By the time I’d returned to the tent, Ravyn was already asleep. I admit that I was relieved. I’d been wracking my brain for the right words to say, and I couldn’t come up with anything that would make her feel better. All I could do was hope she understood the situation we found ourselves in. Ball was perched on a small pot, courtesy of Cannoli. He looked up at me, cocked his head to one side, then resumed preening his feathers.

Is the bird angry with me too?

I took a spot between Keke and Cannoli, and thanks in no small part to the exhaustion of the day, I was able to fall asleep without issue.

I must’ve been more on edge than I thought because the mere sound of Cailu’s muffled voice was enough to wake me. I sat up, rubbing my eyes and looking around. All of the catgirls were accounted for in the tent—save for Agni.

“Make haste,” came Cailu’s demanding voice. “The sun will not wait.” Cailu’s footsteps grew distant.

“The sun will not wait,” I mimicked in a mocking tone under my breath. “Get over yourself.” I heard a snort to my right. Ravyn had sat up while I was distracted. “Good morning. Sleep well?”

“Not even a little,” said Ravyn.

Keke mumbled beside me. “Already? Nooo. Why?” I smiled and bent over to give her a kiss on the forehead. Her eyes fluttered open, and she sighed. “There aren’t enough hours in the day,” she whined.

One by one, the girls began to wake. We gathered our things and filed out of the tent. Sure enough, Agni was out front, talking with Cailu. He wasn’t wearing the armor from last night. Instead, he wore a tan doublet and long, brown trousers. They were a bit on the baggy side and frayed at the edges. His sword, now a sharp contrast to the new outfit he wore, hung on his left side.

Now that I think about it, I’ve never seen him out of armor.

Still, even without the shimmering plate, Cailu’s muscular shoulders and arms easily filled out the doublet.

Jesus, did he pool everything into Strength?

“Oh, hey, Matt!” Agni said with an easy smile. “Cailu and I were just discussin’ payment!”

“Oh boy. I love talking about finances,” I said with obvious sarcasm in my voice.

“Don’t we all,” Cailu said with a chuckle.

Is that a bit of the friendly asshole I’m used to? The Cailu I saw the night prior was not a man I wanted to get to know.

“Pray, mind not the finances we discuss at current,” Cailu continued. “Your tab has been paid.”

What a generous god. “Thanks,” I said, scratching the back of my head.

He smiled easily. “Now, let us speak of today’s agenda.”

It was a much lengthier conversation than I would’ve liked. Cailu sure did like to take his time in explaining things. At the very least, we had a plan. I wasn’t sure how well it would be executed, but I wasn’t in any position to complain.

After a quick breakfast tossed together by Cannoli and Ceres, we packed up camp and set off.

“We grow closer,” Kirti said from the back of a gigashank. Her, Naeemah, and Agni had taken one of the shanks together. It was a tight fit, but with Cailu’s sudden appearance, we didn’t have much of a choice. The gigashanks were clearly struggling, and so we had to stop every so often. But it didn’t seem like Agni minded. In fact, she was absolutely beaming. I had to wonder why.

Cailu’s sweet, sweet cash, maybe?

“There,” Kirti said, pointing over Agni’s shoulder.

Agni made a gesture over her shoulder, one hand still firmly held on the reins. Our gigashanks came to a stop. Kirti and Naeemah got down from the shank. Cailu, sharing a seat with Zahra, dismounted from his and both he and Zahra followed.

“Alright, off we go,” I said to Keke and Cannoli behind me. To my left, I could see Tristan, Ravyn, Destiny, Lara, and Ceres descending from their gigashanks and striding over to where Cailu’s girls stood.

Cannoli swallowed. “I’m scared, Matt,” she admitted. Even though her hands were balled, I could tell she was trembling. Her white knuckles and blanched face didn’t help. I really needed her to stick to the plan this time. I couldn’t carry her around in my arms.

I jumped off of the gigashank, approaching it from the side and taking one of Cannoli’s hands. “Hey, it’s going to be okay,” I whispered, looking her in the eyes. “He might be a prick, but Cailu’s a terrifying force to be reckoned with. He’s been in Nyarlea for… god, I don’t know how long. A lot longer than me, though.”

“I know,” said Cannoli.

Keke got off the gigashank next, taking to my side. “It’ll just be like all the other times we went out collecting food. Everything will turn out fine, you’ll see. I promise!” Keke smiled and put her hand on top of Cannoli’s hand, ruffling her hair playfully. “Just stick close to me. I’m going to stand far away, anyway.”

“Yeah, listen to Keke,” I said next. “She knows what she’s talking about.” Keke and I shared a look and nodded.

“I’m glad to have such wonderful people in my life,” Cannoli said through a forced laugh. She drew a long, shaky breath, then jumped off the gigashank with her hand still in my grasp. She let go and brushed some of the sand off of her dress. “Okay. Let’s go!”

Kirti stood at the top of a dune, her eyes scanning over the endless expanse of the desert. I couldn’t help but feel she was in her element. The entire time she watched, it was without a shred of fear, emotion, or concern. “Apathy” was the word that came to mind.

