The Monster of Cerenis

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*This is the wiki to explain Hiuko & Hachen leaving Elftown. Note that this does not take place in Elftown but in fact and port town near Elftown. This will finish before January 19th and is meant to have a continuation when I am done with boot camp and tech school.*

Hachen
Kylie

Hachen had been tracking them for a long time, and this was it. If he couldn't catch up to them in Cerenis then he would lose them when they went out to the sea. It was an organization that used mind control to enslave people. They used these people to clean and cook, but they also used them as decoys, human shield, and suicide jobs. They were mercilessly using these people to perform jobs they themselves wouldn't do, and these people had no choice but to comply. Hachen had met many people, from many different towns that have had loved one taken only to find that person dead in an alley somewhere.

Hachen was able to find the leaders of the organization and has chased them all over Le' Raana and finally he had arrived at Cerenis. He knew they meant to take their business across seas, but he wanted to stop that from happening, he wouldn't let them leave without him knowing, and nipping at their heels the whole way.

Hachen and pig walked through town looking at every person over, making sure not to miss a single detail. All members had a tattoo of an eye on the right side of their neck. He didn't expect non-members to attack though. At a junction right in front of a tavern Hachen stopped to take a break. He sat on the side of the street watching the people walk by when three large men walked out of the tavern and made a B-line towards him. None had the tell tale tattoo but they all of them had a mean look on their faces. "Well, it seems he came right to us guys." One of them said to the others.

Hachen stood and realized they were a lot closer to him than he thought sitting down. "Look guys, today's really not a good day to pick a fight with me." All the while his hand hovered around the opening of his right coat pocket where his wand lay.

Without another word though one man tried to throw a punch at Hachen's face. Hachen ducked under the punch and winked at pig right next to him. Pig bit the man's leg and when he bent in pain Hachen pushed him aside to get out of the pinch he was in. He turned to the three and whipped out his wand. They laughed at the appearance of what seemed to be a stick before walking forward, intent on killing Hachen. Hachen pointed at the road in front of them and blocks of dirt rose from the ground a little although high enough to trip them all at the same time. Hachen laughed as he turned to run, but found himself still caught in the junction by five other men.

Hachen cleared his throat as he took a step back from the five, and noticed in the corner of his eye the other three getting back up. He bit his lip as he watched them all surround him and pig, and back them against a wall. He held up his wand in mock defense, looking for an opening to turn the tables.

A small shadow above him twisted in a tree, yowling a battle cry with an exotic female voice before leaping down with inhuman grace. The figure wielded twin tomahawks with strings of bells hanging from the handle. Although she was small, she was lithe and toned, however definitely not a human. Her long tail twitched as the heroine hissed at the men surrounding him. At a first glance, you would not be able to see that this was indeed a female; the slight curve of hips, long legs and small breasts were mostly hidden beneath a small layer of short fur (and barely concealing clothing). The tail was long and bushy, paws large for her size and coloring muted by the darkness.

Kylie's ears flicked forward, her pointed teeth bared, "Begone foul creatures!"

The thugs were taken by surprise and took a few steps back. Hachen saw that as a opportunity and pointed his wand at the ground. The ground under him, pig, and Kylie lifted a little bit, then it slammed back down into place. This made a ripple towards the thugs and made them all fall over. He said to Kylie, "Thank you for the help, could you keep them at bay a little longer?" He said climbing up on a barrel on the side of the street. He started chanting something in a language that people would only know if they were around lizardfolk often. Pig walked up next to Kylie to help defend Hachen as the thugs got back up. Some of them were picking up various things like pieces of wood or small tools laying around the street to use as weapons. They were going to try to surround Kylie and Hachen ready to attack both of them.

Her feline eyes, looking silver in this light glinted at the men. She did not reply to his request, however instead she twirled one of her weapons, the bells tinkling before they went completely silent. One of the attackers was down a moment later, blood spurting from a cut ranging from his neck to his groin. "Who's next?" Kylie yowled again, letting the bells ring.

The thugs backed away from her after that. They looked from comrade to Kylie, back and forth, for a minute before gripping their weapons a bit tighter. Then they all charged, but lightning shot from behind Kylie, it shot down towards Hachen and he acted as an arching point so it aimed at the enemies and spread out to hit all of them. They flew to the other side of the street, smacking into the wall enough to cause them to black out for a few hours. Hachen cracked his neck before jumping down from the barrel. "I always feel energized after that one. Thank you for the assistance with these... thugs." People were starting to gather to see what happened. "Could I buy you a meal to repay your kindness?" He asked motioning towards the tavern with his head.

Kylie tilted her head up at him, standing at a mere 4'4", "I... do not know if they serve one such as I." Her large sage eyes barely blinked as she continued to stare at him. Unlike a human stare however, she was not at all interested in him sexually. Her look was one more of curiosity and innocence.

Curiosity did not kill the cat in this instance.

"Well you never know until you try." He said with a smile as he walked over to the tavern with her. The city guards arrived about a minute after they had left, a large bolt of lightning tends to draw too much attention. In the tavern Hachen did a quick scan with his eyes to see if he could see any tattoos on peoples neck, they all seemed to be clean though. He walked with Kylie to a table and while waiting for a waiter he remembered, "Oh, right, sorry I forgot to introduce myself. My name is Hachen Raine, and my companion outside was pig. Taverns only usually serve humanoids which is unfortunate for pig." Some people did stare at Kylie but since there were orcs, dwarves, and lizardmen in there as well Hachen knew they would be served.

Fidgeting, the rusty spotted cat's ears flicked this way and that, uncomfortable in such a small space with so many people. If she could flush, she would have been. "My name is Kylie." Her long tail wrapped around the stool she sat on, as they took a spot on the bar. The twin tomahawks tinkled merrily at her waist before going silent. She extended her paw to him, the fingers looking very much like her feet, but with a thumb as well and only three fingers. With her other paw she scratched at her white belly idly.

"Nice to meet you Kylie." He said shaking her hand not thinking it strange at all. He had grown accustomed to things most normal humans would think strange, in fact he the abnormal was now normal for him. A waiter came and took their order, Hachen told Kylie to order what ever she wanted, he had enough money to pay for it. "So where do you come from, may I ask?" He asked to stave off any awkward silences.

After ordering some thick lambs stew and a glass of honey-mint milk tea, Kylie shrugged to his question, "Here and there, all over really. I was actually looking for a suitable place to sleep when the men that attacked you raised a racket." She carried no money and had been inspecting the meager trees that were in the city. "Even if I did stay at an inn, I find a tree much more comfortable than a... a bed." She took a small sip of the tea, "Originally I had lived far to the south, with my tribe." Kylie did not say more on the matter.

