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Following In Their Clawmarks To Salvation

By: A.X. Bueno

I get up and do my best to mimic the stance I see on the tv as the replay of a battle that some very brave soul managed to get footage of plays, a replay which I’ve watched at least a dozen times. It’s a battle between the legendary jaguar hero the Clawed Cyclone and a pronghorn that I think was called Curved Deathbringer because of his horns. It’s a brutal spectacle of a battle with the two macros clashing hard, trying to get the upper hand on each other with claws, paws and horns colliding intensely. The pronghorn has a good ten feet and probably a good number of years over the Clawed Cyclone judging by that graying patch of facial fur under his lips but the jaguar hero’s got fighting experience and strength on his side. With a clawed swipe to the chest and a swift sweep to the legs the Clawed Cyclone knocks down that pronghorn and wins the day, he always wins. He’s been a hero for over 11 years now and been the protector of Rosettberg for over 6 of those years. I’ve been watching and trying to learn his moves as well as develop some of my own for over 9 of those years, since I was a pup but now I’m finally grown and ready to be a hero too. I practice some more moves then put on some dark blue sweatpants, similarly colored shoes and comb my headfur and coat so that I can start fighting crime…wherever I should be looking for it.

I exit the cave I’ve been calling home since I started living by myself and soak in the mid morning sun while I figure out where to start my career as a city protector. I look around and see the well trodden roads, the trees both beneath and on level with me, some mountains over the horizon and then I see what I’m looking for; a city. I actually recognize it, that’s Eastburrow City. They used to have a huge, buff wolverine named The Swift Stunner protecting them but he retired five years ago and left that city without anyone to guard it against gigantic threats. I’m sure they could use a handsome hyena hero. It takes me about twenty minutes to walk over there and as I do I catch a glimpse of a macro sized shadow that vanishes but it was close and I feel like it didn’t just go away. That might not be a good omen for this city but it could be a good one for my path as a hero.

I start to take in the look of the city as its relatively small details come into proper view. I see plenty of buildings cobbled together from multiple different colored materials like they were destroyed and rebuilt over and over again till all that remained were restored remnants of concrete, metal, wood and whatever else was available. The streets and sidewalks look equally as beat up and put back together with random chunks of debris scattered about them along with trash cans full of nothing but debris and a few spare papers and wrappers. The decrepitude of the city almost makes me miss the people seemingly coming out of hiding from alleys, the fractured windows and patchwork doors of these broken down and stitched back together buildings and multiple strategic holes in the street that connect to what I’m guessing is this city’s bunker system. Almost all the faces of these people hold the same tired, terrified expressions with wide, bag covered eyes, sunken in cheeks, along with their thin trembling bodies that make it clear that food is scarce here and seemingly so is hope because all they can do is gaze towards me in horror with the exception of one. It’s a male zebra with a mane that’s got a bit of gray mixed with the black, he’s wearing a torn dark blue suit though no tie and walks toward me with hesitation and fear but also a sense of duty like he has to be the one to stand up for this town.

“Y-y-you’re not the hyena we were expecting. Are you…with her? We…we’ll need more time to start getting together enough food for ourselves and two giants. I understand that might be upsetting but if you take your anger out on anyone please l-let it be m-m-me.” The zebra has his eyes closed and his striped arms spread apart showing me all the tears in the suit fabric along them as he waits for me to do something.

“That’s a noble gesture but I’m not going to hurt you, I’m hoping to be a hero after all. Not sure who you’re talking about either but I came here on my own, not because of anyone else. My name is Elias though you can just call me Eli and I WANT TO BECOME YOUR NEW PROTECTOR!” I shout out that last bit a little louder than intended and that makes the people cover their ears including the zebra which makes something interesting fall out of a loose pocket of his suit.

“Ahh! Please be a little quieter. My people have been through enough without another shouting macro and she might hear you. We need to be on alert because she might show up at any second and I don’t think either of us is ready for that.” The zebra says while reaching down to the floor to grab what fell from him onto it.

“My people? You’re the mayor of this city aren’t you? I saw your badge. Sorry about being too loud just now by the way, I just got a bit over excited.”

“Sigh. Yes I’m the mayor of the shambles of this sob forgotten city. We’ve been waiting for a new hero for what feels like ages. Did you mean what you said about protecting us?” The mayor wipes away a tear with his paw and tries to straighten up his ripped suit, it has little effect.

“I sure am. You keep talking about a ‘she’, is that who’s left this city…in the state that it is? Is she someone…you could use protection from?” I hesitate looking for the right words and keeping my voice lowered, trying to be sensitive with this whole situation and act like the hopeful hero for this place.