After a time, Kirti flicked her pointer finger into the air. A neon-green flame came to life at the tip. “Go,” she said. The flame hovered away from her finger at a snail’s pace. As it grew more and more distant, it became smaller and less vibrant until it just vanished. Kirti crossed her arms.

“Now what?” I asked.

“We wait,” she said, her gaze planted firmly ahead of her.

Cailu was still wearing his doublet behind Kirti, alongside Naeemah. I was going to ask why he wasn’t in his armor until I realized he’d be cooking himself alive in something like that. Still, he seemed under-dressed for the task. Confronting the Chikara again in anything less than adamantium armor made my stomach turn.

“When it comes to the battle, focus on preservation,” said Cailu. He adjusted the cuffs of his overly detailed doublet. “Do not do anything unnecessary.”

“The fuck,” Ravyn spat somewhere on my left. “We can take care of ourselves just fine, cunt. Just look after yourself.”

“Fuck off, squaaawwk!” Ball flapped his wings while perched on her shoulder.

“Then die for all I care,” said Cailu. “In your last moments, you will remember what I said. There will be no other to blame for your blunder. Not this time.”

At that, Ravyn’s face darkened, and her mouth drew into a thin line.

Not good. I opened my mouth to speak, but Ceres was quicker.

“Sir Cailu. I understand you speak with consideration for the safety of our group at large. However, I cannot condone your choice of language toward my friends.” Her words drew Cailu’s stare. “Your attitude toward us as a whole is abhorrent and disrespectful. Please refrain from speaking of Ravyn’s life as if it were a flame to be snuffed out.”

Cailu and Ceres stared at each other for a time. I frowned, mentally pumping an arm and cheering for Ceres’ remark. Eventually, Cailu turned back to look at the sands before them. “My apologies,” he said.

Holy shit, did he really say sorry? To a catgirl?

Of all the times in my life to be without a smartphone, it had to be now. What I wouldn’t have given to capture this moment on camera. I raised my hands, prepared to clap. Keke went wide-eyed, pushing my arms down and shaking her head.

I know, Keke. I wasn’t going to. It was a reaction. But I was so god damned tempted.

“You can take that apology and shove—” Ravyn began.

An unsettling sound interrupted Ravyn’s retort.

Kirti sniffed the air, giggling. Well, “giggling” wasn’t the right word. Maniacal cackling, I think, is a better term for the noise that escaped her throat. “It has come,” she said, biting at the tip of one of her nails, eyes glittering with anticipation. “Oh, but there are so many of them.”

“You’re sick,” Naeemah said with a frown.

“And I’m all yours.” Kirti laughed again before hopping down the dune, smoothly gliding through the sands. Cailu and Naeemah didn’t follow.

“Wait, what is she doing?” I asked, stepping forward.

Cailu raised his hand above his shoulder. “We stay here. For now.”

“Okay, fine, but what is she doing?” I asked again.

Cailu turned toward me. “Circumventing the Chikara’s forces.”

“By herself? That was the plan for distraction?” I’m not about to watch a single catgirl solo the Chikara, am I?

Kirti sneered. Folding her hands behind her back, she walked forward with exaggerated steps. Like a woman knowing full-well you had a crush on her and adding that extra swing to her hips. It was the kind of saunter that spoke miles long of her confidence and excitement.

The ground trembled. The sudden shifting of plates beneath my feet caused me to gasp.

“It’s comin’,” Agni said.

“I’ll light it up with all I’ve got, Tristan,” Destiny said next to Tristan, rolling one of her bottle grenades in her palm.

“I know you will. As soon as the heads are gone, you know what to do, right, Lara?” Tristan asked.

“Yes, yes,” Lara said as if she were half-asleep, nodding. “Earth is eager to rid this creature of its bosom.”

Those are words.

And then it happened. A single head rose from the sand next to Kirti. She turned her gaze toward it, flashing a sadistic smile. Then another behind her. Another at her side. Soon, severed heads surrounded her from every angle.

Cailu motioned for us to get down on our bellies, and so we did. I could barely see what was happening.

A handful of rotting heads scuttled toward the [Witch Doctor], their spindly legs clicking and clacking like a pair of twigs repeatedly struck against each other. She bent to one knee, her hand on the ground. A larger figure swarmed beneath the sands, circling her like a shark in a pool.

The entire time I watched, all I could think was, What the hell happens next?

Two simple words left Kirti’s lips. “[Release Captive].” A choir of howls permeated the air. Flames of bright green rose from the eyes and mouths of the decapitated heads. They fell in droves, thin legs twitching one final time before going still.

“What are those?” I whispered.

Cailu shuddered, and his reply was cold. “Souls of the dead.”

A second Spell sounded from Kirti. “[Soul Trap].” The flames stopped midair as if tethered to the ground. She held up a large, smooth rock with her free hand. From where I hid, it had the same dark green coloring as an emerald. When she raised it high above her head, the facets caught the sunlight and glittered like a diamond.