Hachen nodded listening to what she said, "I've met a few people like you, species I mean, and they have all said they came from a tribe, although different tribes I'm sure. I've always been interested in tribes of people, they seem more in tuned with nature and thankful for what they get." He said this all before taking a bite of the bread he ordered. He ordered hard bread and water, he seemed rather sad earlier when he discovered they didn't have pancakes though. "So, what brings you out here?" He asked nicely so she knew it was just polite conversation.

"The bells." She replied, just as a statement. Again, she did not elaborate. It would seem that the cat was not used to continued conversation, and fairly secretive. "I have also been traveling abroad, searching for my brethren. My tribe is very small, and some have spread from our point of birth. Have you seen any?" Her eyes glistened from the fire as she stared at him with those large eyes of hers. All too many found her gaze unnerving.

He looked down as he took a bite of his bread. He has seen people like her, some were alive but most he saw were the reason he was here. They were used with mind control and he saw them dead in the streets. They helped his arrive where he was today. The images flashed through his head but that took a few seconds before he lifted his head again with the images of the living ones. "Yes I have seen some people. I'm not sure if they are from the same tribe, but I saw three that have the same coloring as you. They are a bit to the north, in an area just before the weather gets cold." He didn't push the issue of bells any futher, if she didn't want to talk about it then so be it. Everyone had their secrets. "I forget the name of the village, but just ask around, they are the only of their species in the town." He rubbed his chin, "What is your species called anyway?"

Kylie puffed up her chest, "I am a rusty spotted cat. What are you?" She tilted her head curiously... then, "They cannot be of my tribe." Her head lowered slightly, and she quietly sniffed. "There is only one that I search for, and he would not be among others."

"I am human, a simple and plain human." Hachen said to answer her first question. "As for your tribe member, I hope you find him... or her." He took another bite from his bread and took a bit of water. Then in came a familiar face to Hachen, it was one of the members of the organization he was chasing. He tilted his head down but with his eyes he watched the man as he searched the room before going into a backroom. "So, what happened to your tribe member, did he just run from the tribe? Maybe exiled welcomed back, I'm not too informed on tribal society." He asked this while watching the man to thrown off any suspicion that something was wrong.

A waiter came with her stew, which the cat dug into with much gusto and in doing so changing the subject. "Why are you here? Those men didn't seem to like you much." Her voice trembled briefly before she continued eating. Obviously the mentioning of the member had disturbed her slightly.

"A lot of people don't like me," He said shrugging it off, "I'm actually here to... meet some people. Although the people I'm meeting don't want to see me so they thought it would be better to kill me." With a smile he shrugged and said, "I've had worse. The worst part though is that I'm suppose to be a mage but I only have three spells." He laughed a little at his own patheticness.

She giggled at that, "Better then me, I only know two!" Finishing up the stew quickly, with her tail wrapped around her legs, Kylie sipped at the tea again, watching him with one eye, but her ears were still moving this way and that, "Why do you want to see these... people? If they don't like you... why hang around?"

"Its just my nature. I need to meet them to help others, I like to help people." Hachen has never had an exact reason to why he wanted to protect people, he had just always felt a strong need to protect others. "I could just turn my back, but I've seen so many people sad and angry at these people that I want the others that are worrying to be happy." He took another bite of his hard bread with a smile on his face. It was a strange smile though, it was a smile of determination and happiness. Like he had found his reason to live and he liked it.

"I... think I understand." Though she really didn't, not wholly. As she did not really talk to people, or get involved with others she hadn't a clue of the issue Hachen was fighting. The only reason she actually had helped him was because the bells told her to. They tingled quietly, whispering and she shook her head to clear her thoughts.

He thought about her response and it didn't sound like she really know. Then he got an idea, "Well, I think I can clarify, for instance out in the street why did you help me?" He expected her to say something along the lines of helping or protecting him because he was in danger, that's what was normal after all.

She fidgeted and looked at her cup, "Um..." In a quiet voice, "I was told to."

He was going on a roll so he said, "Exactly, you wanted to... wait what?" He realized what she said and looked at her puzzled so he asked nicely, "Told to... by who?" Something like this could either put him in safety or danger, it all depended on who she was taking orders from. She didn't seem like someone that would put him in danger but he had learned that people aren't always who they seem.

Bringing her head down to her collarbone like most children did when thinking they were in trouble while looking back up at him with big kitty eyes, "By the bells..." The smallest bell hanging between her breasts tinkled meekly.

Hachen rubbed his chin and thought for a few minutes, he couldn't think of what she meant by 'the bells'. He didn't hear the bells she had on her now. Finally he gave in a gave in, "Bells... what exactly do you mean by bells?" His tone was purely one of curiosity. He didn't feel in a pinch anymore, in fact he didn't know how he should feel.

Realizing she wasn't really in trouble, she brightened up again then tapped the two weapons at her side, "These are the bells champions, Fate and Echo. I serve them in return for their magic. They told me to help you, as they know my future and are guiding me."

"Well it seems they like me." Hachen said with a laugh, "So do they actually tell you in words or is it more of a feeling they give you?" Hachen asked thinking that Kylie and his meeting was more than just a coincidence.

"It is more of a..." She closed her eyes, waiting for the whisperings to cease, "-more of an echo." Kylie shuddered besides herself, looking down apologetically at the weapons, "Think of many whisperings, kind of creepy." Chuckling, the cat shook her head again.

"Are they telling you anything right now?" He said noticing out the corner of his two more men with tattoos of their necks entering the tavern and going into the back room. He was waiting for one man in particular to enter before he confronted them, but at the same time he wanted to know if destiny had brought an ally before him.

Her chest trembled as her breath felt like it had frozen within her. "Danger approaches..." Kylie replied softly, her eyes darting to a place close to where he had been watching. Then she leaned toward him, a whisper for only him to hear, "There is an evil at work here, I know you know of it, and it is my calling to help you." The bell between her breasts tinkled again, the chime soothing.

"That's what I was hoping. Although this may be dangerous. These people use mind control to force people to do things against their will. Some people, like me, are immune. While others aren't, they even took a powerful friend of mine." Hachen looked her straight in the eye, his eyes showed all of what he said to be true. He asked, "Are you positive, are the bells sure this is what you must do?"

"They protect me from evil, my mind is theirs and cannot be taken by another." She blinked, then added, "This is my fate, as I am a perfect weapon against it." The cat leaned back on her stool, away from him and running a sharp claw around the rim of the teacup. Although she was currently staring at him, Kylie was watching around the room with her peripheral vision.

"Very well." Hachen said with a smile. "Well all members, except the goons outside have the tattoo of an eye on their neck. One person in particular is strong, he and his animal companion are under mind control and he's used as a body guard. He'll probably walk in with the boss. He's pretty noticeable... silver hair." Hachen said giving a small debriefing. "If we can't stop them here then they will escape from this continent, I'll still follow them but a ship is harder to track than people. Surprisingly." Hachen still didn't know why but he had heard that from sailors so he guess them to be right.