“Oh lord, yes! She’s big, brutal, demanding, destructive and without mercy. She’s destroyed our once beautiful city over and over again till it looks like it does now, like the Macro Cataclysms are still happening here. She’s threatened us with more damage to get most of our food, leaving us with so little to actually feed ourselves. Extorted us so we’d give her resources she could use all for herself. Made us live in fe-SHE’S COMING! Everyone back to your hiding spots, now!”

I can feel the foot and hoofsteps of a fellow macro approaching fast and see the fear from before come back even stronger on the zebra mayor’s and everyone else’s faces as they all run back to their various hiding holes, shivering with terror. Before the zebra bolts through a broken door he tells me one last thing. “Please defend us. You’re the closest thing to hope we’ve had in some time.” I don’t get the chance to respond with some reassurance or anything before I feel a massive, gloved paw on my shoulder and with that the mayor is gone and I feel a chill down my spine as the paw’s owner speaks with a calm tone that has a tinge of vitriol laced in it.

“I hope you’re not here to muscle in on my turf. You may be a fellow hyena but don’t think that means I’ll share what I gain from here with you, cuz.”

“HOLY SHI-! Ahem I-I’m not here to ‘muscle in on your turf’ I’m here to stop you and your horrific exploitation of this town.” I move forward to gain some distance then turn around and push my left leg back, stick my left elbow to my side and make a fist with my right paw as I put it in front of me and try not to wobble in the stance I’ve practiced hundreds of times.

“BWAHAHAHA! OH MY GOSH! A little guy like you actually thinks he can take me on?! That’s HILARIOUS!” She’s keeled over in mocking laughter, supporting herself on a building that looks like it could crumble under her weight at any second as I only ball my fist harder in anger at her dismissal of me as a threat.

“Don’t underestimate me! I’ve been practicing my moves and studying the ones of the Clawed Cyclone himself since I was nine. I may still have some growing to do but I’m capable of holding my own and more importantly taking you down!”

“AHAHAHA!! OH LORD! You’re wheeze killing me here. Since you were nine, ha! When was that kid, like 5 years ago? And referencing the Clawed Cyclone too like you even measure up to him? My brother fought that self righteous traitor to our kind and let me tell you’re not even close to the same class pipsqueak. He’s got several dozen feet and more than a few years on you though even if you were in the same league I’m sure I’d still be more than capable of wiping the streets with you or him.”

“Hey! I’m grown, I’m eighteen! Also don’t diss the Clawed Cyclone like that, he’s a true hero, he wouldn’t lose to you and I don’t plan too either.”

“Ahh-haha, the confidence of youth. What do you hope to achieve here, small fry? Do you really know the whole story of what’s going on here or even my name?”

“The mayor of this once proud city told me enough to know that you being here is bad news and I don’t need to know your name to stop your repressive reign of terror over this town!”

By now my fellow hyena and opponent in this first test of me being a hero has stopped laughing and straightened up allowing me to see her whole body in detail as she seems to be getting ready to move. We aren’t as alike as I expected because while we are both hyenas she’s got black spots while I’ve got my black stripes and as a spotted hyena she’s a bit of a different beast from me. She’s also about 20 feet taller than me it looks like, not that that’s too intimidating. The Clawed Cyclone has fought macros bigger than him and I’m willing to do the same even if I am still only 95 feet and haven’t passed 100… yet. She’s got surprisingly toned biceps and calves that contrast against her otherwise relatively lean and curvy figure which is ultimately bigger than mine but still, her headfur is straight, shoulder length, a bright shade of blue and pretty well kept, her lips by comparison are a more au natural soft shade of black and she’s also got those more rounded ears, naturally.

Aside from the jet black leather gloves on her paws she’s also wearing a crop top that’s the same shade of bright electric blue as her hair, black denim shorts, brown open toe flip flops with metal spikes on the straps and a seashell necklace that hangs loose and sits above her brown and black spotted fur. She’s stunning and in better circumstances I wouldn’t want to fight but just talk and try to get closer, I’d be so happy to have even gotten her attention. Under the current circumstances though I’m tense and trying to stay prepared in my stance to make my move as this fellow hyena macro is now back to being only a few feet away from me and my fist and she’s towering over me with a smirk.

“Are you just going to stand there and stare at the view all day or are you going to put some weight behind those words and make a move to stop my ‘repressive reign of terror?’”

“I-I-I’m going to…” I start to say but my mind goes blank as to what to say and do next. Think Elias, think! What would the Clawed Cyclone do about now?

