{"sf1_id":935041,"sf2_id":null,"title":"ONS Arc 3 Chapter 6: The Hunter","author":"Volcan MacAingeal","words":16533,"posted_at":"2015-11-18T23:05:00.000Z","tags":["Dark","Female","Hurt/Comfort","Implied rape","Phoenix","Series Progression","Story Series","eastern dragon","naga"],"url":"https://fse.anthro.fr/stories/935041-ons-arc-3-chapter-6-the-hunter","original_url":"https://sofurry.com/view/935041","image_url":"https://www.sofurryfiles.com/std/thumb?page=935041\u0026ext=.jpg","description":"","content":"The Os-Nàdarra Sentinels\nArc Three:\nThe Overlords\nChapter 6: The Hunter\n            \"Keep moving, honey!\" Kim's mother\nurged as the two vixens, one an adult, the other a pre-teen girl, strode\nthrough the woods as fast as they could, daring not look back at the thing she\nwas certain was chasing them. With her daughter's arm in hand, Scarlet urged\nher on as fast as they could go.\n            They had come to this forest for\nsome mother-daughter time, taking to the trails before coming to a clearing,\nwhere they settled down for a picnic in the peaceful woods near Unity Falls.\nThey had been having a good time, enjoying the various food and beverages they\nhad brought with them, and were even playing a game of tag around the clearing,\nchasing each other and laughing, and that was when they heard the voice... or\nrather, not a voice. Almost like a thought, but perceived as a throb in your\nbrain, emitting a vibration that somehow you can determine to be words.\n            Whatever was causing that throb had\ntold them what it was going to do if it caught them; how they were being\nhunted, how it hungered for them and desired their bodies. They didn't know\nwhat 'it' was, but they knew they had to get away -had to get out of this\nforest, and back to the city. But for some reason, Scarlet could not remember\nwhere they had left the car before coming onto the trails, or which one led\nback!\n            But still, they didn't slow; they\nhad to get out of the woods and away from whatever monster was chasing them.\n            \"Mom, we're going the wrong way!\"\nThe younger vixen exclaimed, pointing off into the woods. \"The car's that way!\"\n            \"How do you know?\"\n            \"Because I remember; we passed that\ntree there,\" replied Kim, pointing at a rather gnarled pine.\n            Since Scarlet had no idea where they\nwere going, she chose to listen to Kim, and made for the trail leading past the\ntree, the two of them following it with all haste. They could hear something\nrustling in the trees above; every time they heard that noise, their hearts\nthundered louder in their hearts, knowing that whatever chased them was near,\nwaiting to strike...\n            The winding path led them through\nmore of the forest, but soon, to the glee of the mother vixens heart, she could\nsee the parking lot beyond the nature park, where her car and the salvation of\nboth herself and her daughter lay waiting just a little further away. \"Come on,\nKim; we're almost there!\"\n            But seconds from safety, as they\nstepped out of the trees, something swept down from above, whipping around in\nfront of her and stopping her dead in her tracks before she was yanked off of\nher feet, pulled from the grasp of her daughter and carried up into the tree,\nthe strange dark binding spinning her about. She felt her arms pressed to her\nsides, the long mass of scaly flesh encompassing her torso and squeezing her\ntightly.\n            \"Mom!\" Kim screamed in horror.\n            \"Run, Kim; go!\" Scarlet screamed.\n\"Run away!\"\n            The young fox cub hesitated, but as\nher mother continued to scream for her to save herself, she eventually\ncomplied, fleeing out of the parking lot and down the road as quickly as the\nyouthful vixen could run. Meanwhile, Scarlet lost sight of her, carried into\nthe canopy of the tree and turned about in midair, the scaly length binding her\narms now wrapped around her legs, making escape all but impossible despite her\nattempts.\n            Her struggles were rewarded by a\ncompressing force all around her, forcing the breath from her lungs. She tried\nto gasp, but her lungs would not take in any air, the pressure around her chest\ntoo great. Scarlet was turned about, until she found herself staring into a\npair of bright yellow eyes as a serpentine head appeared from the shadows.\n            \"You were close,\" it said. \"But not\nclose enough, and now the hunter claims his prey.\"\n~~~~~\n-September 3rd, 2011, Unity\nFalls Atrium-\n            The hall was dark as the crowds\ncheered, waiting for the reappearance of the band on the stage, who had stopped\nfor a brief intermission to catch their breath and plan their next performance.\nThey cheered the name of the band over and over again; 'Winged Fury, Winged\nFury!' echoed through the hall over and over again, every man and woman of all\nages with a fist up in the air.\n            And then, from the darkness of the\nstage, a low chord emanated and echoed across the hall. That chord soon turned\nto a rhythmic melody, rising steadily. A drumbeat soon followed, matching the\nguitar, and the lights slowly began to return, revealing the four individuals\non the stage; three avians and a hyena. The avians stood in a row at the front,\ntwo of them with guitars, the third standing in front of the microphone,\nswaying to the beat before the two guitar players stepped away while the spot\nlight illuminated the singer.\n            Vinge put his hand up in the air for\nthe audience to see, and the roaring cheers intensified as they saw him raise\nhis arm. He spoke into the microphone. \"Thank you for your patience, everyone;\nnow please lend us your ears as we show you our newest song that I personally\nwrote for the return of our lead guitar player! He's been away for a while, but\nnow he's back!\"\n            Volcan stepped into the spotlight.\n\"And glad to be so!\" He chimed in before stepping back again.\n            \"So let us celebrate his return with\nyour applause and this new hit that will be going on our next album! We call\nthis one, 'Return'!\"\n            The music began to intensify, a\nsharp pitch from Pavan's guitar with a slightly deeper one from Volcan's own,\nwith Brent at the back pounding on the drums, creating an intense and\nenthralling beat that was driving the crowd wild with excitement. But very\nsuddenly, the rhythm lessened to a more foreboding tone, and it was then Vinge\nbegan to recite the lyrics, keeping his voice low to emphasize the grimness of\nthe opening\n\"I could hear\nit, clawing from inside\nFrom depths of\ndarkness in the black of my mind\nA wicked\npresence, older than time\nClawing at the\nwalls inside of my mind\nI heard its\nvoice and I felt its grip\nAs it grabbed\nmy soul with cold hands\nVolcan chimed in with a deep voice, saying the next\nline.\n\"You will be\nmine.\"\nI fought it\nhard, with all my might!\nIn body and\nsoul, I was wounded and torn\nBy I lost the\nfight; the evil was free\nRipping from\nme it rose, while I lay broken at death's door.\"\nThe more intense rhythm returned, elevating the hype\nfrom the crowd as the song carried on...\n            \"And now I've returned!\n            Stronger than ever!\n            My trials were long but I endured!\n            My strength is returned!\n            Burning pure!\n            No longer the same; I am reborn~!\"\n            From there, the song fell into a\nshort instrumental, before Vinge began singing again, carrying on with the rest\nof the song as the melody remained intense and powerful.\n            \"My\nbody was broken, weak and far gone!\n            My wounds were deep, I could barely breath!\n            I cannot describe just what came of me!\n            But for the first time in years\n            I feel truly free!\n            And now I've returned!\n            Stronger than ever!\n            My trials were long but I endured!\n            My strength is returned!\n            Burning pure!\n            No longer the same; I am reborn~!\"\n            A second instrumental followed, this\none carrying on much longer, with many changes in pitch and rhythm but never\nlosing track of how the song was meant to sound, with Pavan practically\nbouncing all over the stage as he played, spurred on by the intense music while\nfollowing Volcan's lead. The two even went to stand back to back as they played\nwith Vinge remaining by the mic, waiting to resume.\n            The song continued with one more\nrepeat of the chorus before reaching a short, conclusive instrumental, with one\nlong chord marking the end of the song. The audience practically exploded with\nglee, cheering out the name of the band repetitiously again, pumping their arms\nin the air.\n            Vinge gave the usual send off,\nthanking them for coming to the concert that night before they began to gather\ntheir instruments to take them into the back, the praise of the crowds\nfollowing their every step until they began to break and depart from the hall,\npouring out of the exits in a steady flow.\n            \"Whoot!\" Brent cheered. \"We're back,\nbaby!\"\n            \"Winged Fury is back in action!\"\nPavan chimed in as he and Brent did an airborne body bump and double\nhigh-fived, both of them yelling 'Alright!' after.\n            \"I admit, these last few months have\nbeen a little boring -at least when we weren't running some drills with the\nteam,\" said Vinge. \"I'm happy to be back in front of a mic again.\"\n            Volcan chuckled. \"Feels especially\ngood to be back on my feet again,\" he said. \"I know I've said that already but\ndamn it was just so boring lying around at mom's house for so long.\"\n            \"The team wasn't the same without\nya, buddy,\" Pavan said, clapping Volcan on the shoulder, which brought an 'ow'\nfrom the Fire Phoenix. \"Oop! Sorry.\"\n            \"Nah, it's okay,\" replied Volcan.\n\"I'm still not back to a hundred percent just yet.\" He rubbed his shoulder. \"My\nmuscles are still pretty weak from being out of commission.\"\n            \"You seemed okay out there, though,\"\nBrent pointed out.\n            \"Playing guitar's easy,\" replied\nVolcan. \"But spending so long in recovery, most of my powers are pretty lacking.\nI'm going to need time to get them all back; 'till then I can't return to the\nteam, at least not as a field man.\"\n            Vinge frowned at that. \"So I'm still\nleading the team, then,\" he said.\n            Volcan glanced over. \"What's the\nmatter?\"\n            \"I don't know; despite our success\nup north I don't feel like I'm leader material,\" said Vinge. \"Especially not\nafter seeing Buniq leading her people, keeping them safe for years; hell, it\nwas her who led the defense of Dawson\nCity, not me.\" He shook his head. \"I'm not like you or her; I'm a strategist,\nbut I don't have the charisma or inspirational traits that you two do. I'm\nbetter suited as a planner.\"\n            Volcan walked over to Vinge and\nplaced a hand on his shoulder. \"You've still done well keeping the team in\nshape in my absence, so I'll ask you formally; will you keep leading the other\nOs-Nàdarra until I can return?\"\n            Vinge looked at Volcan with mild\nintrigue, surprised by how Volcan was asking him to continue his role as leader\nwhen Vinge had already said he would, as though he wanted to make sure it was\nokay to ask it of him. With no words to say, Vinge could only humbly nod to the\nfire phoenix, and Volcan smiled back at him. \"Thank you.\"\n            With that, Volcan turned and went\nback over to his guitar case, checking once more to make sure the clamps were\ntightly closed before he looked at the others. \"I'll see you guys at the next\npractice, okay?\" With their goodbyes, Volcan headed out of the concert hall,\nwith Vinge watching after him for a moment until Pavan, who appeared at his side,\nspoke out.\n            \"You noticed it too, eh?\" Pavan\nasked.\n            \"Hm?\" Vinge hummed in inquiry as he\nglanced at the Wind Phoenix.\n            \"Volc's changed a little bit over\nthe months,\" he said.