Kylie had given him one ear the whole time, listening intently. "You will find that some things are easier to stop, when the bells want them to. What I told you was true, earlier, about only knowing two spells. One is destruction, the ripple. And the other stops time momentarily." Her tail flipped around on the floor beneath her, "I can only be in one place at one time, but you can imagine," She laughed, "The bells challenge that phrase."

"Well that a heck of a lot more useful that what I have. I can make a barrier, do that lightning chant, and make a spark for a campfire. I've been traveling for a year now and the only spell I learned what a spell to call lightning. The other two I learned from my mother before I started traveling." He sighed, "My mother told me my magic has a lot of potential, but so far that hasn't meant squat."

"Mm.... well..." Kylie held up her skinny arm, "At least you're stronger then me!" She giggled at that.

"If so it wouldn't be by much. I'm the type of person to take punches not dish them," Hachen said with a laugh. Then the door opened again and two people entered. One was a short man with a dark green hooded cloak. The other wore a similar cloak but the hood was off showing long silver hair. A kitten followed them in. Hachen whispered, "Don't look, that cat will see us." He said looking down at his bread before taking a bite.

Kylie tilted her head and looked up at the ceiling, bringing her mug up to drink the last of her tea. Then, lowering her cup, "Why a cat?" She was always curious why people took on pets, the animals they "keep" are only using the humans for an easy life, don't they know that?

"The cat and the silver haired guy are connected by birth. They couldn't bare to be seperated and they make each other stronger. The cat is actually more than just a normal cat too." He drank some water and saw with his periphery the two men and the cat go into the back room. He put down his cup and looked at her. "Well, looks like the leader is here. Ready to see what kinda trouble we can get in?" Hachen asked with a sly smile.

Hopping down from her stool, she nodded, "Not too much blood shed hopefully." Kylie's lithe form stretched as she popped out her back, casually taking out the two tomahawks.

Hachen got off his stool and walked over to the door. He opened the door and it opened to a long hallway with a door at the end. They walked down the hallway and he opened the door. There were people with the tattoos sitting at a large round table. At the sight of Hachen they all stood and got out weapons. There was a man in the corner with his hood up, the cat near him told who he was though. Hachen put up his hands to his shoulders and said, "Now gentlemen gentlemen, no need to get your weapons. I'm sure we can talk..." He looked around at all of the guys with weapons and said, "I should have thought this out more." The silver haired one took off his hood and walked over to Hachen. "Hiuko, snap out of it." Hachen said as Hiuko spun him and tied him up before Hachen could even struggle. "See you still have fast hands." Hachen tried to joke as Hiuko took him to the dungeons. Hachen turned to Kylie and mouthed pig before he was taken down a trap door in the corner by Hiuko. The men watched as Hiuko took Hachen away and then they noticed Kylie. They looked at each other and one man shouted, "Get her!" Three rather large men started going after her.

Kylie took a step back, a little surprised that Hachen let himself be taken so easily before returning to focus on her own problems. Time slowed. The men were coming at her very slowly now, so slow in fact that Kylie took the twin tomahawks and folded them in front of her, forming an X. "Bells..." She whispered, eyes closing briefly before reopening, golden in color as the power of her keepers left her, forming a silvery green essence in the air. "Ripple!" A burst of power returned time to reality, throwing all the men from her violently into the adjacent walls. Blood spurted. The only two 'lucky' ones to live from that were swiftly taken care of with a blade to the throat. Kylie sagged slightly from the use of power as her eyes returned to their familiar sage color.

When she had killed the men the trap door opened and a mans head poked out. He looked to see Kylie in front of a blood mess of men and he ran back inside. Down in the tunnel he hid in a secret place close to the entrance, so that even if she were to chase she might not find him. Hiuko took Hachen all to the dungeon cell and threw him in with the other mind controlled people. Hiuko locked the cell and started back towards the room. When Hiuko was out of earshot Hachen laughed. He put his legs through his tied hands so his hands were in front of him, then he was able to move his coat so that he could get his coat pocket in front of him. He reached in, took out his wand, and pointed it at his bindings. They snapped and he started to do the same thing for all the peoples bindings.

Seeing the man, Kylie paused, a whispering told her to not go through just yet. However she did search the men she killed, finding several knives and hiding them on her person. Remaining very still, she listened around herself, then heard someone coming through the trap door and waited for them.

Hiuko stopped by where his master was hiding and then moved on up the stairs out of the trap door. He stood still for a second looking at what Kylie did. He calmly closed the trap door and closed the door leading out to the hallway. His cat Bangs jumped up to his head and seemed to just lie there. Bangs was still in the room when Kylie killed the men, it had seen what she did and now knew how to counter it with Hiuko. A surge of power rippled from him through out the room. Hiuko had broke his time relays, even if she stopped time, he'd be able to track her. Hiuko and Bangs combined their spirits when she lied down as well, that gave them enough power to resist a time stop. Hiuko showed no emotion as he got into a counter stance.

Hissing heavily at the cat's loyalty, Kylie set into her own stance, the bells tolling on the end of their cords. Yowling as she took the first strike, the tomahawk flew from her paw at him. He ducked, as it slammed into the wall behind him Kylie halted time, running around to yank it from the wall before he could turn around.

Kylie was able to pull her tomahawk out of the wall but a yell came from the still image that was Hiuko. Suddenly he broke the time stop's hold on him and aimed at kick at Kylie's head. Hachen was able to break everyone's bonds and started working on the door, although it was a complicated lock.

She grunted as his kick missed her head and hit her chest, throwing her against the opposite wall. Stunned, she landed on her side on several dead bodies, heaving for air as he had knocked the breath out of her. The bells were furious. A ripple of energy rushed from her at Hiuko.

There were few things that Hiuko couldn't sense, and ripples of energy were one of those. It hit Hiuko unprepared and knocked him to the opposite wall. Hiuko was able to get back up though. He shook the fuzziness from his head and was about to walk over to Kylie to keep fighting her but something stopped him and instead he walked into the trap door leaving Kylie on the floor. In the tunnel he nodded to his master and they both went down the tunnel. Above Kylie there was a small window and something pink was pushing it open. Pig had been stacking boxes, especially hard with no thumbs thank you very much, up to the window and had finally gotten enough to get through the window. The window was high near the ceiling so when he got through he fell and plopped on the floor in front of Kylie. Although it was too dazed from the fall to even see anything right.

Her head lolled to the side before she regained full consciousness, and spotted the pig from the night before. "We have to find Hachen," She said to it, not sure if he understood.

Pig shook its head and got back its focus. Pig snorted at her comment and ran to the door to the hallway leading back to the tavern. Pig looked from the door to her and back to the door. It started pawing at the door like a dog trying to get outside. It snorted at her to help her let him out and follow him... although like always it just came out as snorts and squeels. It wanted her to follow it to behind the tavern where there was a sewage passage. It was closed by iron bars at the time but it opened up to the ceiling of the dungeon below where Hachen currently was. It wasn't exactly over the dungeon cell but it was close.

