

His tail was lashing wildly, his haunches tensed to find purchase. His every movement made her dig her teeth further into his neck until, with a keening yowl, his muscles relaxed and his tail thumped to the dirt, motionless.

Breathless moments passed. The male's green eyes were wide, his body supplicant. Maisy straddled him, every inch of her body waiting for a single muscle of his to tense.

The moment passed when the sun lit their forms. It was over. The domain stayed firmly under her control and the retention of power rippled outward in a rush that comforted and confirmed for every living being that was allowed to reside in her space.

The male's tail flipped once, the movement obsequious and obedient.

Maisy ripped his spine out with her teeth.

Tess was still stunned as Maisy padded up to her. "That was… was that necessary?"

"No, not necessary."

"He could have been a mate."

"Could have."

"Or a protector. Someone to patrol your grounds for you when you're not around."

The feline gave her a condescending look, not even bothering to respond.

"Then why?"

She responded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. "He tried to take what was mine."

Their parting was filled with hugs, pets, and head bumps. Maisy picked up the orange patterned cloak that had been left by the tabby and dropped it in what was left of her pile of trophies, curling into a ball and covering her nose with her tail.

Tess walked in perfect silence to where she'd left her gear, not bothering to don it as she walked into the house. She stepped into the empty home, showered, and moved to the bedroom. Her heart hitched a beat when she saw Zavier's clothing still laying on his side of the bed, but it lacked its usual sting. She missed him - fiercely, and with all the love she had inside of her - but she no longer missed what he could do for her.

She missed the man, but not the protector.

"Later. After I sleep," she thought, preempting the request she knew was coming.

She was asleep in moments, her dreams blissfully empty for the first time in longer than she could remember.