\n            \"Akatsuki did tell us he might not\nquite be the same person,\" reminded Vinge, turning his gaze back to following\nVolcan. \"I would assume it's the trauma he endured.\"\n            \"But you don't think it was, do ya?\"\nPavan asked.\n            \"It's hard to say,\" replied Vinge.\n\"So far, we've only seen him socially; he always had that dry sense of humor,\nas well as being very honest and empathic -and maybe prone to sounding a little\nflustered when he points out the obvious, but he definitely seems more...\nchipper than he used to be, and a little more patient and focused; with what he\nwent through you'd think he'd be distant and less social, but it's like all sense\nof worry he ever had is gone.\" He actually smiled. \"It's as though when that\nevil left him, it took the worst of Volcan with it -not that he wasn't a good\nperson before, mind you.\"\n            \"Now, he's damn perfect, I'd say,\"\nremarked Pavan.\n            \"Perfection is an illusion, Pavan,\"\nstated Vinge, but not maliciously so. \"If one achieves perfection they have\nnothing else to strive for. Volcan is still a Fire Elemental, and I have little\ndoubt he's still prone to losing his temper or letting his passion get away\nfrom him. But what else has changed in him, well... we'll know soon enough, I\nsuppose.\"\n            \"I may actually look forward to\nthat,\" said Pavan.\n~~~~~\n            Volcan carefully angled his jeep\ninto his parking spot outside of his apartment complex. He had only recently\nmoved back into the building after spending most of the year living at his\nmother's, and each time he returned he had the same words passing through his\nmind -that it was good to be home again. Stepping out of his vehicle, he made\nsure the doors were locked before collecting his guitar from the back, locking\nthe rear door as well, and then proceeding to the front entrance of the\nbuilding.\n            Opening the door with his key, he\nascended the stairs to the second level, and turned to face his apartment door\nwhen a voice from above calling hello caught his ear; he looked up, stepping\nback to see over to the next floor up the stairs, and saw Tsume looking down at\nhim, the green and brown Earth Phoenix waving at him. \"How'd the concert go?\"\nShe asked.\n            \"Went great,\" replied the phoenix,\nnodding to her. \"How're things for you?\"\n            \"Well, finally convinced Buniq to\ntake another shower,\" remarked Tsume, looking over her shoulder before looking\ndown at Volcan again. \"But I don't know if I'll ever get the smell of the wilds\nout of my carpet.\"\n            \"I can still hear you Tsume,\" a\nvoice called from behind the Earth Phoenix.\n            \"Aw merde...\" Tsume muttered\n            After bringing her back with them\nfrom the north, Buniq had been living with Tsume until they could find the\nWerecat cougar a home. Imagine Buniq's surprise when seeing Volcan's face for\nthe first time, after she had seen Calhoun Demonfire in Dawson City -a being\nwho looked almost exactly like the red and gold phoenix except for colours; it\nhad taken much explanation to calm her down when she had seen him. But although\nTsume had been welcoming of Buniq and opened her home to her, she had found the\nInuit-raised woman a little complicated to live with; Buniq was used to hunting\nor fishing for her food, not retrieving it from the refrigerator, or cooking it\nover a stove instead of a fire.\n            Not to mention, she had smelled of\nthe wilderness; dead animals and forest-y smells had clung to her all the way\nback, and though Tsume did love the smell\nof the woods, she did not like the\nsmell of blood and guts on her furniture. She had been trying to convince Buniq\nto start taking showers on a regular basis, but Buniq was skeptical, not\nknowing what to expect since she had lived in a region without any sort of\nindoor plumbing; the very concept was unnatural, in every sense of the word.\n            \"Well, try to be patient with her,\"\nVolcan said with a smile. \"This is all new to her, keep in mind; six months\ndoesn't compare to twenty-five years living off the land.\"\n            Tsume nodded in defeat. \"Yeah, I\nsuppose.\" She then scoffed. \"I'm being lectured in patience by a Fire Elemental when Earth Elementals are\nsupposed to be the most patient\nbeings in the world; holy crap, the apocalypse is coming.\"\n            At that, the two shared a laugh,\nbefore Volcan bade her goodnight and continued into his own apartment,\nwandering into the living room and plopping down on the couch after setting his\nguitar case aside. He reached for the remote, and aimed it towards the television.\n\"Let's check the news, shall we?\" He asked no one in particular as he put his\nfeet up on the ottoman and made himself comfortable.\n            He cycled the channels over to\nsomewhere local, to keep track of what was happening in his hometown. They went\nover national events such as the upcoming re-election of Canada's current Prime\nMinister, followed shortly by a weather forecast -ironically done by Pavan's\nfather, Richard Stevenson- for the week. With Autumn at its earlier stage,\ntemperatures were steadily lowering, but for the most part it was still warm.\n            Finally, it changed to a local\nbroadcast, and Volcan's attention was grabbed promptly by the title. 'An\nassailant in the hills' followed by a subtitle, 'Victims have no recollection\nof attacks'. The anchorwoman on screen gave the report in detail. \"Authorities are baffled by the string of\nsexual assaults happening to visitors to the Anderson Nature Park; a place\nwhere people go for a nice nature walk on footpaths through the woods. The\nassaults don't seem limited to either males or females either; two days ago, a\nmale wolf disappeared for several hours, and was found later, naked outside the\nwoods. The couple who found him rushed him to hospital, and evidence uncovered\nrevealed the man had been raped and nearly crushed to death.\n\"But it\ndoesn't stop there, for just today, a woman was abducted while enjoying the\npark with her daughter. The daughter, Kimberly, was found by a pair of bicyclers\nwho were heading up to the Park -they saw her running the road, screaming for\nhelp, saying that something had stolen her mother away. The cyclers called\nauthorities and launched their own search for the missing Scarlet Meiers; age\nthirty-six, red fox, single mother. So far, there has not yet been any word on\nher whereabouts.\n\"The only\nthing in common between the victims is their inability to recollect just who it\nwas that attacked them, and where. Even though young Kimberly was not a victim\nof assault, somehow she has expressed this same form of amnesia, unable to\nremember anything except the look on her mother's face and her telling her to\nrun away; authorities have not ruled out the presence of a form of\nSuperhumanoid being to be the cause. We will give you updates as this mystery\nunfolds.\"\nVolcan had already picked up his phone and dialed a\nnumber before holding it to his ear; the call was shortly answered by Vinge. \"Hello?\"\n\"Vinge, it's me. We might have something that needs\nour attention.\"\n~~~~~\n-The following day, at the\nUnity Falls General Hospital-\n            \"I told you not to pressure her,\nJeols,\" Obsidian said, glowering at the Caucasian human as they left the room\nand shut the door, dampening the crying coming from inside. \"She's only a\nchild.\"\n            \"I know you did, but I just want to\nfind her mother, and the guy who took her,\" returned Jeols. \"The guy's been\ntaking people left and right and we still don't even know who he looks like, or\neven what species he is.\"\n            Obsidian sighed. \"I know that, but\ntrying to urge her on like that didn't help; try to be a little more sympathetic.\"\n            \"I'm sorry, Sergeant...\"\n            \"Everything alright?\"\n            The two of them turned to see a blue\nfeathered avian in police attire approaching, eyeing them with curiosity and\nbringing the two to attention as they recognized their chief of police, Gregory\nVinson. \"I messed up, Chief,\" Jeols admitted without hesitation. \"I upset the\npoor girl; pressured her too much.\"\n            Gregory eyed the young constable\nwith a solemn expression on his face. \"I know you mean well, Michael, but try\nto remember, people are often sensitive when they think they may have lost\nsomeone. A child is especially so, when their parent is missing.\" He frowned as\nthe image of a white feathered, ice-blue eyed avian child crossed the eye of\nhis mind, bringing back a painful memory of his own. \"I know that far too\nwell.\"\n            Jeols nodded. \"Yes, Chief.\"\n            \"Head back to your patrol, Michael;\nI'll take over from here. When the girl calms down again, I'll try questioning\nher,\" he said. \"I know kids rather well,\" he added with a wink.\n            Nodding, Jeols turned and headed up\nthe hall, leaving Gregory and Obsidian alone outside the door. They waited\nuntil he was out of earshot before Gregory turned to the dragoness. \"Think our\nmutual friends know what's happening?\" He asked.\n            \"I have little doubt about it,\"\nreplied Obsidian. \"They're probably already looking into it now.\" She scowled\nas she crossed her arms in thought, her tail sweeping furiously behind her. \"I\njust can't understand why none of the victims ever remember who or what attacks\nthem; forgetting faces I can see but forgetting what race they were or where it\nhappened, it's like their minds are being erased when it happens.\"\n            \"A telepath like yourself, maybe?\"\nGregory suggested.\n            \"Maybe, but to erase memories he'd\nhave to be at least a Class-4 Psionic,\" replied Obsidian. \"But even then, it\ntakes a lot of focus and nearly no resistance from the person being probed to\nactually affect their mind.\"\n            Gregory rubbed his chin in thought.\n\"To do that they'd have to subdue them first; I wonder if it has any connection\nto the bruises on that wolf's body when he was found?\"\n            \"As if he were being crushed from\nall sides,\" Obsidian added, and suddenly her ears pricked up. \"Like being\nconstricted...\"\n            \"Constricted; by a snake?\" Gregory\nasked. \"But no Anthro snake has a tail long enough to completely bind a person\nlike that.\"\n            \"Not them, but a Naga would,\"\nreplied Obsidian.\n            \"But there are no naga in this part\nof the world; they can't live in a country like this,\" said Gregory.\n            \"Some scientists said the same thing\nabout Fire Phoenixes,\" Obsidian pointed out.\n            \"Touché. So our assailant may be a\npsychic naga then,\" said Gregory.\n            \"Given what clues we have, it seems\nthe most likely,\" said Obsidian. \"But without further evidence I can't be sure;\nwe haven't found any scales.\"\n            \"You may be looking in the wrong\nplaces.\"\n            The two of them turned to see the\nowner of the voice, and came face-to-face with a familiar looking avian,\nflanked on both sides by a second avian and a Cougar woman, stepping over to\nthem. Gregory beamed at the sight of none other than Volcan Skilerain, and\neagerly turned to him to shake hands with the red and gold feathered phoenix,\nsmiling broadly at him. \"Good to see you my boy; I'd heard you were out of\ncommission for quite some time.\"\n            \"I was, for a while,\" said Volcan.\n\"Only about a month or so ago have I been able to walk on my own again.\" Volcan\nlooked past Gregory briefly, and noticed Obsidian staring gleefully back at him;\nhe could tell that she wanted to run up and hug him, but she maintained her\ncomposure; public displays of affection while in uniform would look\nunprofessional for a police officer. He smiled and nodded back to her before he\nfaced Gregory again, his expression more serious this time. \"So, news last\nnight says we've got some trouble up in the Nature Park.