"...What about this trap door?" She pointed to the one Hiuko had slipped down. "Wouldn't that one work?"

Pig ran over and jumped on the door to the trap door and shook its head and snorted at her pointing at the door with its snout. Then it ran back to the door and started scratching it again.

Cleaning the weapons off on the fallen men's clothes, Kylie hoped that the other people had just thought it had been some earthquakes and wouldn't notice the blood on her. She opened the door for the strange companion, following him out and trying to ignore the ringing in her ears and the ache in her chest. A good bruise would set in once a few hours had gone by.

The pig led her to the sewer drain and snorted. Hachen yelled from below, "Hey pig. Almost done!" He said before there was a loud clang as the lock was opened. Hachen cringed at the loud sound he made, he was trying to stay quiet. He pointed at the ground with his wand below the sewer drain and the stones from all over the floor of the dungeon area stacked up to build a stair case leading to the drain. He ran up the stairs and used his wand to break through the iron bars. Looking closely it would look like someone filed through the bars. He poked his head up and smiled, "Hi Kylie. I found the prisoners." Hachen said with a smile. He ran down the steps and the people under mind control let him guide them without a thought... literally.

"Stop!" The leader yelled from the end of the passage from the room through the trap door. Hachen smiled a sly smile. "Bye bye." He pointed at the ground in front of Hiuko and the leader and it rose up to the ceiling. Good, I didn't raise a water line He thought looking at his dirt wall. There was only a couple people left in the cell, Hiuko would break through before he go them up though. "Kylie you want to get these people out or hold off Hiuko. Either is okay with me."

Kylie's paw went to her still aching chest, "I... think it would be better if you did." Her eyes wandered over the people with their will's taken, numerous species, "Are they... aware?" She wasn't sure what they would do once they were out.

"They don't know anything that is going on. They just do whatever anyone tells them. The mind control will be broken by distance or if the leader dies. Just get them out of here for now, they should get back to normal if you lead them out of the city." Hiuko burst through the dirt wall and large dirt debris pieces were now all over the place and a thin layer of a dirt mist hung in the air for a few seconds. Hachen pointed his wand at a piece of dirt debris and used the wand to fling the dirt at where Hiuko should be. An atmosphere of urgency now filled the air.

"Alright..." She turned to them all, their blank eyes looking straight ahead, "Everyone?" They all looked at her, "Um... follow me please!" Kylie trotted out, waiting for them all to follow her. Once out in the clear air, she breathed in weakly, coughing from the ache in her chest before leading them out through side passages. It was still quite dark out.

The streets were rather empty, just a few drunks on the side of the streets at this time of night. Kylie led the people through the streets and pig acted like a sheep dog keeping all the people in order and moving forward. When they finally reached the city gate it was opened. Since there was no war around Cerenis they didn't feel the need to keep people out, thus the city gates were open at all times. Every person that crossed the threshold of the city passed out and just fell in a slump. They were out for a few seconds but when they got up they didn't know where they were. One of them asked Kylie. "Where are we?" Pig stood by Kylie's side while she explained.

"Ah..." She scratched the back of her head, "Outside Cerenis, I guess." Glancing back at the dark trees and the forest around her, she fought back the urge to raise her hackles and instead smiled to them all. "You are free."

The people looked confused. They didn't know what she meant. "I don't know what you mean but I got to get back to my family." One of the people said. They all agreed and figured to stay at an inn in Cerenis. When they went back into the city they were still normal, it seemed the mind control was completely severed. Pig watched as the people went and looked back up at Kylie. It snorted a couple times and ran back into Cerenis following Hachen's scent. Pig wound up at the ports were Hachen was throwing crates and barrels of fish at Hiuko, the leader was no where in sight though. Both Hachen and Hiuko were too enthralled in the fight to notice anyone at the moment. Bangs was also no where in sight.

Kylie ran as much as she could, that one hit by Hiuko still bothering her. By the time they made it to them, she had gritted her teeth and chose to ignore it... and prayed he didn't break a rib. Spotting them, the cat decided to remain hidden, watching their fight silently.

Hiuko got around one of Hachen's attacks and grabbed Hachen by the throat. Pig decided to run up and bum rush Hiuko. It jumped up and rammed Hiuko in the back, loosening his hold for a second and giving Hachen the opportunity to kick Hiuko and completely setting him free. Pig stepped to his side and Hachen looked up for a second then back down to Hiuko. The moon it seems was hidden behind clouds. Hachen just hoped it was the right types of clouds. With the right type of clouds above him Hachen's chant was shortened to one word. Hachen yelled the word and Hiuko took a step back from the attack. Although nothing happened. Hachen hung his head in shame and sighed. "Of all the times I needed this." He yelled to the sky before Hiuko leapt at him with a kick aimed at Hachen's gut. It landed square on and threw Hachen out into a boat. Pig was going to go check on Hachen but Bangs blocked pigs path with a fish in her mouth. She slurped it up and scratched pig's nose. Hiuko started walking over to Hachen to finish him off.

Cursing in her native tongue, Kylie looked to the water around the boats, nervous of the deepening water; She had to save her new companion though. Letting out a trembling yowl, Kylie leapt up from behind her hiding spot and raced along the wooden boards towards the silver haired man, determined on helping the fallen Hachen.

Hiuko paused and turned to Kylie without missing a beat he threw a soft punch at her face. If it connected it would be enough to stun her so he could knee her in the gut. Pig stepped back from Bangs and then rammed her head on. Bangs was moved back a few inches but she kept her ground. Now pissed at pig she let out a hiss and transformed into a demonic cat form. Bangs let out a loud roar and pig ran to hide under a large pile of fish. Bangs, now victorious laid down and licked her paw as she watched Hiuko fight.

It seemed that Kylie had no luck with the man, as his punch hit, then got kneed in the gut so hard, that again her breath was knocked out of her. Both tomahawks came to a shuddering halt as they landed in the dry wood. Kylie on the other hand, quite stunned, teetered on the edge of the dock, falling with a splash into the dark water.

Hachen was hit into the boat mast so hard that there was a dent in it although not big enough to make the mast fall over. Hachen was dazed for a bit but he snapped out of it quickly enough to see someone fall into the water. He didn't know who it was and he didn't care. He jumped into the water without a second thought. Before he hit the water he started chanting something. Kylie wasn't too far underwater by time he got to her. He was still chanting when he grabbed her around the waist. With his other hand he grabbed his wand and pointed toward the ground.