The eerie flames—no, the souls—raced into the rock with terrifying speed. It was like watching a vacuum. The howls grew louder with each one that entered the stone. When the last soul was inside, a flash of green covered the sands, blinding me.

A roar followed.

“Now!” Cailu cried. The man was on his feet and down the hill in seconds.

I leaped to standing and followed him. To my left, Ceres, Destiny, Lara, and Zahra were already descending the dune.

When we reached the base, Lara was the first to speak. “[Summon Earth]!” A disfigured sphere of rock and roots manifested a couple of feet away from her face, circling around her.

Cailu rushed to Kirti’s location, feet crunching against bone and mangled flesh, positioning himself between her and the figure beneath the sands. “[Toe the Line]!” Cailu whipped his sword across the sand in front of him, carving a blue-white light in the sand. The ground quaked as the Chikara moved toward us. Without warning, it stopped before the glowing line.

Like some sand dolphin demon, the Chikara turned to its right, then breached the ground. It was an abomination among abominations. For the most part, it shared its resemblance with an ant lion. Large, bulbous back, gigantic mandibles, and tiny, spindly legs.

On the underbelly, however, it was a different story. It looked as if someone flayed the jaundiced skin of a catgirl, stretched it at all angles, then fused it to the bottom of the beast. Every limb was recognizable, and her head dangled free. I grimaced.

“[Summon Earth]!” Lara cried again. A second, haphazardly-made ball appeared opposite of the first one she summoned.

The Chikara’s figure moved swiftly through the sands toward Lara.

“[Provoke]!” I yelled. The Chikara continued its momentum. It was a vain attempt, but I had to try.

“[Fire Ball]!” cried Ravyn.

Fire and arrows rained down upon the mass that was quickly reaching Lara’s location. My axe gripped tightly, I ran toward her. Destiny was standing beside her, a molotov readied in her hand.

I wasn’t going to make it.

The Chikara’s upper body rose from the sand to strike Lara. My breath caught, and the notion of throwing my axe came to mind. No! Not with the girls there! I restrained myself, putting every ounce of strength I could behind my sprint.

“Hey, cunt!” Ravyn screamed. Cailu turned his head toward her. “Get ready to block!” Cailu frowned. “[Displace]!” As soon as the word left her mouth, Lara and Cailu switched positions.

“Damn you, Ravyn!” Cailu bellowed. “[Iron Wall]! [Bulwark]!” He held his shield in front of him, and the Chikara’s mandibles caught his shield in a vice.

Something snapped. As I watched, I saw cracks appear in the Chikara’s pincer-like mouth. The Chikara screeched and reeled, diving back into the sand.

“Blasted creature!” screamed Cailu.

“Earth is ready!” said Lara. With her hands held out before her, palms up, she continued. “[Summon Earth]!” A third oddly-shaped sphere hovered around her. The three clumps of rock and root reassembled themselves to form a triangle, tethered together by a yellow-orange light. “[Roaring Stalagmite]!”

No earthquake I’d experienced on Earth was ever this bad. The ground shook with a severity that knocked me off balance. Everyone, save for Cailu and Lara, was on their bellies. If I listened closely enough, I swore I could hear the ground under me cracking and exploding.

What the hell kinda spell is this?

The ground stopped trembling. Like the sudden stop at the end of a roller coaster—one second you’re flying through the air, and the next second you’re done. Then, a sound like air being sucked through teeth echoed across the dunes. When I saw the Chikara again, it was speared atop a spire of stone that soared into the sky.

Green spittle sprayed from the puncture point and its mouth. Now that I could see the Chikara in all of its unholy glory, I noticed something. The splayed catgirl was still moving. A muffled scream bubbled and inflated the Chikara’s underbelly with every breath she took. The spear of stone had managed to pierce the Chikara—and by proxy the catgirl—through the stomach.

I watched in horror as the catgirl drew its last breaths from under the Chikara’s body, sickly green blood pooling around her mouth before dribbling down the length of Lara’s attack. It seemed everyone else was just as disturbed as I was, as we all stood there, quietly watching the Chikara until it eventually stopped moving.

Silence. Horrible silence.

“What the fuck was that?” I mumbled to myself.

The sound of singing steel woke me from my thoughts. Standing in front of Lara was Naeemah. I’d almost forgotten she was here. Where the hell had she been?

A sickening sound echoed in my ears. Chitin snapped, chunks of flesh dropped from the Chikara, and the top half of its body slid away, falling to the ground and rolling toward Naeemah. She stopped it with her heel. Green blood coated her blades and a thin sheen of sweat glistened from her brow. She’d sliced the Defiled in half in the span of a heartbeat.

Naeemah turned to Lara, eyes narrowed. “Always confirm the kill.”

Now accessing system memory…

Oh my goodness, you’re pregnant again?

I am. My third kitten this year.

Think of the others! Don’t you miss them?

Every day. Every single day.

Perhaps, your body—

No. Saoirse willing, I will have a family.

Memory storage successful.