\"\n            Just as Gregory opened his beak to\nanswer, the ringing sound of a phone emitted from his breast pocket. He deftly\npulled out the phone and looked at it before he turned to face Volcan again. \"I\nneed to take this,\" he said, before looking at Obsidian and nodding to her. She\nnodded back, and stepped forward as Gregory turned away, greeting the caller\nwith \"Vinson\" before he listened.\n            \"How much did the news say?\" The\ndragoness asked.\n            \"Words I don't like to say in\npublic,\" Volcan remarked, glancing side to side to make sure no one was in\nearshot. \"But to be blunt, it seems we've got a rapist in the woods.\"\n            \"Unfortunately, yes.\"\n            \"How many victims have there been?\"\nVinge asked. \"I have only heard of the vixen who just disappeared yesterday,\nand the wolf two days before.\"\n            \"There have actually been four\nincidents, but that is only centered on the park,\" replied Obsidian. \"There\nhave been eleven other cases all with the same M.O, excluding those four.\"\n            Volcan's eyes widened. \"Fifteen?\" He\nasked in disbelief, but managed to keep his voice low. \"How long has this been\ngoing on?\"\n            \"About nine weeks,\" replied\nObsidian. \"But the previous incidents weren't happening in the park; they were\nfrom hikers up on the slopes past the waterfall at Unity Lake. We have tried\neverything -helicopters, trackers, K-9 units, everything we have to try and\nfind this criminal, but so far no one has ever found the assailant, and\nevidence has been limited only to what we can find on the victims; bruises,\nsigns of trauma, signs of sexual assault, and amnesia -unable to give any\ndetails about their attacker. Even semen samples haven't been found.\"\n            \"He covers his tracks well,\" said Vinge.\n            \"We've got another kind of tracker,\"\nsaid Volcan, gesturing to Buniq. \"Obsidian, have you met our newest member\nyet?\"\n            \"I have; Tsume brought her by\nRikyuu's house once while I was visiting,\" replied Obsidian, offering a\nhandshake to Buniq. \"Good to see you again, Buniq.\"\n            Buniq, still new to the gesture,\nfumbled with her response before eventually grasping Obsidian's hand and\nshaking it. \"And you as well, Miss Kimoyama,\" she replied.\n            The dragoness nodded to her before\nlooking back at Volcan. \"So you have a plan?\"\n            \"I think I do,\" replied Volcan.\n\"Buniq's a master of tracking; maybe she can find something that the others\ncouldn't.\"\n            \"I would need an idea of what scent\nto find,\" said Buniq. \"What is the species of the assailant?\"\n            \"We don't know for sure, but,\" Obsidian\nbegan. \"As Gregory and I were discussing, we think that the culprit may be a\nNaga.\"\n            \"A Naga with psychic powers,\" said\nVinge, rubbing his chin. \"The victims are found with bruises around their body,\nconsistent with constriction, and they have no recollection of their attacker's\nappearance. It fits the profile perfectly.\" He looked at the dragoness. \"Excellent\ndeduction, Obsidian; you may make a good detective someday.\"\n            Obsidian smiled at the compliment.\n            \"So what is a naga?\" Buniq asked,\nlooking at Volcan.\n            \"A huge snake-like being from the\nworld of myth, just like our own races,\" the phoenix explained. \"Powerful beings,\nmore serpent than humanoid that live in the wilderness; sightings of them are\noften dumb luck by the one who reports it -they're very reclusive, because of\nall the rumors that circumvent about them.\"\n            \"What sort of... rumors?\" Buniq\nasked.\n            \"That they eat people alive,\"\nreplied Volcan.\n            Obsidian paled at that thought.\n\"T-They don't really, do they?\"\n            Vinge answered for her. \"The average\nnaga, from the waist-level up,\" he explained. \"Is no bigger than the average\nhuman or anthro; feral snakes are sometimes known to eat things with diameter\nlarger than their own but their bodies only stretch out so much. Naga's are\neven more limited because they've got a humanoid skeleton and organ placement;\nif they wanted to eat a person, that person would either have to be extremely\nthin, or the naga would have to be built like Andre the Giant, otherwise their heart\nor lungs would get crushed against their ribcage, not to mention the shoulders\nwouldn't fit past the ribs\"\n            \"I thought snakes had collapsible\nskeletons?\" Buniq asked.\n            \"Collapsible yes, but not\nexpandable,\" clarified Vinge.\n            \"Ah,\" said the werecat. \"So I just\nneed to find a reptilian smell, then.\"\n            \"Shouldn't be hard; not a lot of\nreptiles live in Alberta,\" stated Volcan. \"Especially not around here; it's not\ntheir kind of habitat.\"\n            Gregory stepped in. \"Then we better\nget to work before this big snake attacks again,\" the hawk stated. \"Scarlet\njust turned up -she was found by a hiker heading up to the mountains, same\ncondition as previous victims; left unclothed in the road, amnesia regarding\nher attacker, multiple bruises around her body and signs of molestation. It's\nonly a matter of time before that naga goes after someone else.\"\n            Volcan nodded. \"We'll get up there\nas quickly as possible.\"\n            \"I don't need to remind you that the\narea is now under investigation,\" Gregory stated. \"There will be officers\nwatching and patrolling that place; if you want to search you need to stay out\nof their way, or you'll be interfering with a police investigation.\"\n            \"I can slip past them easily\nenough,\" stated Buniq.\n            \"We'll have Pavan watch from the air\nas well, and Tsume will come in via underground,\" Vinge directed.\n            Volcan went over Vinge's plan in his\nhead, and swiftly nodded in approval. \"Perfect choice,\" he said. \"Meanwhile,\nI'm going to run my own little search.\"\n            Everyone turned to face him. \"What\ndo you mean?\" Gregory asked.\n            \"These assaults started up near the\nmountain closest to the waterfall, right?\" Volcan asked. \"Maybe I can find the\nnaga's lair; if they chase him out of the park that's probably where he'll run\nto. As unlikely as it is he could outrun Pavan or Buniq, we can't take that\nchance.\"\n            \"Volcan, that's crazy,\" Obsidian\nprotested. \"You only just got back on your feet; we don't know how dangerous\nthis naga is.\"\n            \"I may not have all of my strength\nback, but my powers are almost back to normal,\" assured Volcan. \"I'm not\ndefenseless even in my condition.\"\n            \"And how will you get away if the\nnaga's too much for you to handle?\" Vinge asked. \"You don't have full use of\nyour wings yet.\"\n            Volcan looked at Vinge and smiled.\n\"I've got that part covered too. Just trust me, Vinge, okay?\"\n            The ice phoenix looked unconvinced,\nbut he didn't protest any further, sighing before he nodded. \"Alright... but if\nyou need help, you make sure you contact one of us.\"\n            \"I will,\" Volcan promised. \"Now,\ncome on; we all better get moving before the trail goes cold.\"\n            \"I'm going too,\" said Obsidian,\nlooking at Gregory. \"The suspect is a psionic being; the best thing to fight\nthat is another psionic, and I'm a Class-7. They and the police up there alike\nwill need me.\"\n            Gregory gave her an approving nod.\n\"I'll let them know you're coming,\" he said.\n            Vinge nodded in agreement. \"Buniq,\nwith me; let's go get Tsume and Pavan.\"\n            \"Yes,\" agreed the werecat.\n            Volcan stepped out the hospital,\nwatching Vinge and Buniq heading the other way, before he headed out to find his\ntruck in the parking lot, unaware of the purple dragoness following him out of\nthe hospital as he crossed the street. It wasn't until he saw her reflection in\nthe front windshield of his jeep that Volcan realized Obsidian was tailing him;\nhe looked over his shoulder at her, seeing the worried look on her face as she\nwalked up to him.\n            Before he could say anything, she\nsuddenly hugged him, wrapping her arms around his neck and holding him tightly.\nVolcan stood stunned for a moment before he returned the embrace, putting his\narms around Obsidian. He didn't understand why she was hugging him so\nprotectively, but he voiced no protest about it, the feeling of her scales\nrubbing against his feathers as her cheek brushed against his washing away any\nconcern.\n            They pulled apart after a moment,\nand Volcan smiled at her with an arched eyebrow. \"I could tell you wanted to do\nthat earlier too,\" he said.\n            She smiled back. \"Couldn't with so\nmany people watching; have to maintain professionality while in uniform,\" she\nsaid before hugging him again. \"I'm so glad to see you've healed,\" she said in\nalmost a whisper, on the verge of tearing up with joy.\n            Volcan chuckled and held her warmly\nin his arms. \"Not completely, but time has done its job,\" he said, his hand\nabsently rubbing over her back.\n            As Obsidian held him, she felt her\nfingers brush over bare flesh on Volcan's back as she ran her hand through his\nfeathers. Her eyes reopened and she gently pulled back from him, walking around\nhim to look at his back. Volcan knew what she was looking for, and\ninstinctively pressed his wings together, trying to conceal it with a sad look\non his face. \n\"It's... not a pleasant sight,\" he warned.\nShe stepped back. \"It can't be as bad as when it\nhappened.\"\n\"It's not... but it's still gruesome,\" he said.\nShe reached out, touching his shoulder tenderly. \"Please?\"\nShe asked.\nVolcan grimaced, but eventually he turned slightly,\nand let his wings part enough that Obsidian could see the grotesque mound of\ntwisted flesh on Volcan's back, where the skin, looking as though it were\ncaving in on itself, was deformed and bald -the feathers around the scar had\nnot regrown, as though afraid of the dark origins of the scar itself. Through\nthe deformity Obsidian could almost swear she could make out Volcan's spine\nthrough the flesh, seeing a twitch as he turned his head.\n\"My god,\" Obsidian whispered, covering her mouth.\nOnce more, Volcan covered it with his wings. \"I'm\nsorry you saw that,\" he said.\nShe looked at him, shaking her head. \"I asked to;\nyou have nothing to be sorry for,\" she bade. \"I've just never seen anything\nlike it... does it hurt?\"\n\"Only a little, and only if I turn too sharply,\"\nreplied Volcan. \"My mom tried everything to heal that, or at the very least\nfade it enough that it doesn't look so... nasty. But not even her tears or the\nmedicines she tried can do anything.\" He shook his head. \"I'll carry this scar\nthe rest of my life...\"\nHe turned to her, and continued with optimism in his\nvoice. \"But it'll never define me; the scar may be hideous, but it serves as a\nreminder that I'm finally free of the evil that lived in me for eighteen\nyears,\" he stated without any hint of regret. \"In the end, I think it was worth\nit, because I'm no longer afraid of myself.\"\nObsidian beamed at that, and could see in Volcan's\neyes that it was true. He had lived his entire life with that creature inside\nof him, afraid to let his emotions go unchecked, for any time he as enraged or\nterrified the dark form would emerge and rain destruction upon everything in\nsight. He had years of bottled up rage and stress that the creature had caused\nhim, but now his spirit was truly free of the darkness, and he had a chance at\nproper happiness for himself...\nObsidian reached up, placing a hand on the back of\nVolcan's neck, and leaned forward, kissing his cheek softly. \"If anyone\ndeserves to make a happier life for themselves, Volcan, you do,\" she said.\nHe smiled and nodded to her. \"That means a lot to\nme, 'Sid,\" he said. Volcan could feel an urge welling up inside of him, to tell\nObsidian how he truly felt about her; words that he wanted to say, but couldn't\nbring himself to. Before she could detect his turmoil and read his thoughts, he\nchanged the subject. \"W-We better get going; we've all got work to do. I need\nto stop by my house before I head on my search.