“Sigh… I see I’ll have to make the first move then. Should have expected as much.” I feel a flick against my long, pointed ears followed by a punch to the chest. It brings a surge of pain like a head on collision with a bus, something I didn’t imagine I’d know the feeling of until now but it’s the closest comparison I’ve got to the power of her punch.

“Ga-Huuurk!” That’s all I manage to get out as I feel the brunt from that harsh blow as it acts like a wake up call. My footpaws skid on disfigured asphalt as I’m knocked back probably several dozen feet and just barely catch myself before I fall backwards.

“Unggh! N-Not a b-bad move but now it’s my turn… Aiyahh!” I arch my leg back and go for a strong kick which she dodges seemingly without much effort on her part by moving a few feet to the right bringing her closer to one of the cobbled back together buildings.

“Decent kick though I hope that wasn’t your best shot. Your balance and reaction time both need work if you’re planning to make an impact that I can at least pretend to feel.” She rips off a piece of what looks to be an old office building that’s a mishmash of different colors like beige, gray, red and more because of how it was constructed and reconstructed. Then she crushes that in her hand while I recover from my failed hand and I’m confused by that until she shoves the dust of that building chunk right into my face and eyes. “Nnyah! Also when you’re in the middle of a fight don’t announce your intent to attack unless you’re sure you have, KLONK…the advantage!” She says as she brings another more whole chunk of building to connect with my back as I try and wipe the brick and concrete dust out of my eyes.

“WAAAHHH! That was…was…underhanded.” I say as I use the fur on my arm to wipe away the building dust while taking a blind swing around me in the slim hope I’d do some damage back to her.

“Oh, you precious spring pup. There’s no such thing as underhanded when survival comes into play.” I see her preparing to lunge at me as she talks and gives more unexpected advice.

“Uh huh. So what’s with the tips you keep giving me? A distraction method to ensure your own survival against me? Trying to ensure that I survive… after I beat you?” I hesitate on the last part partially because this fight is proving to be a little more challenging than I anticipated and partially because my fellow hyena has now lunged at me as she prepared for with her fangs out and claws extended, a snarling expression on her previously smug face.

This time though I was ready for her attack and managed to backstep allowing me to dodge her lunge but used the momentum to go for a kick that lands square in her ribs. I hear an “OOF” as now it’s my opponent's turn to skid back on the asphalt though not as much as I did from her powerful punch. Still I actually managed a counterattack I think as the claws on her footpaws screech on the street below us. I go to follow that kick up with another attack, a punch to the jaw but she recovers faster than I would have thought and grabs my arm. I try desperately to pull my arm out of her grasp but she’s strong, probably stronger than me and I’m unable to as she bites down hard into the bicep of my right arm- CHOMP!

“YYAAAAAHHHHH!! Owww, whyyyy?!” I scream as she rips out a small chunk of my arm and I stagger back from her tearing it off almost collapsing over an 8 story building in the process before I use it to help support myself.

“Well you’re messing with my meal ticket here so I figured you could lend me a hand or an arm in exchange for that, Aha ha! As for why the advice… well you’ve got spirit and you’re kind of cute, maybe I just thought I’d help give you a fighting chance. Who knows, maybe you’ll live to see 20 or even 30 like your hero. Assuming I decide to spare you, that is.” She says as she wipes my fur and blood from her muzzle while also chewing on what I know is the flesh from my arm and I can’t help but shudder a little at that thought.

“AHH… I don’t even know your name or your- UNGhh… age.” So many things I could have said instead and I choose to bring that back up after everything, stupid. She gives a small smile at that with only her lips and not her occupied teeth and fangs.

“Mmmph… I was willing to tell you earlier but you were so eager to prove yourself as a hero, pup. Didn’t even give me a chance before you wanted to attack me.” She bats her dark eyes at me and despite the chunk of my arm stuck between her teeth I can’t help but blush a little.

“You…you actually attacked me first. And you just ate a whole chunk of my arm!”

“Uh uh. I said wanted to but I didn't say attacked exactly. My name’s Suzanna btw and I’m 25…not that you need to know that.” She says as she goes for a kick right to my exposed stomach which I just barely manage to dodge.

“Solid dodge and… WHOOSH … nice punch. Almost had me there. You’re getting the hang of this, slowly but surely.” Suzanna says that but I know that’s only because she hesitated on whether she’d take that punch or not and decided to dodge only to keep talking at me like she’s still in total control and so far circumstances have proven her right as much as the steady stream of blood from my arm wound while I was lucky to land just one kick so far but that can change.

I go for a low kick to her legs to try and shake up my odds of a successful hit while she goes for more of a roundhouse kick to my side. That throws me off and her kick lands sending me tumbling into another building but unlike before this actually makes her eyes wide with concern, an emotion I didn’t think she could show all things considered.