Pig, Bangs, and Hiuko watched the scene unfold as a bolt of lightning shot down towards the water, then right before hitting it a circular pillar of dirt from under the water erupted from the waters surface and Hachen was already in the pose he needed to arch the lightning right at Hiuko and Bangs. The lightning arched and hit them both so hard they fell into the nearby warehouse so hard that they even went through the wall. Hachen fell on his hands and knees but kept his consciousness. He looked over at Kylie, and knew what to do. "Sorry, this will hurt your chest a bit. He started preforming CPR, every time he took in a breath to give her he kept getting light headed. Luckily he was able to make her cough out the water and breathe again but then he collapsed unconscious.

Pig looked frantically from Hachen to the Hiuko shaped hole and then noticed him coming out of it. Hiuko was still able to fight. He grabbed pig and threw him over his shoulder out of the way. Hiuko was about to jump down and finish them but he stopped, something in him kept him from doing it. His whole body was at war with itself, he couldn't move an inch no matter how hard he tried. Then the leader yelled for Hiuko to come from a boat he had just finished prepping for their escape. Hiuko, Bangs, and the leader safely got away from Hachen, Kylie, and pig.

Coughing hoarsely, Kylie was just able to see the man leave with his cat before her strength left her. Crawling to Hachen's side, she curled up next to him, shivering and coughing quietly. All of her hurt, and it was all she could do was sleep.

The port faced the east so when the sun rose it hit Hachen in the face and assaulted his eyes. He opened his eyes weekly and got up slowly into a sitting position. He looked around to see he was on a pillar of ocean rock and Kylie was right next to him shivering in her sleep. Hachen took off his coat and put it on her and used his wand to make a staircase up to the docks. Luckily his wand didn't take his energy because he was still pretty exhausted. He carried her up to the docks and nudged the sleeping pig with his foot to wake him up. Pig grabbed her tomahawks with its mouth and Hachen and pig went to the nearest inn they could find.

Although it looked odd Hachen said Kylie had fallen asleep while coming to Cerenis and that was good enough to get him a room, the five silver coins probably helped too. He set her in the bed and he and pig watched until she was okay. Hachen did leave once to get something for he and pig to eat. He also got some ingredients for soup and started making some in the fireplace the room had. He was going to re-heat it when she woke up.

The poor cat's fur was a mess, and still slightly damp when she woke with a soft mewl from the pain. Her skin beneath the fur on her chest was a deep red and purple, bruised the size of a fist. "Hachen?" Kylie called hoarsely, needing water.

Hachen was examining his wand at the time when she called for him. He was right next to her so when he heard he dropped his wand and put his hand on her shoulder. "It's okay, I'm here." He told her, "We're safe now. Do you need anything?"

"My throat hurts." She whispered, closing her brilliant eyes. Even the bells were still as if somehow injured. The skin between her breasts was swollen and hot to the touch, and Kylie grimaced as she barely skimmed it with a paw, "Did I break anything?"

"I got a glass of water on the table." He said, "Hold on, lets sit you up." He carefully helped Kylie to get in a sitting position. We was careful to keep her chest straight. There were pillows set up for her to rest against while she sat. "I think you might have a broken rib. I'll have to wrap that up, but drink this first." If her arms hurt too he would help hold the glass as well if need be. The whole time he tried to be gentle in both his actions and his tone of voice.

To her credit she was able to drink without assistance, taking half of it before she was satisfied and laid her head back. "Thank you, for saving me, I think it was you at least." By the looks of his hair, it must have been him, he looked just as ruffled as she did. Kylie sighed, wincing as the motion had hurt. "I guess... we lost them, didn't we?"

"It was definitely me, although I don't really remember much of what happened either. It was just a blur." When she asked about losing them he responded, "No," He paused for a second and continued, "it's worse than that." He was pretty sure she knew she meant her injuries. "Anyways I tracked them once I can track them again. That's not what you should worry about though. Right now you need to recover." He said with a warm smile. He reached in his pockets for bandages and found his pockets empty. "Crap" He said to himself. "I made some soup for you. It should still be warm." He said getting up and pouring some into a bowl. The soup was still pretty hot, although not too hot for Kylie to hold. He gave her the bowl and a spoon. "Eat that and then I'll wrap your wounds. I gotta go get bandages though." He turned to pig, "Pig, you're in charge all right." Pig snapped to attention like a soldier and jumped up to the chair where Hachen was sitting. Hachen then left to go get bandages.

Kylie watched him go, a slight blush on her cheeks at the thought of what the all too near future held. The bell between her breasts let out a small tinkle, "Shut up." She said halfheartedly, tipping the bowl up so she could lap at the soup. It wasn't what she expected and licked her lips. "It's good." She said to pig, her eyes watching him now. Then, "Hachen... is free, right?"

Pig, like always, snorted at the comment. It seemed like a happy note but pig is a pig, what could you really expect. After a few minutes Hachen came back with enough bandages for her. Pig jumped off the seat and Hachen moved it out of the way. The soup wasn't completely finished but it was close. He took the bowl out of the way and said, "Okay, um... I need to wrap up your chest now." Although he had done this before it had never been on a female. It was obvious he was a bit more than a little nervous. Pig just walked over to the fire place and watched the fire crackle. Fire always soothed pig. He didn't know why Hachen was nervous and thought maybe he should watch the fire too.

Her blush thickened, "O-of course." The scant amount of clothing she was used to, but removing what she had... was just a little bit awkward. Kylie swallowed, her paws going to the knot, "Just... ah... never mind." Undoing the knot, she hesitated, then slowly took the tan cloth away from her.

Hachen got out the poultice and applied if to the bandages before wrapping the bandages around her chest starting at the ribs and working up. The further up her got the more he blushed. After a couple of awkward minutes of wrapping up her wounds he let out a silent sigh when he was done.

"Thank you, Hachen," Kylie murmured, the blush on her cheeks gone. He had been very respectful, and in that she had relaxed, and in the end being half naked before him wasn't a horrible thing. Reaching up to the bandages, "You did very well, thank you again." She smiled, seeking his gaze.

He looked up and caught her gaze. His blush was gone now but his heart was still pounding a little. Although hard he was able to say, "You're welcome." He was relaxing a little bit so he reached over to her top and asked, "Do you want this back on?"

Kylie couldn't help a giggle, which hurt, "No, it won't do any good with this in the way," She poked her chest, making a face at him. The top in his hand was still warm from her body heat.

"Right," He let out a small laugh and setting it back on the bed his gaze was down and he saw his wand still on the ground. He picked it back up and put it on the table. Then from the table he got the bowl and asked, "Do you need more soup or water?" He was back to his normal self again, or as normal as he gets anyway.

"Ah, I'm full actually, it was delicious though," Kylie replied, happy that she had made him laugh. "How long was I asleep?" She asked carefully, inspecting the fur on her arm, her nose wrinkled as she was in much need of a bath.

"Not sure exactly how long but definitely a few hours. I think its about noon already." Hachen said thinking about where the sun was when he was out getting the bandages. When he saw her wrinkle her nose he chuckled to himself, "Smell something bad?"