\"\nObsidian nodded to him. \"Okay,\" she said. \"Please be\ncareful, Volcan.\"\n\"I will,\" he promised.\nWith that, she stepped back from him before she\nturned on her heel and made her way back to where she parked her cruiser.\nVolcan stared after her, watching the gentle sway of her body with longing, and\nfeeling warmth in his heart -not the kind of warmth that he emanated from his\nburning feathers, but something far more. But he held back any desire to stop\nObsidian and take this time to tell her his true feelings...\n'I may be free\nof the darkness within,' he thought. 'But my battle with\nit is not yet over... until that time comes, I have to keep fighting. There is\nno other option...'\nThe dark presence, before it became Calhoun\nDemonfire -whom Volcan himself was yet to even lay eyes upon; its words still\nhaunted him. It knew of Volcan's wants and desires; it knew what he wanted,\nwhat he wished. If he let Obsidian get too close to him, Calhoun would never\nstop targeting her... even now she was at risk, and the only thing Volcan could\nthink of to keep her safe was to keep her far away from him, so that if Calhoun\never showed up to attack Volcan, she would not be caught in the crossfire.\n'I have to put\nan end to Calhoun, for the sake of everyone -not the least of which being those\nI love,' he\nthought with determination as he looked up towards the mid-morning sky. 'I will never rest until I destroy him, once\nand for all.' \"Calhoun,\" he said, darkly. \"My battle with you is far from over.\" He would find his\nstrength again, and he would be ready when the time came for him to face his\ndarkness again.\nAnd he would be victorious.\n~~~~~\n            After the rendezvous with Pavan and\nTsume, Vinge and Buniq headed up to the park with them in tow. They were met\nhalfway by Obsidian, who had free access to the park thanks to her police\nclearance, while the others stealthily snuck in; Buniq jumped into the trees\nand swung among the branches while Pavan and Vinge flew overhead, and Tsume\ntunneled her way through the grass.\n            They met in the shadow of the trees,\nnot far from a large gazebo in the main clearing of the park where the trails\ncould be found. As they met up, Pavan quickly took notice of the strange\nbody-suit Buniq was wearing. The outfit was black, sleeveless and form-fitting,\ncovering her from the collar down to the ankles, no signs of tearing or obvious\nstrain on the fabric.\n            \"Buniq; where'd you get that suit?\"\nPavan asked, curiously.\n            \"I can answer that,\" offered Tsume.\n\"When I took Buniq with me to meet up with Rikyuu and his crew, I introduced\nher to Ayane as well, who offered to make Buniq a suit that would stretch\naround her body when she transformed. That way, she doesn't have her clothes\nexploding off of her whenever she changes -that could make life quite expensive\nfor a person; believe you me.\"\n            \"Amen to that,\" agreed Pavan. \"Price\nof clothing is ridiculous.\"\n            \"Cut the chatter you two,\" said\nVinge. \"We're here on a mission, remember; it's time we get to work.\" He turned\nto face Obsidian. \"Where was Scarlet taken?\"\n            \"Over there,\" the dragoness replied,\nturning and pointing through the trees. \"The parking area has a trail that\nleads directly to it; they were caught there when they tried to get back to\ntheir car. According to Kim, the attacker grabbed Scarlet from out of the\ntrees.\"\n            \"Then that's where we look,\" said\nVinge, looking at Buniq. \"You're up.\"\n            \"On my way,\" she returned before she\ndropped to all fours and padded off into the trees, moving with surprising\nsilence as the huge, muscular werecat weaved her way between the trees and\nreached the footpath, sniffing the ground and following the scent towards the\nparking area, before stopping, and then jumping into a tree, disappearing from\nsight.\n            The group waited for a moment as\nBuniq sought out a trail to follow, but for several moments there was not a\nsound from the werecat, until they heard a nearby tree groan and looked up to\nsee Buniq standing on a limb, smelling the trunk; were it not for the branch\nshe was on protesting against her weight, they would have never sensed her\npresence. Pavan, becoming increasingly annoyed by having to stand around for\nseveral moments, nearly jumped a foot in the air when they heard Buniq, staring\nup at her in amazement.\n            \"How can someone so big move so\nquietly?\" Pavan whispered.\n            \"She's a huntress, Pavan; silence is\nkey to catching her prey,\" replied Tsume.\n            \"Glad I'm not the one she's looking\nfor; I'd never hear her coming.\"\n            Buniq glanced down at the group. \"I\nhave the scent,\" she growled. \"There has been a snake in these trees; a male,\nmoving between them. Some bark is stripped away from these trunks -he's using\nhis tail to navigate through them.\"\n            \"Very resourceful,\" said Vinge.\n            \"It explains why the tracking dogs\ncouldn't find him then,\" said Obsidian. \"Feral dogs can't climb trees, and so\ncouldn't follow the scent even if they did detect it.\"\n            \"Well, his luck's just run out,\"\nsaid Pavan. \"We're on his tail now!\"\n            \"Really, Pavan?\" Tsume asked,\nslapping her forehead and shaking her head.\n            \"Stick close to Buniq,\" Vinge said.\n\"Pavan, with me; we're going into the air. Tsume, underground; you detect any\nmovement, check it out, and let us know what you find. Obsidian, you follow\nBuniq -don't lose sight of her.\"\n            Obsidian nodded in confirmation, and\nbroke into a run as the others departed; Tsume sank into the ground, vanishing\nfrom sight minus a small lump that could be seen moving through the dirt. Pavan\nand Vinge opened their wings and took flight, passing through the canopy above\nand flying over the treeline, while Buniq continued leaping from one tree to\nthe next, tracking the scent while Obsidian used her powers to levitate\nherself, carrying herself through the air after Buniq; much faster and less\ntaxing on the body than simply running, and she would need to conserve her\nenergy if the naga proved dangerous.\n            Rushing through the trees, they\nfollowed the trail all the way to a forest clearing, but much to their dismay,\nBuniq directed them back into the trees, following a fresher, stronger scent;\ntwo scents in fact, one of which Vinge guessed probably belonged the Scarlet\n-the vixen who had disappeared and been found earlier that day. After another\nlong sprint through the trees, they emerged into the open again, this time at\nthe foot of the mountains near the park, the small, lone-standing fragment of\nthe southern Rockies looming over them and bathing the area in shadow as the\nsun was setting in the west.\n            \"Why are we back over here?\" Pavan\nasked as he and Vinge landed nearby. \"Didn't we enter back that way?\" He\ngestured along the tree line to the right.\n            Tsume popped out of the ground at\nthat moment, making Pavan jump slightly with a 'Blimey!' as she shot out like a\ncoiled spring and landed at his side. \"I'd have to agree; we were here only ten\nminutes ago.\"\n            \"Buniq?\" Vinge asked.\n            \"The scent comes back out here,\" the\nwerecat replied, sniffing the ground some more and peering off towards the\nnearby road. \"He took the vixen woman over there, came back here, and then\nstopped...\" She sniffed again, pacing side to side somewhat as she followed the\nscent another ten feet and then raised her head. \"He headed that way.\"\n            Vinge walked up to her side and\nfollowed her gaze, and saw the expanse of Unity Falls, only a mile or so away\nfrom their current position. His eyes quickly widened with realization as he\nsaw the city in the distance. \"It looks like our culprit has gotten bolder,\" he\nsaid. \"He's heading for the city.\"\n            \"But why?\" Tsume asked.\n            \"He's not satisfied just snatching\npeople in the park anymore,\" said Obsidian, her eyes narrowing with concern.\n\"Eventually people will just stop coming... he's not waiting for that; he's\ngoing for them himself.\"\n            \"Oh that's not good,\" Pavan stated\nthe obvious.\n            \"Everyone, get back to town,\" said\nVinge. \"Buniq, keep on that scent; Obsidian, stick with her. Pavan you're on\nair cover, Tsume you need to go let Chief Vinson know what we've learned; he\nneeds to pull his officers back to the city immediately.\" He pulled out his\nphone, and hit speed dial for a number on the phone's memory, bringing up\nVolcan's name as it dialed...\n            Volcan used his morphing polearm to\nhelp balance himself as he climbed the hill, grunting with effort as he lifted\nhimself over a ledge and took a look around, gathering his bearings and turning\nhis gaze back towards town, seeing just how far he'd climbed already. \"Sucks\nnot being able to fly,\" he complained to himself, shifting his wings slightly.\n\"Why can't the muscles heal faster?\"\n            At that moment, his cell phone rang.\nPromptly he picked the phone from his pocket and held it to his ear after\nhitting the talk button. \"Yeah?\"\n            \"Volcan,\nwe've got a problem,\" the voice of Vinge spoke into his ear.\n            \"What happened; did you find the\nnaga?\" Volcan asked.\n            \"Worse,\"\nreplied Vinge. \"We picked up his\ntrail in the woods; he's heading for the city. Buniq and Obsidian are following\nhis trail now, but from what we've found so far this snake is quite cunning and\nmay prove tricky to find. I've sent Tsume to let Gregory know what's happening\nwhile Obsidian, Buniq and Pavan are still lookilooking. You know Unity Falls\nbetter than I do; is there anything else I should do?\"\n            Volcan's eyes narrowed as he peered towards the city, thinking\ncarefully before he responded again. \"He's going to be looking for a place to\nhide, especially once he knows someone's looking for him; call Brent and tell\nhim to look up addresses of decommissioned or abandoned structures close to his\ntravel path. Once you find it, try to box him in; we can't let him get loose\ninto a residential area.\"\n            \"Right;\non it. How goes your own search?\"\n            \"I'm near the falls, but I haven't seen anything yet,\" replied Volcan.\n\"If you guys find the naga and he gets away, let me know; if I find his lair I\nmay be able to intercept him if he comes back this way.\"\n            \"Understood;\nI'll keep you informed. Watch yourself, Volcan.\"\n            \"Don't worry about me,\" assured the\nFire Phoenix, before he bade good luck to Vinge and hung up the phone.\n            With that, Volcan resumed his\njourney, continuing his climb up the hill and reaching the small river from\nwhich the waterfall had formed. Fed directly from a lake in valley within the\nmountains, the ice-cold river water flowed swiftly past him, spewing out over\nopen air to crash into Unity Lake below. Remembering that the previous reported\nattacks had started from around this area, he looked around for any sign of\ncaves or outcroppings that could be used as a hiding spot for a naga. However,\nhe found no such formations nearby, and decided he'd have to continue his\nsearch across the river.\n            With a leap, he went into a brief\nglide and landed on the other side of the river, a safe distance from the bank\n-falling into that stream would mean his instant death, and one that not even\nhe could resurrect from. His wings ached from the act of gliding, though not\nnearly as much as when he'd last attempted to fly. With a grunt, he folded them\nagain and then proceeded onwards towards a dune.\n            He had never come over this side of\nthe falls; by now he had probably already crossed over the U.S Border -probably\nwouldn't be long before the border patrol flew overhead, so he had to make sure\nhe was out of sight or they would arrest him for illegally crossing the border,\nso he had to move quickly.