“Woah, woah, woah! You almost tumbled into their meat processing plant, do you know how much of a disaster that would have been… for me?!” Of course. I was confused at what could have possibly made her suddenly develop a care for this place but ultimately it wasn’t so much this place as much as it is what it does for her. I must have rolled my eyes at what she said or something else dismissive like that because her look shifts to an annoyed scowl at me with her now less bloody fangs on display.

“Don’t give me that look! I didn’t pretend to nor do I need to care for these mites or their pitiful buildings. I take care of myself and myself alone and I’m fine with that!” She says as has a paw placed over my injured arm holding me in place as she goes for another punch right to my face.

“Pffft. All that power and beauty and you choose to squander it by being alone.” My words make her hesitate for a moment with her fist stopping right in front of my face.

I use the moment to go for that low kick again and this time it hits her in what feels like the tibia, the hard front facing part of the lower leg. This makes her leg move recoil a bit and her grip loosen allowing me to free my wounded right arm then I put all the strength and momentum I’ve got into a punch that hits her square in the snout. She reels from this and staggers back giving me some space along with my renewed freedom from her grasp. As she feels around her muzzle to assess the damage a drop of blood comes dripping out of one of her nostrils, she licks at and then looks at me. She’s got a look of disbelief on her face with her eyes wide and ears perked but it quickly morphs into a smile, a scheming yet also joyful smile. Her ears and face in general also relax as she starts back up with her smooth talking.

“I-I actually felt that… you made me bleed. That’s no small feat. In fact I’d say you’re a bit… more impressive than the last few guys I’ve faced.” Once again Suzanna closes the distance between us but this time there’s a lot less hostility in her words and movements and she doesn’t immediately go for an attack instead placing a big gloved paw on my left shoulder with her lips very close to my ear.

“You know we don’t have to do this, right? You’re wasting so much effort fighting a fellow macro when you could be enjoying the food just above your feet. Aren’t you hungry?” She suddenly leans down then grabs the flimsy, cracking roof of the meat processing plant and rips it off with no difficulty before proceeding to take a paw full of raw, dripping meat and toss it in her maw. She then takes another paw full as she swallows that first one down and extends her now stained leather clad paw towards me in the hopes I’ll take it.

“I think I’ll pass. Stealing from the helpless tends to leave food with a sour taste or at least it does to me.” I switch up my stance with my feet closer together and my paws protecting my head, expecting retaliation at that comeback but she just sighs heavily.

“Ahh. The self righteous response of a hero. You’re really settled into that role, huh? What a shame since we could have been excellent together though perhaps I still can. After all, when it comes to giants like us, company can be a powerful motivator.” I feel the presence of that gloved paw again on my shoulder only this time it starts rubbing into my muscle there.

For some reason Suzanna is cozying up to me, softening me up even more than before and while she’s hurt me and these people a lot and I shouldn’t be accepting these advances I find myself letting them happen anyway. She runs her fingers down the top of my unbitten arm with a delicate touch I wouldn’t believe she had until I felt it. My instincts are screaming “don’t let her get close, attack before she tricks you!” In spite of the screaming in my mind I still clasp one of my paws around her waist and carefully move it up her side, right below her bosom which makes her eyes widen then relax. She leans her muzzle in close so I breathe in her scent; a mix of leather, raw meat, grass and the almost overpowering musk of female hyena.

I get a few seconds to absorb her scent, let it wash over me before her smooth and mercifully now cleaned lips approach mine. They’re perfectly soft and comforting in spite of all the reasons they shouldn’t be to me so I let her lips linger on mine for a little bit as our paws caress each other's backs. Suzanna’s tongue slithers out of her muzzle and quickly brushes up against my front teeth and canines seeking entrance into my maw to continue to get closer and I let my teeth separate to allow that to happen. I’m glad she’s taking the lead with this kiss because it’s my first real kiss, my first make out session and her initiative makes it all so much better and easier than it has any right to be. I mean she bit out a good chunk of my arm and yet you couldn’t tell that that only just happened as her tongue boldly explores the inside of my muzzle and mine starts to do the same back to her.

Minutes ago we were fighting and she was trying to seriously hurt me and now I’m having this intimate experience with someone whose destructive actions I was trying to stop as our maws mix and we hold each other up. It’s technically my first intimate experience aside from a failed attempt at one with a friend a few years ago but we both agreed quickly afterwards to put it behind us. My mind jumps from thinking about that whole… experience to wondering what the Clawed Cyclone would do in this situation despite knowing he’s never been in a situation like this, at least apart from a rumored encounter he supposedly had that I can’t be sure if it happened or not. I’m pulled out of my train of thought by the feeling of Suzanna’s tongue and muzzle pushing away from mine followed by the agonizing feeling of sharp claws running up my back as her body painfully breaks away from mine before I can curse myself for letting her literally hook her claws in me. I bite down on my lip to suppress the scream that wants to pass my lips allowing me to harshly groan instead and downplay the damage I just took.