"Seawater, I'm sure we both need a bath." Then she realized what she said, "Not together of course!" Blushing, she lowered her stare and fumbled with the bells on the end of her loincloth. "Not that... I wouldn't... um mind that." By the forgotten gods why did I say that?!

He didn't realize it until she said 'not together'. He looked down at his lap, his cheeks fully flushed again. What she said next made his tongue swell a bit, he after a few seconds though he was able to say, "Wouldn't mind, no. It's just, umm... we can bathe ourselves though. Right?" Of course that question was rhetorical. "Well, do you need help, because of the injury?" Shut up idiot!

"I... might." Kylie said through a barely contained chuckle. If she really wanted something to happen, she could say yes, then take him up on that offer. Briefly wondering what her elders would say, fraternizing with a human, then shook her head as a smile lit up her face. "At least I'm not dead, thanks to you, I'm sure a bath together wouldn't be that... displeasurable."

Hachen mouthed the words displeasurable wondering how to take it but dismissed it. "Well, if you need help then I... can help." He gulped before thinking, Nothing had to happen right. Just helping her take a bath... right? He looked up at her and said, "Okay, if you need help. It's either me or pig and I don't think you'd want help from him," then he whispered, "he's all thumbs." He said laughing while pushing down the embarrassment welling up in him.

Not sure what he meant, she still laughed, though grimaced as it hurt. "There's only one bed." Kylie stated, after looking around. This was just getting too funny between them. She resisted a shrug, as she was okay if something did happen. "Where will you sleep?"

Not really thinking about that until now he thought quickly. "Well," he took of his coat and layed it on the ground. "This is surpisingly comfertable. Plus pig works great as a pillow. I've done it this hundred of times out on the road." At the mention of pig being used as a pillow is snorted a protest and went back to watching the fire. "Okay, he's right. The inn will probably have extra pillows and blankets to use." The way he talked made it seem like he understood pigs snorting even though he really couldn't.

Kylie made a pouting face, "You can sleep up here, I don't bite." She grinned, showing off white pointed teeth.

"But, its a single person bed." He remembered when he woke up and she was right next to him. He didn't really realize it because he was dazed then. "Although, if it's okay then I can sleep with you." It took a few seconds to click and he reworded. "I mean, sleep in the same bed, not sleep with, like... well, you know what I meant." He stumbled across the words trying to explain and hide his blush at the same time.

Laughing, "I know what you meant..." Then slyly she added, "And I would be okay with both." Then changing the subject quickly, "Aren't your clothes stiff from the salt water?" Her's were a little, but they were hide, and therefore resisted such issues better then spun clothing.

Hachen only had time to be stunned for a second by what she said. She changed the subject too quickly though. "Oh, I don't really care how my clothes feel too much. Besides I can just wash them later and let the dry during our... your... the bath." He changed the words quickly enough to only barely hear so it wasn't as bad as other blunders. Pig was listening and rolled its eyes quietly snorting something equivalent to oh my god, get on with it.

Her tail twitched, but she didn't laugh because her ribs were hurting too much. Kylie rolled onto her side, yawned, then blinked sleepily. "Sounds like a plan." Her ear flicked and her eyes fully closed, "Hachen? Would you do me a favor?"

"Of course." He said calming down a little more.

Kylie didn't even open her eyes, "Can you scratch my ears for me?" Resting her face in her paws, she was completely on her side, breathing easy on the bed facing him.

Since he moved the chair over when he rapped her bandages he sat on the bed and scratched her ears. He was told he was good because Bangs, before she had been brain washed, told him how to scratch a cat's ears the best way so he figured he should scratch Kylie's ears like that.

A very audible purr began from her throat, non-verbally approving. Not long after he had started, she was deeply asleep, healing. Shivering slightly, Kylie curled into a loose ball again, like she had the night previous.

After a few minutes he stopped and silently nodded to Pig to watch her. Since it was still light out he left to go get some stuff for a dinner and when he came back with food she was still asleep. He figured he'd get a bath and clean his clothes while she slept. The sun was about an hour from setting when he came back a second time. He was hoping she was awake so he could see how her wounds were healing, if not he might just take a nap as well. He was feeling a bit tired.

When he entered it startled her, and she had half pushed herself off the bed with her hackles raised. It made her look a little scary like that, but she settled down the moment she saw him, "You scared me for a moment." She said slowly, relaxing back against the pillows. Her eyes, slightly glowing from the light from the fire and setting sun looked him over, jealous of his clean state.

"Good to see you lively. You want something to eat before getting cleaned up?" He asked walking into the room, not feeling as flustered as before. He still planned to help her bathe but the idea had settled down a bit in his mind.

"What's to eat?" Kylie asked curiously, smiling softly at him as she pet pig, who had gotten on the bed after Hachen had gone.

"I got some bread, milk, and some apples. They didn't have much at the market today." He said walking over to the bag in the corner where he set it. Luckily pig didn't eat it yet so he was able to put it on the table for the three of them to eat. "It seems pig likes you, he actually stopped staring at the fire." He looked at pig and realized, though he moved he was still staring at the fire. "Okay well at least you got him to move." Hachen said laughing before taking a bite of bread.

"Maybe he thinks if he stares at it, he'll never be cooked and eaten?" Kylie countered, laughing softly before standing. She resisted the urge to stretch then grabbed an apple, "At least my jaw wasn't hurt!" Kylie declared happily, nibbling on her fruit happily before sitting back on the edge of the bed. "So, does this place have a washroom?" She asked carefully.

"Ya, its down the hall to the left. Its a full washroom, bath and all." Seeing her stand up made him guess she didn't need help bathing, which relieved him of a definite embarrassing situation. "If you're going to bathe I can wash your clothes for you." He offered watching pig watch the fire.

Kylie attempted to raise her arm, grunting softly as she couldn't reach her back, "I think I'm going to have to take you up on that bath offer..." She uttered softly, turning away from him to hide an excited smirk.

Guess not, "Okay, I can help." Then he remembered how the bath is set up. The bath was set in a way that he wouldn't be able to just be outside the bath helping her, he would actually have to be in the bath with her to help. He gulped and said, "Right well," He looked at the food and found out they had eaten it all already, "-lets go." He said getting up and leading her to the washroom. He looked down the hallway and saw the innkeeper looking down the hall. When Kylie got in the washroom the innkeeper gave Hachen a thumbs up before laughing and getting back to work. Hachen's face reddened a little before he entered the washroom as well.

Sniffing, she was glad it actually smelled clean, and fingered the towels they had. Threadbare, but still fresh and clean. Then she sniffed herself, unhappy at her condition. The cat had only taken a bath a few times, and made a sound of surprise when she ran the cold water instead of the hot. Remedying the situation, steam filled the closed off area quickly and she began to relax, even knowing that something was about to happen couldn't make her nervous at this point.