\n            Volcan circled the dune, taking a\nglance up at the sky as he thought he heard a helicopter, and barely saw ahead\nof him in time to avoid falling into a hole in the ground. He froze, his foot\nhovering over the opening, before pulling his leg back and placing it on the ledge\nas he stared incredulously into the hole. \"I almost walked right into that,\" he\nmumbled, mentally kicking himself for not being more careful.\n            His self-scorning was for naught,\nthough; the 'hole' was not actually a hole, but the entrance to a cave and not\na very deep one. Volcan hopped down from the ledge, landing half-crouchedand\nstaring down into the hole, humming curiously to himself. \"A cave right on the\nCanada/U.S border, eh?\" He asked aloud with intrigue as he readied his morphing\npolearm and slowly descended into the cave, minding his footing as he felt an\nincline beneath his talons, and using one hand against the ceiling to help\nsteady himself.\n            Volcan detected a smell as he\ndescended deeper; the smell of a snake, without a doubt -he did not even have\nthat keen a sense of smell and he could sense it with every breath he took.\nWith a grin, he believed that he had found the correct place. \"Easier than I\nthought it would be,\" he muttered as he found himself wandering into an open\ncavern; the air was moist in here, and he could hear the rumble of the\nwaterfall close by. The cave he had found probably ran directly behind it, and\nthe entrance he had come through was merely a back door to the serpent's lair.\n            \"Well, at least I know where that\nnaga 'hangs his hat',\" he remarked. \"Now I can...\"\n            \u003cWho's there?\u003e\n            Volcan froze as he felt what he\nrecognized to be a telepathic message directly to his brain, but the mental\nvoice he 'heard' did not sound like Obsidian's voice... and as he felt it, he\ncould feel other emotions touching his mind -fear, intrigue and caution alike.\nHe surveyed the cavern, eyes igniting with a bright yellow glow as he used his\ninfrared vision to search the cavern for any sign of life, wondering who that\ntelepathic voice belonged to. \"Who's in here? Show yourself!\" He called.\n            \u003cAre you here to hurt me?\u003e The\nvoice asked.\n            \"Should I have a reason to?\" Volcan\nasked.\n            There was a short pause, before the\nvoice replied again. \u003cYou are searching for the one attacking people at the\nAnderson Nature Park.\u003e\n            \"Are you reading my mind?!\" Volcan\nshouted, feeling suddenly invaded; in his irritation, he changed the form of\nhis morphing polearm -a glow from the head of the weapon illuminated the cavern\nas the form of a Romanian halberd took shape, solidifying and gleaming with the\npolish of freshly forged steel.\n            \u003cPlease, do not be angry,\u003e the\nvoice said, and Volcan could sense the fear from the telepath. \u003cI... I mean\nno harm, I promise.\u003e\n            \"Then show yourself,\" said Volcan.\n\"I won't attack, as long as you don't give me a reason to do so.\"\n            There was another pause, before he\nheard the voice again. \u003cYou are truthful... very well; look directly ahead,\nto that large boulder across from you.\u003e\n            Volcan followed the direction the\nvoice told him, and spotted a flicker of movement in front of the said boulder,\nspotting something sweeping around behind it. He watched silently, trying to\nignite a fireball light up the room, but it was difficult; the air in this\ncavern was damp and moist, making it hard for him to create and maintain a\nflame. He was surprised as, suddenly, an oil lantern appeared in front of him,\nheld up by unseen forces. Warily, he took it in his hand, twisting the knob,\nand lighting the flame, giving the room some light.\n            Blinking away his infrared, he held\nup the lantern as he saw a serpentine head rise up from behind the boulder. A\npale, white-scaled snake head, peeking over the top before rising up to\nshoulder level as they peered down at Volcan with pink eyes -an Albino, he\nrealized. He didn't recognize the species of the serpent, but he quickly\nrealized the movement he'd seen at the start was their tail -a bipedal snake\nanthro didn't have a tail that long. This being was definitely a Naga...\n            \"So, I found the right cave after\nall,\" said Volcan.\n            \"I am not the naga you are looking\nfor,\" the snake-like being stated, with a very even-toned voice despite the\nconcern Volcan had sensed earlier.\n            \"And how can I know that?\" Volcan\nasked, matter-of-factly.\n            \"Well, for one,\" replied the naga\nwith a wry smirk as they placed their hands on top of the boulder and raised\nthemselves up, allowing Volcan to see more of them, including the rather\nswelled chest...\n            Volcan blushed brightly. \"Oh...\" he said.\n\"Well, that's a pretty good reason.\" 'Definitely\nNOT the one I'm looking for.'\n            The naga chuckled dryly before\nlowering herself back down to lay against the boulder. \"Thought it was easier\nto show you than tell you,\" she stated.\n            Volcan gave her a scowl. \"You sure\nit wasn't just to surprise me?\"\n            Her forked tongue flicked out as she\nsnickered. \"Maybe a little,\" she replied. \"But it seems the action of my other\nhas brought you to me.\"\n            This grabbed Volcan's attention\nquite well, his eyes widening in realization. \"You know of the one I'm looking\nfor then?\"\n            \"Yes,\" replied the naga female. \"You\nsee, he is my brother.\"\n            \"Your brother?\" Volcan echoed. \n            \"Yes,\" she replied, sadly.\n            Volcan frowned. \"I'm sorry for\naccusing,\" he said. \"I didn't even realize any nagas lived around here.\"\n            \"We have lived in these hills for a\nfew years now; often we find ourselves longing for companionship, but\nopportunities were few since we lived in the wilderness, far from civilization\nwhere people feared and rejected us.\" She sighed. \"My brother, Rovdyr, did not\nlike this lifestyle, and felt it was our place to dominate the 'civilized'\npeople as we saw fit. Priding himself a hunter, against my wishes he began to\nattack people hiking in this area, molesting them, humiliating them, and if\nthey resisted... even murdering them; he did not take kindly to anything less\nthan total submission...\"\n            \"Why didn't you try to stop him? I\nheard you in my head; you're clearly a Psionic life form,\" stated Volcan.\n            \"I am, yes,\" the naga replied. \"But\nin body my brother is much stronger than I. Rovdyr and I are just as powerful\nas the other in Psychic abilities, but he is physically superior, honing his\nmight for years. Even if I could have stopped him, it was only recently I\nlearned of his transgressions, and by then he was leaving our lair,\" she\ngestured with her hand to the cave around them, \"to carry out his hunts in\nthe... 'Anderson Nature Park' you called it?\"\n            Volcan nodded. \"So he went rogue,\"\nhe said.\n            The expression of the naga soured as\nshe laid her head down against the rock. \"Yes... I should have tried to stop\nhim, but I knew I would be no match for him... I am not a warrior.\"\n            \"I'm sure you would have if you\ncould have,\" Volcan said to her in a comforting tone, eyeing her\nsympathetically. \"Once more I apologize for believing you were the rogue.\nPerhaps we can start over?\"\n            She raised her head to look at him,\na weak smile crossing her face. \"You... are not afraid of me?\"\n            \"Why should I be?\" Volcan asked.\n            She recoiled at that question.\n\"Besides my brother's actions... there is also the reputation of my kind -the\nvery reason we hide... our swallowing living people for food, or being thieves\nand manipulators... none of this concerns you?\"\n            \"The actions of a few shouldn't be\nthe definition of a whole species,\" stated Volcan, transforming his halberd\nback to staff form and setting it down, stepping forward towards the boulder.\n\"I'm willing to let you show you're not one of those. I also happen to know the\nwhole 'swallowing people alive' is just some internet bullshit by fearmongers\nor vore fetishists.\" He shook his head and chuckled. \"Looking at you from here,\nI don't think you're big enough to swallow the skinniest of my friends, let\nalone me.\"\n            She did not look as amused as he'd\nhoped she would by his jest...\n            \"Sorry; that didn't come out right,\"\nsaid Volcan, rubbing the back of his head in embarrassment. \"One foot is in my\nmouth, the other one kicking me in the butt,\" he mumbled before clearing his\nthroat. \"Let's try that one more time; my name is Volcan. What's yours?\"\n            She lowered herself down from the\nboulder, vanishing from sight; at first Volcan thought maybe he'd offended her\ntoo much with his failed jest and she was leaving, but after a short wait, she\nrevealed herself from behind the boulder, slithering up to Volcan slowly and\nstopping to 'stand' before him. The naga woman was over twenty feet long, with\na rather lovely face and a shapely upper body -she really was quite beautiful,\nthe whiteness of her scales making her stand out even in the dim light of the\nlanding in Volcan's hand. \nShe raised herself up on her tail to make eye\ncontact, meeting his gaze, and bowed her head respectfully. \"My name is\nKodaku,\" she said. \"I am pleased to meet you.\"\n            Volcan bowed his head back to her,\nrecognizing the Japanese name -and suddenly noticing the Norwegian-ish name she\nhad given for her brother, and wondered why there were two separate cultural\ninfluences to their names if they were...\n            \"We only shared a mother,\" Kodaku\nanswered.\n            Volcan frowned.\n            \"Forgive me; it's... kind of habitual.\nWhen your thoughts are in motion like that, it's hard not to read them,\" she\nsaid guiltily, blushing through her white scales as her tail curled up behind\nher.\n            Volcan looked at her for a moment\nbefore sighing. \"Just try to keep it under control; just feels a little...\ninvasive.\"\n            \"Understood,\" she promised.\n            \"Now,\" Volcan began. \"I need to know\nabout your brother; he's hurting people, and my team and I have to stop him.\"\n            Kodaku's expression turned to worry.\n\"I...\" She hesitated. \"I don't know if I can tell you... he's my only family;\nwithout him, I have no one... I can't betray him.\"\n            \"Kodaku,\" Volcan said, plainly.\n\"Rovdyr has gone rogue, and he's going to keep hurting people unless someone\nstops him.\" He looked her in the eye, his sharp blue gaze nearly piercing to\nher very core as he stared into her pink eyes. \"I know this is hard... but you\nhave to help me stop him before too many people suffer his wrath.\"\n            \"Are you going to kill him?\" She\nasked.\n            \"If he doesn't give us a reason to,\nno, we won't,\" he promised. \"I only take the lives of those too dangerous to\nallow to live -so far, that has only happened once, but if your brother gives\nup or we can detain him without any loss of life, I promise you he will not be\nharmed. Maybe we can even get through to him, with your help, and he'll redeem\nhimself.\"\n            She let out a long sigh, but didn't\nlose the clear hesitation on her face. \"Okay,\" she said, softly. \"I'll tell you\neverything I can...\"\n~~~~~\n            \"Okay,\nso,\" Brent began as he spoke to Vinge through the phone once eveyone had\nregrouped and gathered around following Buniq losing the scent once the chase\nled to paved roads. \"According to the\ndirection of travel, that naga you guys are looking for will be in the Cameron\nHills Industrial park by now; most of the buildings there are still in\noperation but there are four possible places he could hide. They're a little\nspread apart though. I'm texting you the addresses now.