“Ahh. Look at those lovely additional stripes I gave you. I know we all get lonely but I didn’t think exploiting that with you would be so hehehe easy ahaha. You poor, desperate pup.” She mocks me now and I’m done questioning her or falling for her tricks.

“Rrrngh! What the fuck?! I’m done playing games! I’m going to get you back for this.” I growl it all out and then strike. I hit her with a slash to the right arm aiming for about the same spot she bit a piece out of mine and thankfully it lands making her bleed a bit but her scratches are almost superficial compared to mine, I can do better.

“Unggh! Ohhoho. It’s funny you say that because I was thinking the same thing. It’s been a blast but I’m ending this before you become a headache rather than the… urgghh… amusing distraction you’ve been so far.” She says as she blocks my palm strike to her face.

There’s a renewed viciousness to her eyes now as she counters hard with a quick jab to the chest that almost takes the breath out of my lungs. She doesn’t give me any time to bounce back either as I feel her fist connect with my snout almost immediately following the first punch. She’s moving noticeably faster, somehow hitting even harder than before and giving me very little room to breathe. Still I manage to just barely dodge another incoming blow to the head in time to feel the blood start running from my nose. I wipe at it and then attempt a full on sweep to the legs in the hopes that’ll break up her onslaught but I miss.

Which leads to Suzanna using those spikes on her shoes to slice right across my torso. That makes four places I’ve been bleeding from; my arm, my back, my neck and now my torso. They all hurt terribly and while the bleeding has slowed in my right arm and the scratches on my torso aren’t too bad the ones on my back and the blood dripping from my muzzle are a bit more serious. Meanwhile my opponent has only a few bleeding scratches on her and maybe a couple of marks and bruises that’ll show up tomorrow. There’s only so much more bleeding and punishment I can take before I’m done, before I can’t take anymore and collapse. Meanwhile Suzanna is only stepping up the pace and intensity of her already brutal attacks without any sign of slowing down much less stopping and I’m definitely not keeping up as well as I’d earlier hoped I would.

I go for a punch to the stomach to try and get back into the groove I had going before. She simply sidesteps and delivers a second devastating punch to my snout and it caves in somewhat this time, I think she actually broke my snout which now leans a little to the right. “OWWWWWNNWWNNN” is all I can groan in response as more pain shoots into my brain. She goes for another slash across the torso though this time with her actual claws and I dodge it with some difficulty and effort. I go for a counter to that by bringing out my own claws and I aim for a slash to the face but miss and graze her left shoulder instead, there are only scratch marks and not any blood but at this point I’ll take whatever hits and damage I can.

“Bahaha! If you were trying to draw blood you’re going to have to cut a bit deeper than that. Doesn’t seem like you have as much fight as before, you’re getting slower, weaker. I can practically feel it, maybe even taste it. What a shame, all that talk earlier and you’re failing to back it all up. At least you managed to scratch me and that’s more than many can say let me tell you but hey I also scratched your back hahaha.”

I hate to admit it but she’s right and I know it, the blood loss is getting to me along with her blows which have gone from feeling like I’m getting hit by a bus to feeling like I’m being pummeled by meteors in terms of the speed and intensity. Another meteor strikes as Suzanna winds up to kick me in the gut and then does so. It takes a couple of seconds and I see it coming but my body is just too slow to react so I take it and I see my blood on the bottom of her shoe now. I go for a punch to the face and she doesn’t even have to dodge and I still miss her head by almost a foot, embarrassing. She wastes no time in seizing an opening like that to klonk me in the back of the head though this time with her own paws and stars begin to meld into my vision. At this point only a few more hits like she’s been giving me so far and it’s a knockout and from there it’s probably over.

I block her next few moves; trying a slash to the face, an attempt at a kick right to the groin, another kick aimed for my gut, an elbow going for the ribs. Each dodge takes more effort and has me moving slower than the last which means despite Suzanna’s words earlier she’s still toying with me somewhat. That comes to an end though as she goes back to putting her full speed and power into one punch that feels less like a fist and more sledgehammer meant to crack the earth. I take that punch straight to the chest and for a second it feels like my heart stops as the air leaves my lungs and I swear I hear a crunch sound that may or may not be my goddamn ribs. There is no comeback from this brutal blow as I can’t help my body from falling onto the mangled street below that doesn’t deserve the further brutalizing my impact is going to do to it.