"Okay, well, as you can see it would be hard to help unless I was actually in there with you." Hachen said pointing at the tub. "So..." he turned his back to let her undress and take off the bandages and get in the tub before he did. Although the situation should have been uncomfortable it really wasn't too bad.

"Yeah..." Kylie drawled out, sounding slightly disappointed, even though she wasn't. To help him with some embarrassment, Kylie grabbed some soap, rubbed it quickly to make some bubbles, then rinsed her paws and proceeded to undress. However, due to her injury she could not take off the bandages. So, the cat just shrugged and slipped into the hot water with a content sigh.

After slipping off his own clothes and getting in, he saw her bandages were still on her so he helped take them off, then turned her around. It looked a bit better, but not much. Also this time he got through without blushing. "How much does it hurt?", he said touching the area softly, not wanting to hurt her.

"Only when I move," Kylie admitted, "And sometimes when I breath." She looked up at him, her gaze soft, then added in a whisper, "It doesn't hurt right now though." Hoping he got what she had said, the cat's ears flipped back meekly, a light blush on her cheeks.

Hachen's heart skipped a beat. His mind was racing, but it raced miles away from where he was. Right now all Hachen felt was himself and Kylie, all things, surrounding, clothes or no clothes, and even why he came to Cerenis in the first place all seemed to vanish as he looked into Kylie's eyes. With his other hand he brushed her cheek and if there was a sign of it being okay, he would kiss her.

Kylie blinked, then leaned her furred cheek into his palm, a faint smile on her lips. There had been tales of couples of mixed species, human and hers not far down the list of being uncommon, but not rare, not in the least. It was with this in mind that she smiled again, leaning forward in the water towards him. She was so close to him that if it weren't for the heat of the water, he would have felt her breasts against his arms.

He wrapped his arm around to her back and leaned in close to kiss her. He thought it felt kinda odd, but he hasn't had too many kisses in his life so he didn't know what to expect. Plus the fact that she was a different species didn't cross him mind.

Her blush increased when she felt the hardness between them and shivered besides herself, even in the heated water. Pressing her small body against his fully, Kylie deepened the kiss, even opening her mouth slightly so that her tongue could brush his lips.

Hachen followed what she did but his tongue didn't touch her lips. Instead his became entwined with the roughness of her tongue, although the texture made him feel good, it gave him a little shiver.

Letting out a soft moan, the sound she made could have been a mewl. Kylie pressed herself against him further, ignoring the pain in her chest as his back hit the slanted part of the tub. With her tail she pushed his legs open, settling herself between them in a full body embrace.

He wrapped both arms around her to hold her closely as they kissed. He could feel her breasts push against his chest, surprisingly softer than he thought they would be. His hand was slowly moving down her back stopping at her thigh, his body wondered if it should go further.

Kylie smiled against his before breaking away from him, using her paws on his shoulders to keep her up above him. The steam surrounded her in a cloud, but the cat did not stay above him long before tilting her head and kissing his cheek. Her kisses continued downwards along his stubble, to his ear, licking along the rim. Nibbling gently, Kylie kissed down to his neck, savoring the taste of his skin.

Hachen gulped while Kylie was licking and feeling her rough tongue run over his Adams apple sent a ripple of pleasure though his body. He kept one hand on her thigh while the other moved up to her ear and he started scratching her.

Purring, Kylie continued with her nibbles to his collar bone, enjoying his squirms. It had been a long time since she had been with a male, and although this could lead to nothing, it could also lead to everything. She was sure on making it amazing for him. Kylie braced herself before grinding her hips gently against his.

As her hips moved against his back was bending little by little from the sheer ecstasy. He had never felt anything like it before. It wasn't just her but the fur moving against his skin made it so much better. He really didn't know what to do with his hands so he just kept doing what he was doing. He could feel his chest getting heavier, the fast breath, the racing heartbeat, and he loved every second of it.

Then she did something unexpected. Kylie actually stood up and grinned, the water running off her body in rivulets as she surveyed her handiwork through the faint haze of bubbles. The water only reached mid hip for her, leaving her entirely exposed at the moment, however she didn't mind now as she was completely comfortable with him. "Let's get this bath over with, I'd like to get you on that bed." Her tail swished through the water. Grabbing some soap, she proceeded to soap up her thin form right in front of him.

"Gonna leave me out." He said picking up soap and washing her back. Not only did he not want to stop, he still knew she couldn't wash there still. When they were done and toweling off he put an arm around her and said, "You sure you can walk with you injury? I think I might," He used his other hand to lift her up off her feet, "-have to carry you." He finished with a smile looking her in the eyes. He carried her to the room and Pig was sitting in front of the fire... still. It looked up at Hachen and Kylie and rolled its eyes. Pig walked out of the room and on to outside to go find something to do. Hachen shrugged and carried Kylie to the bed. He sat on the bed and started kissing her again without even laying her down from his lap.

Kylie, wrapped in a towel still giggled, "Aren't you all of a sudden a romantic." She was of course kidding, tossing her ears back as she resumed her nibbles and lickings of his neck. Being in his lap, she could feel a part of him getting excited again.

Hachen let her lick his neck while he rubbed one of her ear. His other hand on the small of her back keeping her close to him but he was rubbing it as well. He could feel the whiskers working at much as her tongue. They were scratching his neck a little and instead of making it itching, it only made things better.

Once again Kylie moved away, out of his grasp, sliding to the floor. Putting a paw on his mouth, the cat held the towel to her and moved in front of the fire. Letting the towel drop, she shook out her fur to remove the few drops of water left then turned her head over a shoulder, grinning at him. Kylie sauntered over, swinging her hips a little and watching him carefully.

Hachen got off the bed and stood in front of her. He put his arms around her waist and kissed her on the mouth, then he moved down to kiss her throat. Then he slowly went lower and lower with his kisses until he reached her breast. He massaged one with his hand while the other he was kissing all over.

Quietly, Kylie let out a quiet moan from the kisses, throwing her head in the air as her eyes closed. His attentions were intoxicating. Her tail wrapped around his hips, curling till it reached in between his legs in which it began to caress him.

Kylie's tail sent a very visible spasm through Hachen's body but he continued to kiss and caress Kylie's breast. He even switched to break up any monotony. Hachen was so enthralled with Kylie right now he didn't even realize that his manhood was as erect as it could get.

She grinned, a paw slipping down her stomach, between her lower lips. Her wetness was apparent as Kylie grazed his stomach with it, spreading it between her fingers to show him. "I want you..." She whispered to him, her smile widening in excitement.

Hachen lifted his head at those words and made a silent gulp. He walked her over on the bed and laid her down first, looking at her beautiful little body for a minute or two before getting on the bed as well. He moved in between her legs and hesitated for a moment. Hachen wasn't sure if it was as simple as he thought but it never hurt to try. He moved into position and started putting his manhood into her vagina.