\"\n            \"Thanks Brent.\"\n            \"Not\na problem. You guys be sure you call me if you need some firepower.\"\n            \"We will,\" promised the ice phoenix, before his phone let out two light\nbeeps into his ear. \"I've got another call; we'll talk soon.\"\n            \"Okay;\nlater,\" said Brent.\n            Vinge pulled the phone from his ear,\ntapping a button and then bringing it back. \"Yes?\"\n            \"Vinge,\nit's me; I've found the naga's old home,\" Volcan's voice reported through\nthe phone line. \"He didn't live here\nalone, either; he has a sister named Kodaku. She's cooperated with me in\neverything I've asked from her.\"\n            Vinge narrowed his eyes. \"Are you sure she can be trusted?\"\n            \"Normally\nI might be skeptical... but I think we can believe her, yes.\"\n            \"Very well, let me put you on speaker,\" Vinge began, pulling the phone\naway from his ear to tap another button, allowing the rest of the group to\nlisten in. \"Okay, what has she told you?\"\n            \"Her\nbrother's name is Rovdyr,\" explained Volcan. \"He's large; more than twenty-five feet long, with light bluish scales,\na black toned pattern from the top of his head down his back all the way to the\nend of his tail. He's a psionic being, just like we thought, and his species is\nEuropean Adder.\"\n            \"Uh... aren't Adders poisonous?\" Pavan asked, worriedly.\n            \"Venomous, yes,\" Vinge corrected.\n            The Wind Phoenix then tilted his\nhead. \"So... if he's a viper, why does he detain his targets by constricting\nthem; shouldn't only 'constrictors' do that?\"\n            Tsume looked at him oddly.\n\"Obviously because he wants his victims alive when he catches them,\" she\nstated. \"Any snake can coil up and constrict; feral vipers too, but out of\ninstinct they rely on their venom. A naga, though, can do whatever it wants.\"\n            \"Would Kodaku be willing to give us\nsome her own venom, in case we need to make an antivenom?\" Obsidian asked.\n            \"As\ngood an idea as that is, it won't work; Kodaku's not an adder,\" replied\nVolcan. \"She and Rovdyr only shared a\nmother but they had separate fathers so Rovdyr's technically a hybrid. Kodaku's\na pure-blooded Sakishima Beauty.\"\n            Pavan looked at the phone. \"Beauty, eh? Sounds like you have a crush on\nher, buddy.\"\n            Vinge looked at Pavan. \"A Sakishima\nBeauty snake is a species indigenous to Japan; that is literally their name.\"\n            \"Oh...\"\n            \"Back\nto the matter at hand,\" Volcan carried on. \"Him being a viper means Rovdyr can strike out like lightning, so keep\nyour distance -don't fight him up close or he'll be able to bite you in a\nfraction of a second. European Adders are not a highly toxic species of snake\nso you're not in danger of permanent harm, but if that venom gets into your\nblood you'll be in for a world a pain and that'll make you easy pickings for\nhim. Do not confront him alone, and whatever you do don't turn your backs to\nany shadows; he's an ambush predator.\"\n            \"Understood, Volcan; anything else?\" Vinge asked.\n            \"Yes;\nKodaku asks a favor,\" said Volcan. \"Try\nto avoid killing him if you possibly can. We know he's dangerous but he's the\nonly family she has, and she hopes maybe somehow she can bring him back. For\nall her cooperation, we at least owe it to her to give her that chance. But\nmake no mistake; if he's too dangerous to leave alone.\" He lowered his\nvoice slightly. \"Do what you have to.\"\n            Everyone shared a brief glance before Vinge turned to the phone again.\n\"We'll try. We'll contact you as soon as we learn anything else or if he gets\naway. He may try to retreat back to where you are.\"\n            \"Already\nthought of that; I'm going to stay here, just in case he does just that. I can\nstall him long enough for you guys to get here.\"\n            \"We'll keep you informed,\" said Vinge. \"Talk to you soon.\"\n            With that, the ice phoenix hung up,\nand turned to the others. \"Alright; you all know the plan. Find Rovdyr, report\nin, but stay close to each other; do not spread out too far. As Volcan said,\nthis naga is an ambush predator -if he gets the drop on any one of us, we're in\ntrouble.\"\n            \"If he comes after me, I can inform\nyou all with a telepathic message,\" said Obsidian. \"I can safely go alone.\"\n            \"Obsidian, none of us should go\nalone on this,\" stated Tsume.\n            \"We need to cover as much ground as\npossible,\" stated Obsidian. \"I won't stray far, but I'm the only one who can\ncommunicate at long range without needing to use a phone; I doubt Rovdyr would\ngive me long enough to do that. Tsume and Buniq should stay together, but Pavan\nand Vinge can both fly so they're safe and can respond quickly.\"\n            \"'Sid, haven't you ever watched a\nhorror movie?\" Pavan asked. \"The gal who strays off on her own is always the\nfirst one who gets eviscerated.\"\n            \"Those 'gals' are designed to appear hopelessly stupid to\nmake the lead character appear to be the only smart one,\" Obsidian returned,\ngiving Pavan a stern look. \"And none\nof them are ever Class-7 Psionics.\"\n            \"What is a... horror movie?\" Buniq,\nwho had reverted back to her anthro form while they were on the street, asked.\n            Tsume chuckled at the question and\ngave Buniq a wry look. \"We totally need to have a girl's night in; I'll show\nyou some of lamest movies out there.\"\n            \"Obsidian raises a good point,\" said\nVinge, keeping the subject on their current priority. \"She isn't without\ndefense even if Rovdyr gets the drop on her, and any one of us can reach her in\nless than a minute to assist.\" He looks at Obsidian and nods. \"Okay, but watch\nyourself.\"\n            She smiled confidently. \"I'm a cop,\nVinge; that's practically rule one.\"\n            He nodded back to her. \"Okay; ground\nteam will check the addresses Brent gave us, right here.\" He held out his\nphone, showing a text with a list of addresses. \"If Rovdyr is in one of them\nand tries to make a break for it, Pavan and I will intercept him but it will be\nup to you to notify us if you see him. Now, let's go!\" He spread his wings and\nturned, getting a running start before taking to the air, followed shortly by\nPavan.\"\n            \"Let's go, Buniq,\" said Tsume,\nbefore she sprinted off up the street, followed shortly by the mountain lioness.\n            With that, Obsidian headed the other\nway, remembering the addresses and thinking of two that were close to her\ndirection of travel. She kept her pace to a brisk walk, so as not to appear\nsuspicious, and followed the sidewalk to the first of the buildings.\nFortunately, traffic was light; there weren't many around Rovdyr could prey\nupon if he were there. It was a Sunday and most of the factories and offices\nwere closed with the only traffic being truck driver's passing through the\narea.\n            She reached first address; a large\nbuilding with a small parking lot full of cargo trailers that were left behind\nwhen the place had closed. The tires had been stripped from the trailers and\nthe wheel wells were rusted beyond use, while the trailers themselves were\nbattered from vandalism and bad weather, their frames dented and full of holes.\nShe looked at the building, and then at the trailers, deciding they were worth\na look as well.\n            Levitating herself over the fence,\nshe drew her Glock from the holster on her hip, approaching the first trailer\nslowly and checking the door. It was still locked; there was no way Rovdyr\ncould lock it from inside without a visual on the bolt, so she passed that one,\nfinding the second of the trailers open. She stood before it, positioning\nherself just right to have a steady shot as she telekinetically opened the\ndoor, exposing the inside...\n            Empty.\n            She let out a sigh, and moved on to\nthe next; three trailers later, she had been through them all, and found each\none to be the same. It was then she turned her attention to the main building,\nchecking the entrances and testing each one, even levitating herself up to the\ntop of the building to look through the skylight. Every door she checked lacked\nany sign of forced entry, and they were all still locked. She passed a\n'property for sale' sign that had clearly been there a long time on her way\nout, floating over the fence and mentally checking off the property in her\nmind.\n            \"Nothing here; onto the next,\" she\nsaid.\n            Two blocks later, she came to the\nsecond location; an old heavy equipment site, with its own on-site garage and\nattached office. Unlike the first building, this one was condemned; it had been\na victim of a one in a million circumstance -the building had been struck by a\nmeteorite a year before, hitting the primary supports of the garage, collapsing\nhalf of it, and killing several workers. A risk assessment of the building had\ndeclared it unsafe and the company who owned it abandoned it, but the land was\nstill for sale -though why the structure had not yet been demolished, she\ncouldn't say.\n            \"Well, as good a place to hide as\nany,\" she said, although was iffy about entering the structure; even if Rovdyr\nwasn't in there, it was dangerous.\n            Floating over the fence, she\nlevitated herself over to the office, peering through the glass door before\ntesting it; still locked, no sign of recent entry, and so continued on her\ncircle of the building, checking every door.\n            As she passed by one of the garage\nentrances, something caught her eye. The door next to her was damaged; the knob\nhad been torn out, and the lock removed. A little tug on the empty place where\nthe knob used to be opened the door. She looked at the gravel beneath her\nshoes, seeing a distinctive drag mark in the sandy ground. The evidence was strong,\nand she once more drew her gun as she pulled the door open, gripping it with\nboth hands before she stepped inside.\n            The dimly lit room was eerily quiet\nas she stepped inside. She surveyed the room carefully with her eyes, searching\nevery corner before she ventured too far into the garage. She looked up, seeing\nthe damage left by the meteorite that had led to the condemnation of the\nbuilding; she cringed as she imagined what it would have been like to be inside\nthe structure when it happened...\n            But she saw no one anywhere in the\nroom, and no sign of living. Turning her gaze to the office access, she\napproached; this door's lock was broken, but not forcibly -general wear and\ntear, probably from before the structure was deserted. Still, it was the only place\nshe hadn't looked yet, and so she pushed open the door and stepped inside.\n            She had failed to notice the\nmovement in the rafters of the garage...\nLeft open and bare without desks, furniture or\ncounters, the office was just one big room with a supporting pillar in the\ncenter. The cheap carpeting had been left behind, leaving her footsteps silent\nas she stepped through; every creak and groan of the old building made her\njump, sounding much louder without any other sound to be heard. There were no\nother doors other than the washroom access that she could see; it was all one\nroom.\nJust as she was about to give up, she heard tires\nscreeching outside; she jumped slightly, before running over to the window to\npeer outside in time to see a large pickup speeding down the road past the\nbuilding, with a sports car hot on its tail, flying towards the end of the\nroadway before making a sharp turn.\nObsidian scowled. \"Street racers,\" she said with\ndisgust before stepping back from the window. She was about to decide this\nplace wasn't the right place either when something in the glass caught her\nattention...\nThere was something curling around in front of her\nlegs...