THUDDDDDD

CRAAASSSHHHH

My head lands first followed instantly by the rest of my body, there’s a numbing hurt along all of it as I crash down and even as there is a throbbing pain in my head I’m grateful that at least no one was around to be collateral damage from my going down. Despite the pain, despite how hard I’ve been knocked down though I can’t give into the pain or the blackout I’m putting the very last bit of my energy into fighting off as my eyes and body feel heavy. Can’t let this be the bitter end before I even got a chance to really begin, heroes don’t ever quit, they pull from some seemingly impossible pool of inner strength and pull out a win or at least that’s what the Clawed Cyclone does. With that thought I ignore the heavy weight in my arms begging me to give in, to accept defeat as I try and use them to pick myself up, try to stand up once more so even if I do go down for good at least I can say I gave it my absolute all. My attempt at using what little remaining strength I can scrounge up to try and at least die a hero’s death is quite literally squashed as I feel the strong weight of a big paw planting itself on my back.

“Uh-uh-uh! I see you trying to struggle your way back into standing. I expected you to have the good sense to simply go down after a punch like that but I see now I’m gonna have to get my footpaws dirty and squash that hero’s spirit right out of you. Maybe that’ll help you -WHOOSH- live …STOMP… longer!” That tells me that she took off her shoe maybe both shoes solely for the satisfaction of stomping out my last bit of conscious resistance with her own bare paws, I’d call that despicable but I don’t have the strength left to talk, I barely have the strength left to get out my final pained scream.

“AHHHH-gghhh……” My final scream fades out into a sort of strained gurgle as I lose consciousness and everything quickly goes black.

“Ahh. What a fun time that was, at least I had fun. Welcome to the hero business cutie, hope to see you again someday! Ahaha!” Are the last words I hear before I knock out completely. I can tell they’re from Suzanna by the teasing tone along with her massive moving footsteps, my first test as a city’s protector, a hero and I completely failed. I’m not sure if I’ll get another one or if I even want to wake up after all this.

———————————————

I don’t know how much later it is when I can hear again but almost immediately I wish I could go back to silent darkness. I don’t want to open my eyes and see the source of the tiny footsteps that are being picked up by my waking ears. I don’t want to have to gauge the damage done to my body, the surrounding area, the potential of seeing disappointed, sad faces or anything else really. I don’t have to acknowledge my utter failure if can’t see the results of it, if I choose to just keep my eyes closed and wait for more time to pass in the hope that everything can go back to being alright and I won’t have to pick up the pieces of this destroyed city and my demolished ego. No…no, that’s the naive thinking of a child, that’s what made me too confident to see that I couldn’t win that fight, made me believe I was more ready than I really am. It’s time to open my eyes and face the world, face the music for what I’ve done or rather failed to do so I get to opening one eye slowly and then the other and am graced with quite a sight.

“Oooh, oh yep. He’s finally waking up. Careful everybody, try to stay still and calm. Unless your position becomes dangerous than it’s best to move.” I hear someone shout as if they’re on top of my head and it does feel like someone small is nuzzled up in my headfur and I try to move my arm up to go and figure out precisely where they are on my tender scalp but then I hear another voice speaking up to me from below.

“E-easy there big boy, you’ve got some serious injuries and a lot of people scattered along you treating them. It’d be smart to not move too fast and let my people work to finish patching you up… well as much as they can manage to all things considered. ” I crane my neck downward very slowly to see the source of that voice, the zebra mayor from earlier who looks considerably less disheveled and fearful though there’s a little bit of fear…no, concern… for me I think, I didn't expect that. As I look down at him though I pause for a second and do in fact feel people resuming movement what feels like everywhere along my body and then I feel a stinging sensation along my belly.

“OWWWW-slick- Mphhh…guhhuh!” As I opened my mouth to shout in pain at that sensation someone seemingly standing on the topside of my tilted muzzle happened to slip into my maw which I snapped shut fast more out of instinct and surprise than anything else .

For a minute I wasn’t sure what to do, they squirmed against my gum and tongue which gathers their flavors of old clothes, old meat and rubbing alcohol, gross. I let them out of my muzzle with a blehh as I open wide enough for them to scramble out of it not wanting to risk injury by carelessly spitting them out and then they proceed to climb right back onto my body through fur on the side of my torso as I seal my muzzle back up. That ordeal done, I decide to look back at the sight I noticed just moments ago, at least one or two dozen or so smaller people kneeling down by or sprawled across various points on my body as they treat and work on wrapping up various wounds. I see two male stoats changing the giant gauze for that cut on my knee made by Suzanna’s shoe, a lion couple(male and female) stitching up one of the scratches on my torso and two lady badgers applying rubbing alcohol on another scratch with cotton balls a little bigger than they are. I feel them put more on and that tells me actually where that rough stinging sensation was coming as I dig my claws into the… wood… beneath… me… hang on!

