The male Fearwolf

circled War Dog,

once,

twice, and

they slowly closed

the gap between each other.

War Dog slipped into

a swirling pool of heat,

the male Fearwolf’s

fur brushed against her fur,

the world disappeared,

and she lost herself.

Until...

something strange —

sharp steel

against her throat!

Instantly

War dog twisted,

leapt into the air,

landed half on her feet,

half on her flank.

The male Fearwolf

disappeared

in a cloud of purple smoke,

revealing

Skullatroid’s loyal lieutenant,

Modanthia the Malformed,

Hag of Horror,

born so hideous

that she had no choice

but to master

shapechanging

to hide her

repulsive countenance.

Modanthia the Malformed

could disguise herself

as any living thing,

from a Rthantho ant

to a Valiusian sky whale.

Modanthia —

with a mouth like a ditch,

and a nose

like a smashed kitten —

cackled,

greedily gripping

the long knife

that had,

but a moment ago,

teased at War Dog’s neck.

War Dog growled,

thundering in anger.

A mechanical rumble

echoed

across the cavernous hills —

coming down the mountain

was another

of Skullatroid’s henchmen,

Accelerator Man,

half alive and half

raging racecar,

with shoulder-mounted

atom agitators,

which could vibrate

the flesh off a man

in one

incomprehensibly painful

second.

Accelerator Man

ripped across the rocky ground;

War Dog

dodged at the last moment;

and the cyborg’s

dagger-studded wheels

spat a billowing

rage of dust and rock shard.

Accelerator Man

aimed his atom agitators,

shooting off blinding arcs

of furious sorcery —

and the ground beneath War Dog

shatterered maniacally

under her paws

as her fur stood up

on her back.

War Dog

might have been a beast,

but she was not a fool,

and she knew she was in danger.

Accelerator Man

streaked past again,

and this time

War Dog got a claw on him,

but —

something

roped around her neck,

she choked,

something bound her!

She saw another of

Skullatroid’s cronies,

Evil Oak,

whose whip-like branches

now clasped her throat.

War dog heard a loud

“POP!”

A net flew

and collapsed over her,

electricity bit her fur,

the whip-branch

around her neck tightened,

she couldn’t breathe,

the net squeezed,

she couldn’t move…

things…

were… going…

dark….

to be continued...