\nReacting purely on instinct, she sprang to the side,\nbut it was too late; a loop had already formed around her legs and she was\nyanked out of midair, brought harshly down to the floor with such force it\ndisoriented her briefly, and she barely felt more of the length looping around\nher legs until they were practically encased. By the time she regained her thoughts\nshe was pulled off of the floor, clawing at the carpet for her dropped pistol\nbut failing to retrieve it, and felt another coil around her stomach.\nShe resisted the urge to pull it off and kept her\narms raised as a fifth loop formed across her chest, gritting her teeth as she\nfelt a harsh pressure on her ribs, and gasping in shock as the tip of the tail\nlooped around her throat; she grabbed at the tail, trying to pull it free as\nshe was slowly turned around to face her assailant. The huge, snake-like being\ncurrently binding her was just as Volcan had described -a large naga with a\nlight and dark splash of coloration, with light blue scales as the dominant but\nblack scales forming jagged patterns from the top of his head to the end of the\ntail currently wrapped around her throat. A pair of hungry yellow eyes stared\nat her, with a wicked smile curling across the features of the snake.\n(Play 'Dark Music-Twisted'\nBy Adrian von Ziegler)\n\"Well this is a welcome surprise,\" said the naga,\nchuckling wickedly. \"My first night in the city, and my first prey came to me.\"\nObsidian said nothing; if she breathed a word, she\nknew she'd give away the whole plan. Forcing herself to focus, she sent out a\ntelepathic message, seeking the brainwaves of her friends even as the\nconstricting coils compressed her body...\n\u003cEveryone;\ncan you hear me?!\u003e\nObsidian's telepathic voice in his mind caused\nVinge's balance to falter somewhat as he and Pavan glided down towards a\nbuilding; he noticed Pavan looking around in confusion, evidently having\nreceived the same message, and they quickly landed to focus on responding to\nObsidian.\n'Obsidian; are\nyou alright?' Vinge asked.\n\u003cI found\nRovdyr; he jumped me at the heavy equipment office on 25th\nstreet!\u003e She exclaimed.\n'Hang on 'Sid;\nwe're coming!' Tsume's voice was heard on the telepathic link.\nVinge turned to Pavan hurriedly. \"You can get there\nfastest; go!\" He commanded.\n\"Consider me...\" Pavan began as he waved his arms\naround to stir the wind around him. \"GONE!\"\nHe bellowed before he raced off at breakneck speeds, a wind tunnel forming\naround him as he soared through the air.\nVinge followed suite, getting a running start before\nhe ascended into the air, hoping that Pavan wouldn't be too late. 'Hold on Obsidian; Pavan will be there in\ntwelve seconds!'\nObsidian could feel a pressure in her brain as well\nas her body as Rovdyr tightened his coils around her while attempting to probe\nher mind with his telepathy. \"Strange,\" he hissed as he looked at Obsidian\ncuriously. \"I'm having trouble getting into your mind... could you actually be\nresisting me?\" He asked. \"Or... could you also\nbe a Psionic?\"\nObsidian gave him a cocky grin. \"The latter,\" she\nsaid. \"We've been looking for you all day, so thanks for saving me the trouble\nof running across the city.\"\nHe arched an eyebrow at her. \"Who is 'we'?\" He\nasked.\nAlmost as if on cue, the glass of the window\nspider-webbed as something struck it -a stone, flying through the glass and\ncreating an opening before a powerful vacuum force ripped away the cracked window,\nmaking Rovdyr flinch and brace himself as he was nearly pulled out by the\nvacuum as well.\n\"Oh snakey\nsnake!\" A singsong voice chimed from outside, before a brown blur raced\ntowards the open window \"The British are\ncoming the British are coming!\" \nAnd so Pavan landed the first blow, foot leading as\nhe kicked Rovdyr square in the face whilst he came flying through the window;\nstars exploded across Rovdyr's vision as a triumphant. \"BOOM SHAKA LAKA!\"\nfilled the room, losing his grip on Obsidian and sending her whirling to the\nfloor as his tail unravelled from her; he was sent flying across the room,\ncolliding with the supporting pillar at the center and lay there, dazed, as he\ntried to recover and fathom what had just happened.\nObsidian coughed as she fought to regain her breath,\nmost of the air in her lungs having been forced out by Rovdyr and the rest\nleaving when she had gone whirling to the floor. Pavan quickly appeared at her\nside and helped her up, looking at her with concern. \"You okay?\" He asked.\n\"Yeah,\" replied between breaths. When she had enough\nair to think clearly again she looked at Pavan oddly. \"'The British are\ncoming'?\" She asked with a wry smile.\n\"Hey I'm half British,\naren't I?\" He asked.\n\"Yeah but I always pictured someone else yelling that while a British guy\nwas chasing them,\" she returned.\n\"Meh; it still works,\" replied Pavan.\nAn angry hiss filled the room as Rovdyr pushed\nhimself up on his hands, drawing the attention of the two back to him. The naga\n'stood' up on his tail, shaking his head to clear it before glaring at Pavan,\nthe slit-pupils of his eyes narrowing to the thinness of paper as he fixed the\nWind Phoenix with a vengeful look. \"You will regret that deeply, boy!\" He spat.\n\"Oh yeah?\" Pavan asked as he grasped the sword on\nhis hip and pulled it free of his scabbard, followed shortly by his whip,\nuncurling it from around his shoulders and taking a stance, waggling his sword\ntauntingly at the naga. \"You can try, you tosh scale-belly.\" He then glanced at\nObsidian. \"No offense, 'luv.\"\n\"None taken,\" she replied. \u003cOkay, listen up; I can shield you from his telepathy but you need to\nwatch out for the rest; remember what Vinge warned us about.\u003e\n'I remember,' he replied in thought.\n\u003cAre you\nfast enough to dodge a striking viper though?\u003e\n'I guess we'll\nfind out!'\n(Play 'Sinner' by Drowning\nPool)\nPavan leapt forward, standing between Rovdyr and\nObsidian to let her focus as she cast a telepathic barrier around his mind,\nwhile she stood by and was ready to assist when she could. Rovdyr bared his\nfangs at Pavan as the two circled each other, with Pavan staying aware of where\nRovdyr's tail was at all times, watching how he moved. He felt a throb in his\nhead, and then saw Rovdyr glare at Obsidian; he was aware she was protecting\nhim, and would probably try and make a move for her if Pavan didn't interfere.\nHe lashed out with his whip, the leathery weapon\nsnapping in Rovdyr's path as he prepared to go after Obsidian. \"Eyes forward,\nmate!\" Pavan taunted him. \"Your dance is with this handsome bloke, not the\npretty lady.\"\nRovdyr hissed again. \"When I am finished with you,\nyou'll be paint on the walls!\" He bellowed before the veins around his eyes\nthrobbed and Pavan felt an unseen force send him flying into the wall behind him.\nPavan grunted as he hit with enough force to imbed\nhimself in the drywall, the softness of it breaking his impact with it. He\ngrunted, and looked in Obsidian's direction. 'I thought you were blocking his powers?' He asked.\n\u003cI said I\nwas blocking his telepathy; I can't\nblock his telekinesis!\u003e She returned before she noticed her gun and\ncalled it to her hand, catching it before she aimed and fired at Rovdyr,\nilluminating the room briefly with the muzzle flash.\nRovdyr hissed in pain as the bullet grazed across\nhis back, turning to face Obsidian again. Curling his tail up behind him he\nlashed out at her, fangs extending; she put up her hand before he struck out,\nand Rovdyr was hit by a telekinetic blast that knocked him back halfway from\nhis target. He recovered quickly, swinging himself around on his hands and\nswinging his tail at her. She ducked, dropping to a prone position as the tail\nwhooshed over her head, feeling the draft left by the massive sweeping\nappendage, and blinking as it thundered against the wall to her left, bringing\ndown dust and loose, rotted roof tiles from the ceiling.\nPavan lunged forward again, his whip once more\ncracking the air in front of Rovdyr's face, making him blink, and so Pavan\nlunged a second time, spinning himself about an swinging his sword at the naga\n-all this in the span of a two seconds, leaving the naga barely enough time to\nget clear of the blade; he watched in shock as the powerful Khanda whizzed\nacross his vision, nicking the end of his snout with its rounded tip, leaving a\nlight graze over his nostrils.\nRovdyr sneered, and once more extended his fangs as\nhe struck out at Pavan; the Wind Phoenix jumped backward, seeing that big pink\nmaw in front of his face as Rovdyr tried to bite him, but his speed and\nreflexes prevailed over that of the naga, avoiding the bite by centimeters and\nthus saving himself from the venom. He swung at Rovdyr in retaliation but the\npowerful muzzles of his tail had already yanked the naga back at a speed that\nwould leave anyone else suffering from whiplash, yet he was unfazed.\nRovdyr struck out several more times, each time\nPavan narrowly dodging until he managed to score a counterblow, bludgeoning\nRovdy across the face with the basket-hilt of his khanda and sending him\nveering off course and failing to pull himself back, the naga crashing into the\nwall in a mass of coils. Pavan wheeled himself about, and brought his khanda\ndown in a chopping motion to strike but Rovdyr blasted him with another\ntelekinetic blast the sent him flying back. Obsidian joined in next, picking up\nRovdyr with her own telekinesis and throwing him like a rag doll; he struck the\nopposing wall harshly, but curled himself in a manner that cushioned his body\nwith the mass of muscles in his tail.\nThe naga leered at Obsidian, the veins around his\neyes pulsing again as she felt a powerful throb in her brain, and she knew he\nwas trying to attack her mind. She braced herself, her eyes narrowing as she\nfought back against him, their minds colliding unseen as they battled for\ntelepathic supremacy. Rovdyr cringed as she retaliated, trying again only to\nfind his probe rejected by her mind; their consciences linked briefly, and\nObsidian could sense the naga knew he was outmatched...\nDistracted by the telepathic battle, Rovdyr failed\nto see the incoming attack; Pavan raced into his field of view, not being one\nto hit people in the back, and danced through the air as he spin-slashed Rovdyr\nacross the chest. Hissing in pain as blood was drawn, the naga lost his\nconcentration, grabbing his head in agony, and Obsidian thrust her palms\nforward as she directed a telekinetic bolt right at him, his chest and stomach\nvisibly caving to impact before he was sent flying across the room, once more\nhitting a wall and leaving a deep impression of himself in it.\nRovdyr groaned, laying prone on the floor with his\nentire body aching and burning from the battle; he was outmatched, equalled in\nspeed by Pavan and surpassed in psychic power by Obsidian, he had no way to win\nthis battle. Pavan and Obsidian regrouped, storming up to the naga; the\ndragoness kept he gun fixed on the serpent while Pavan had his whip elevated\nand ready to strike if he showed any further hostility, but his sword was still\nin his other hand, showing he still intended to use it.\n\"Give up, snake,\" Obsidian snarled. \"It's over.\"\nRovdyr's eyes opened as he glared at her. \"The\nhunter becomes the prey... this is most unfortunate.\"\n\"You're no hunter; just a filthy rapist,\" Obsidian\nretorted. \"Assaulting men and women on multiple accounts; you won't be seeing\nthe light of day or another unwilling companion for a long time, Rovdyr.\"\nThe naga's eyes widened. \"How do you know my name?\"\nHe asked, shocked. \"I never told it to either of you.\"\n\"Oh, just your sister,\" replied Pavan.\n\"Pavan!\" Obsidian scolded without taking her eyes\noff of Rovdyr. \"You're not supposed to tell him who gave him up!\"\nPavan shrugged. \"Hey, it's not like he can go after\nher; we got him,\" he replied.\n\"Kodaku,\" the naga hissed. \"My teeth to her neck...\ndamn her for betraying me!\" He slammed his fist on the floor.