“Ummm… why is there wood underneath me? Why are you all going through all this troubat you’ve all seemed to have forgotten what happened? Or how I got these wounds?” I ask in earnest as I feel a few pairs of paws stop moving their digits along my hide, including several pairs of which I can now clearly feel along my back somehow.

“It’s no trouble at all. Considering you saved us all, the least we can do is he-help you with the wounds you got, that’s what the wood is for. We needed something to support you being off the ground so we could reach the scars along your back. As for how long you’ve been out it’s been a day and half. You took quite a beating for us and we appreciate it so much more than someone big and strong like you can imagine. Consider our healing efforts only part of your compensation as our new protector!” The zebra mayor says proudly with a wink as he gives me so much to process and with the many people crawling all over me and my wounds I’m already overstimulated as it is.

“A WHOLE DAY AND A HALF!? I've been out that long?! You built something that could hold me in under two days?! And did you mention something about being a new protect- OWCHH!” I am interrupted from my string of shocked questioning by the feeling of a sharp needle piercing the skin of my back.

“We need more local anesthetic down here! He shouldn't have felt that!” The voice of an older male voice shouts from underneath me with a bit of a roar to it, probably supporting himself on the wood holding me up with a needle in his hand.

“You got it, Gabe!” Another voice, male and younger sounding, it’s got a croak to it as it shouts back a response.

Within seconds of that response I feel the cold sensation of slimy feeling hands rubbing some kind of ointment on my skin and fur followed by a chill, numbing sensation wherever those fingers go. It feels weird, I’m not used to this kind of attention from anyone, much less folks that clamber around my body like it’s a jungle gym. It’s all so much to feel and let sink in even though plenty of spots on my body(mostly where I’ve got scratches, bites and bruises) are practically numb. I should be in so much more pain but a day and a half of rest and the efforts of several dozen normal sized people have seemingly worked wonders. The mayor's soft ahem refocuses me on where my questions were going as I bring my eyes back to him carefully so as to not risk my movements causing an accident like another slip against those who don’t seem to be afraid of what my size can mean for them as they heal a body bigger than most of their buildings even on a good day.

“Ahem… Sorry for that distraction, it has been quite some time since any of our doctors and medics have treated someone like you, a macro patient. So they’re a little rusty on things like proper bedside manner and apparently proper anesthesia dosage but I assure you that you’re in great, experienced hands that know what they’re doing even if they need a second or mistake or two for the muscle memory to come back. I’m sorry for that, it’s just the last patient of your size range they had to work with was… was… The Swift St-Stunn-…” The zebra pauses, he’s struggling to talk about his city’s last protector so I give him a smile and reaffirming finger over his shoulder as a few on my arm hang on at that motion before readjusting themselves.

“Hey, it’s okay. I know and can see how much Eastburrow has been struggling with him gone, I know the history there. You don’t need to say his name. What I could use more info on is how you built this wooden… gurney so fast and you also mentioned something about becoming the new protector of this place. Are you ummm sure about that?” I ask hesitantly, unsure if I should put all of my feelings and reservations out there or see if he already understands.

“Th-Thank you and of course I’m sure! You defended us pretty heroically, like any good protector of a city would. Why are you doubting yourself and my decisions so much, young hyena?”

“Isn’t it obvious?! I LOST! Suzanna, my ‘fellow hyena’ easily and thoroughly beat me to a battered pulp and then left to come back whenever she feels like it. This was my first real fight as a city protector and I got whooped so bad in it that I needed all of you to stitch me back up and you all have been through so much already thanks to her. I not only failed to protect all of you but needed so many to heal me and you’re all still not done. You all must have seen my attempt at a fight from your hiding spots. I don't know why you’re making me say all this. Why are you putting so much faith in me when I don’t even know so much as your name?” I feel on the verge of tears laying it all out there but the mayor only smiles and then starts laughing.

“Bahahaha! You really are a newbie at this my young giant friend. You may not have won the fight but you held your ground, you fought her on our behalf, kept her from doing worse damage to the city or our food supply and most importantly you kept us all alive. Like I said before she’s brutal and usually without mercy and yet she left without taking your life or even any of ours. Usually there’s also more damage to the city or stolen food but not today, I think her having a legitimate challenge from somebody made her not want to stay. If she does happen to come back I feel confident that you’ll be here too, that you’ll honor us and keep being the hero we need.”

“It’d-It’d be my… SOB… pleasure.” I say and now I feel myself actually crying with tears running down the fluff of my cheeks. Before I can use my paw to wipe at them I hear a “Woah!” at the sudden movement of my arm and quickly put it back down after I do.

“That makes me so happy to hear! We’ll finally have a new protector again! I’m not sure what new name you want to go with the new title yet but if I may show my bias a little I suggest something with stripes in it. You can call me Aguilar by the way, Mayor Aguilar or Kurtis if you want to be friendly, Kurtis Aguilar. Sorry it took so long to give you my name but given the circumstances I had to wait for the right time, Eli.”

“I understand Mayor Aguilar. Thank you for having given me a chance to prove myself and the very important new job. I promise I’ll serve you and Eastburrow City to the best of my ability. I won’t let you down sir!” I give him a big thumbs up and the best “hero smile” I can approximate right now with how banged up I am and how careful I have to be.

“That’s great but it’s going to take more than just words for you to have this job. I’ll whip up the proper contract along with the rest of the city council. We’ll need to discuss your pay, potential macro housing and utilities cost, official job duties and much more but I’m getting ahead of myself honestly. You still have a lot of healing left to do, after all it took us almost the whole day and half a dozen of us just to do something like get your broken snout back into place. When you’re back to full health I’ll be here so we can iron everything out.”

“I… I guess that’s fine. You still haven’t explained how you built this wood gurney so fast or with what. I know you don’t have to tell me but I’d appreciate knowing, at least so I could know who to thank.”

“Well Suzanna not destroying as much as usual meant that we had more people than expected and more time than we thought we would. It was easy to strip the wood out of the buildings that ended up as collateral during the fight between you two and the rest we got from nearby trees. That also took most of the day but when the whole city is out and able to move freely without fear of being squashed or chomped on or used for sick sport it’s easier to do things and multitask. Who knows, maybe we’ll finally be able to have an RMRIF (Rampaging Macro Re-Infrastructuring Fund) again. Look at me blathering like a foal about all of this when I should be letting you rest and letting everybody get back to work.”

“Already on it sir, let’s move people. We’ve got a lot of hyena to finish patching up!” I hear a tiny shout from someone on my knee and then the movement of several dozen hands returns along with the feeling of gauze and other stuff being applied right on me, still a very surreal feeling.

“I’m excited too, sir. I’m thinking I’ll be back on my feet in another day, day and a half at most and then we can discuss tha-ahhahah-ings!” I wince in pain as I think a paw just accidentally stepped into one of my bruises.

“Be careful Stef, that looked like a bruise. You gotta be sure to step around those.”

“It was a Nghh bruise.” I say as I feel someone else disinfecting one of the lighter scratches on my arm with more rubbing alcohol and big cotton balls.

“Sorry Gabe, I’ll be more careful.” A female beagle’s voice calls out.

“We’ve all got to be.” Gabe’s voice I guess responds back with a bit less roar behind it and a bit more concern and uncertainty instead and in response he gets a whole chorus of voices saying “right” back at him.

“Thank you, thank you all” is the last thing I say before I shut my eyes again and let myself rest.

It actually takes a whole three days before I feel healed enough to take care of my remaining wounds and scars myself. I get to familiarize myself with a lot of the city’s residents while they take the time taking care of me and they give me my new name as a protector, Striped Salvation. There were several other potential names they gave like Comeback King and Striped Savior but I prefer a name that makes me sound more like a heroic force rather than someone self important plus it’s got a similar ring to Clawed Cyclone I’d like to think. I spend the next two days cleaning some of the debris, trying not to overexert myself as I’ll have plenty of time to do so in my days as protector here, hopefully many years. By the end of the week Mayor Aguilar has finished talks with the city council and then finishes talking to me so the contract can be made and so I can sign it making me Eastburrow’s protector officially ending Suzanna’s reign of terror over this town and also replacing the Swift Stunner I suppose.

I’m not sure if either of them will ever come back but I’m hoping to make it so that one won’t ever feel they could and the other won’t feel that he has to. They both left this city in a lot of pieces for me to help these civilians pick up but I know we can do it, that I can do it. It’s crazy to think only a week ago I was just imitating the moves of heroes through old tv recordings and now my life has changed enough to become a hero in my own right. I followed and practiced the punches and kicks and pawwork to greatness, to become a city’s champion even if I didn’t really win this time. My life has changed and there’ll be plenty more times to pull out a win and keep being these people’s Striped Salvation.