\nThe sound of footsteps outside alerted the two to\nthe arrival of their friends; Obsidian kept her eyes on Rovdyr, while Pavan\nturned to look, seeing Vinge stepping through the open window. \"Hey; what took\nyou so long?\"\n\"Did you get him?\" Vinge asked, crossing the room\nswiftly.\n\"Sure did; got him right here,\" replied Pavan,\nturning back to Rovdyr again. \"It was no problem at all.\" He turned back to\nface Vinge again. \"So what kept...?\"\nIt was then Pavan saw the blade in Vinge's hand,\naimed right for Obsidian's back...\n\"'Sid, look out!\" Pavan yelled, leaping into Vinge's\npath and blocking the wakizashi with his khanda, sparks generated from the\nsides as they scraped together. \"Vinge, what the hell, man?!\" He demanded as he\nglared into Vinge's eyes. \"She's on our side!\"\n\"Yours, but not mine,\" the ice phoenix replied in a\nvoice not his own, until Pavan suddenly noticed something... off about Vinge's\nface. The colour of his eyes, for one; they were not right -they had turned to\na solid violet, which now that he stood in the shadows, had a mild glow to\nthem.\n\"Hey, that...\" Pavan began, but then had to dodge as\na second blade appeared in the other hand of the strange avian; he narrowly\ndodged as the blade was swept towards his throat.\nBy now, Obsidian had looked back, just in time to\nsee Pavan avoid the attack, but her mistake proved to be the last as suddenly\nRovdyr spun up and punched her hard in the stomach. She exhaled sharply,\ndoubling over and clutching her stomach as he slipped away from her. With a\ntwirl, Rovdyr batted her with his tail, sending her tumbling over the rough\ncarpet, while Pavan was still occupied by the seemingly turncoat Vinge standing\nbetween them, carrying two wakizashi blades in each hand.\n\"Ah-hey, just a minute!\" Pavan exclaimed, looking at\nthe swords and the ice phoenixes' eyes. \"Oddly familiar; have we met before?\"\n\"Yes, we have,\" replied the avian before a\ndiabolical grin crossed his features, his beak bending in a way it shouldn't\nhave been able to as he flashed a mouthful of oddly canine teeth. \"I nearly\nkilled you last winter.\"\nPavan's eyes widened. \"No way! You?!\"\nAs if cued, the ice phoenix changed form, his body\nmorphing as though it were Play-Doh, altering its shape to a more vulpine like,\nears sprouting from the top of his head and everything, and a leather body suit\nforming from the neck down to his knees all in a fraction of a second, leaving\nPavan to stare back at an all-too familiar face. \"In the flesh.\"\n\"But I saw Vinge and Tsume kill you!\" Pavan\nexclaimed. \"Took your damn head clean off; how the hell did you come back from\nthat?!\"\n\"I would tell you, but I've got a schedule to\nkeep...\" Kumori began.\n\"Pavan, Obsidian!\" The voice of Vinge -the real Vinge, called from outside as a\nshadow filled the window.\n\"And no time to waste!\" Kumori added before\nvanishing his blades; he turned to Rovdyr, grabbing him by the arm. \"Come on,\nbig fella. Got someone you're going to want to meet.\"\n\"Not yet; I want this one,\" Rovdyr retorted, his\neyes on Obsidian.\nBut as he tried to approach, three large ice spikes\nimbedded themselves into the floor in front of him, barring his way; Vinge was\nalready in the building, sword in hand and charging straight for them, and\nBuniq was hot on his tail, \n\"You don't have time you fool; come on!\" Kumori\nshouted, seizing Rovdyr once more and pulling him towards the back wall, the\ntwo of them seemingly melting into ink as they vanished into the wall.\nThe end of Rovdyr's tail was the last to go as Buniq\npounced, hitting nothing but wall and crashing through it to hit the support\nbeams beyond, stopped only by the metal exterior wall, groaning as she pulled\nher head back out and shook the debris from atop her skull, dazed by her impact\nwith the aluminum siding which had dented outward from the impact.\nVinge cursed under his breath. \"Too little too\nlate,\" he grumbled.\n\"Where the heck have you guys been?\" Pavan asked.\n\"We were delayed,\" replied Vinge. \"I saw Calhoun\nflying over the city; seems he was just a distraction though, to keep me from\ngetting here in time. Buniq and Tsume were far away and Buniq had to slow down\nfor her.\"\n\"Where is Tsume anyway?\" Pavan asked.\n\"Right here!\"\nThey turned to look as the Earth Phoenix strode into\nthe building, stopping by the pillar to lean on it for suppert and wiping her\nforehead. \"Did we... get him?\" She asked between breaths.\n\"No,\" replied Vinge as he went over to check\nObsidian. \"He got away.\"\n\"How?\" She asked.\n\"A certain blood-crazed foxy is back from the dead,\"\nreplied Pavan, pointing at Vinge. \"Came in here wearing frosty's skin and then\nbailed out with him.\" Suddenly he gave Vinge a suspicious look. \"Wait... how do\nwe know you're not still him?\"\nVinge shot Pavan a sharp look, giving him a leer\nthat made Pavan flinch. \"Whoa-okay, only Vinge can glare like that. It's him.\"\nTsume let out a long moan of disbelief. \"He got\naway?\"\nObsidian let out a cough as Vinge helped her to her\nfeet, thanking him silently before she asked. \"What do we do now; do we have\nany way of going after him?\" She asked.\nVinge shook his head, his disappointment clear. \"No,\nthere isn't,\" he said. \"Kumori Shadow-Stepped them out of here; it's impossible\nto know where they'll reappear.\"\n\"So now what do we do?\" Tsume asked.\nVinge sighed, exasperated. \"There's nothing we can\ndo.\"\nHe hated saying\nthose words...\n~~~~~\n            \"You've got to be shitting me,\"\nVolcan said into the phone as Vinge finished the explanation of the events that\nday. \"Kumori's back? How? I saw you and Tsume kill him for crying out loud!\"\n            \"I\nwish I knew how, Volcan, but somehow Kumori has risen from the dead, and used\nhis shapeshifting powers to blindside us,\" said Vinge. \"The only explanation I can come up with is\nthat somehow he astral projected himself to a new body before I decapitated\nhim, though why he'd wait so long to return after that is beyond me.\"\n            Volcan let out a long groan. \"First\nAssiminik, now Rovdry,\" he said, before calming down and thinking things over\nfor a moment. \"This can only mean Calhoun is putting together a team. It seems\nhe's more like me than I cared to admit...\"\n            \"I\nknow you probably don't want to hear this, Volcan... but he's still basically\nyou. When he was formed, he was mindless -unintelligent with no thought but\ndestruction. His brain formed from bonding with your own, twisted by the chaos\nof his own soul and demented into a twisted perversion of yourself. Calhoun's\nmethods will be very much like yours -not the least of which forming a balanced\nteam, although with people like Kumori and Assiminik he'll have a much harder\ntime keeping order in the group.\"\n            \"Not really,\" replied Volcan. \"He'll know exactly how to keep people\nlike that on his side.\"\n            \"What\nmakes you so sure?\"\n            \"The same way I keep our team together; I know what everyone of us\nwants, and why we do what we do,\" he replied. \"We all fight to make our home\nbetter, with the dreams of our futures being our motivation. In Calhoun's case,\nhis new crew all have dark desires they want satiated, and he'll take time to\nlearn them. Whether or not he'll be like me and live up to his promises, or be\nthe exact opposite, I can't say for sure; I've never broken a promise if I\ncould help it. If he can uphold the promises he makes to them...\"\n            \"Then\nthey'll have no reason to turn on each other.\" Vinge finished.\n            Volcan scowled. \"You know, no one\nlikes having their sentences finished.\"\n            \"Sorry.\"\n            Volcan shrugged it off, before\nsaying goodbye to the ice phoenix and hanging up the phone. He became suddenly\naware of a pair of eyes on him, and looked over his shoulder to the cave\nentrance, where he saw Kodaku staring out at him hopefully. It hurt him to know\nwhat he would have to say to her, and pocketed his phone as he approached her.\n\"Kodaku... I'm afraid I don't have good news.\"\n            She let out a sigh as she turned\naway from him, holding her arm with the hand of her opposite arm. \"They... had\nto kill him, didn't they?\"\n            \"No,\" Volcan replied, drawing her\nattention back to himself. \"He was saved by a kitsune renegade called Kumori,\nwhich means now he's in the company of some very dangerous people, one among\nthem who may turn him to his side.\" He frowned. \"I... don't know if that's any\nbetter or worse than what we faced before. But he still lives.\"\n            Kodaku turned to him fully, the\nsadness on her face making his heart ache. \"What are you going to do?\"\n            Volcan sighed. \"We have to do what\nwe have to do,\" he replied, stepping closer to her and placing his hands on her\nshoulders. \"But if there's any way I can save your brother -any way I can bring\nhim back to you, I promise, I'll do whatever I can to find it.\"\n            She smiled weakly at him, but then\nher gaze fell. \"Until then, though... I am all alone,\" she said. \"Rovdyr was my\nonly family; my parents and other kin have been gone for decades. I have\nnowhere to go now.\"\n            Volcan smiled. \"It doesn't have to\nbe that way,\" he said, once more earning a curious glance from Kodaku. \"My team\nand I, we're building something -a base, a safe haven for all of us. It won't\nexactly be a five-star hotel, but it'll be somewhere warm to sleep, and\nsomewhere you'll be close to friends. I imagine Buniq doesn't want to live\nalone any more than you do, and there's room on my team for another member.\"\n            \"But your team... are you sure\nthey'll ever trust me?\" Kodaku asked. \"My brother's turned to evil now; can his\nown kin ever be depended on?\"\n            \"Kodaku, if there's one thing I\nknow, being related by blood doesn't mean a thing to the person you are,\"\nreplied Volcan, before adding with a chuckle. \"I've got a brother who's\nreckless, foolhardy and sometimes a bigger pain in the neck than he's worth but\nhe always comes through in the end. But he and I aren't defined by one another;\nwe're our own person, and so are you.\"\n            Her gaze met his for a moment,\nstaring into his sky blue eyes which, despite their natural furrow, just seemed\nso pure and full of warmth. She felt that warmth, not just that which radiated\nfrom his body, but in her heart. So many people had seen her, many looking upon\nher with terror, but this man looked at her as though she were just like him,\nand was even offering her a new place to call home, without any second thought.\n            Without another word, she slid\ncloser to him and hugged him tightly around his waist, rubbing her head against\nhis chest. He looked at her wordlessly for a moment before putting his own arms\naround her, embracing her tightly. He felt a sizzle on his chest, and knew she\nwas crying, but he said nothing about it. He felt her tail curling up behind\nhim, pushing against his back to push him closer; he responded in kind by\nwrapping his wings around her, giving her a blanket of warmth and soft\nfeathers.\n            She let out a content sigh; she felt\nso safe in his arms, basking in his warmth and the comfort of his embrace. It\nwas difficult for her to pull away from him, but eventually they had to, and\nshe looked at him pleadingly. \"Can you stay here with me tonight?\" She asked.\n            Volcan smiled and nodded. \"Sure,\" he\nreplied.\n            With that, he walked at her side,\ndescending into the shadowy gloom of the cave. Kodaku's mind was in turmoil,\nwondering what would eventually become of her brother, but for the moment, she\nwas glad to have someone there to act as a pillar of strength for her. Volcan's\nheart was as warm as the feathers covering his body, and with him lying at her\nside as they slept through to the dawn, her rest was pleasant and long. \nDespite losing her brother to the darkness of his\nown heart, her own was mended by her newfound friend, and her adventures with\nthe Os-Nàdarra were only just beginning..."}