Kylie stopped him.

Looking into his eyes, she could see the hesitation. "Get on your back," She ordered, and when he looked at her questionably the cat moved out from under him. When Hachen was where she had been, Kylie crawled over him, settling her pelvis against his. Making her body parallel with his, she kissed him, her sage eyes looking into his own. The fire light flickered over them, sending shadows against the opposite wall. Her shadow moved upwards, preparing to mount him, then slid slowly downwards. Their silhouettes joined together as one in a fluid motion of intimacy.


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Breathing slowly, Kylie's whiskers twitched in her sleep while her arm over his chest withdrew. Morning peeked through the window, and the cat sighed, tickling Hachen's chest with her breath. Their night of lovemaking had tired her out, but the good news was that her bruise had gone down and was healing at a steady rate.

Hachen awoke from her breath on his chest. Although his eyes were still blurry from sleep he could tell that the one he was looking at was Kylie. He smiled at her with the same smile of care as before. "Good morning." He whispered looking at her eye to eye.

Kylie snuggled against him and didn't respond before moving the covers more over her shoulders. "Goomernin," The response was garbled, as it seemed she wasn't ready to get up yet.

Hachen kept his laugh stifled. He was ready to get up so he kissed her on the head and got out of bed without trying to wake her again. Pig was sleeping in the corner, when he came in or how he got through the closed door escaped Hachen, but he figured it was better to not know. He stretched his whole body before putting on his clothes then wrote a note and put it on the chair to let her know he went to go get breakfast. While out buying food he somehow felt different. He wasn't sure what the feeling was but he knew why he felt that way. He bought some fresh morning bread and fish. There was still some milk left from yesterday left so they could use that for something to drink. Making sure he had everything he needed he headed back. When he entered the inn the inn keeper was coming down the stairs and stopped to look at him. The inn keeper gave Hachen a creepy smile that made him hurry back to the room.

Kylie, with the covers over her was on her back, with a paw innocently over one breast. She hadn't woken when he had left, but was slowly coming out of a snooze when he reentered. When he set the stuff down, the cat sat up, letting the blankets fall, "Good morning."

"Good morning." Hachen responded. He walked over to the fireplace and a spark jumped from his finger and ignited the logs starting a fire. When the fire started pig immediately woke up and sat in front of it to watch. Hachen walked over to Kylie and moved the covers a bit. "Looks like you've healed quite well." He said inspecting where the bruise was yesterday. "Does it still hurt?" He asked looked back up at her.

"A little," She admitted, "I think I do have a broken rib, but as long as I'm not squeezed, I should be alright." There was a faint form of the bruise, but the poultice from the day before had done it's job. Kylie looked at him, with his hand between her breasts and smiled, a hint of last night's emotions swirling in her eyes. "What did you get while you were out?"

"Fresh bread and fish. We still have some milk from the other day." He got out all of the food and drink. The fish was still whole, not cooked sliced or anything. "Do you like you fish cooked, cut, or anything in particular." He said getting out his wand. The way he held it looked like a chef hold a knife.

Kylie giggled, "I can eat it raw or cooked, you decide." She stretched briefly before slipping off the bed and getting dressed, smoothing out her fur in places. "That is the best sleep in a bed I have ever gotten," The cat mentioned, bending down to pet pig.

"Well I know how I'm having mine." He put all three fish on the table and moved his wand around in intricate patterns, switching the tool used from the wand with every swipe. When he was done all three fish burst open with their meat exposed and their organs already cleanly cut. He removed some of the organs that weren't healthy, but other than that he ate everything else. A fish was surprisingly more healthy that just its meat. Although it wasn't the greatest taste it was better in his opinion to be healthy. He passed out the food and drink to Kylie and pig before taking some himself.

Kylie ate it delicately, enjoying it while drinking some milk, which she crumbled some mint leaves she had in it. Then, after they were finishing up, she asked the tough question. "So... how are we going to track Hiuko?"

Hachen had already thought of that before he even entered the town. Looking at the fire he explained. "Well, we'll go aboard a passenger ship to the next continent over. Then go to the dock master and ask him about any men that fit Hiuko or the leaders descriptions. If not then I gotta sail until I find them. After that I start combing the area around until I get reports of people missing. Eventually I'll track them down again." Then he looked to her. "Are you sure you still want to come? You saw how dangerous this is." For a moment his stare went to one of her bells but he quickly looked back up to her. He really wasn't sure who was going to be answering.

"This is my destiny." said Kylie quietly, not noticing the look he gave her, "Of course I want to go." She didn't add that she wouldn't leave him now, but felt it was more implied. Leaning over, Kylie took his hand in her paw, brightening up her face with a smile, "I would risk the water for you."

He smiled, put his other hand on her paw, and said, "You won't have to risk the water, I'll be there save you." Pig snorted something and Hachen said, "We already have a room." Pig rolled its eyes and went back to watching the fire. "So, are you good to travel. If we want to catch them we should leave as soon as possible."

Kylie nodded, her ears wobbling, "We should get going then!" She stood, grabbed onto her tomahawks and slipped them into their loops. One bell tinkled happily, but there was no telling which one it was. A little nervous still about the water, she tried to put it out of her mind and swallowed the last of her milk.

Hachen signed out of the hotel, happy to be away from the creepy inn keeper. Then all three left for the port. There were boards placed to cover the strange holes that appeared on the warehouse walls two nights ago and people were still baffled by how a pillare of sea rock rose to the water in one place over night. It wasn't in the way of any ships since it was so close to the dock but it still looked strange. Hachen bit his bottom lip as a look of mischief crossed his face when told about these events by the dock master. "So any passenger boats heading out of the continent?" Hachen asked. "The only boat leaving the continent isn't no passenger boat, its a merchant vessel." Hachen was more happy about that. "Good, where do we meet the captain?" The dock master flipped through a book and responded, "Dock 9."

When they arrived at Dock 9 the captain was on the dock inspecting his ship. Hachen approached him and asked if they need any more crew men. "What exactly can ya do?" Hachen looked up at the sails and replied. "Unfurl them faster than anyone else." The captain flourished his hands for Hachen to show him. Hachen simply took out his wand and pointed it at the sails. In an instant all the ropes were unbinded and the sails rolled open instantly. If it wasn't for the boat being tied down it would have started moving right then. The captain shook Hachen's hand and said welcome aboard. Then he turned to Kylie and the pig, "The pig don't have to do no work, but man or lady humanoids gotta do something." Hachen turned to Kylie to see if she could come up with something, if not he thought he knew something to get her out of a bind.

"Entertainment," She said simply, then added, "I can dance."

"Dance..." The captain said mulling it over. He was stroking the thick beard on his chin thinking it over and said, "Okay, if you can really dance than show me." He sat on a barrel to watch. Even Pig and Hachen were interested in watching this.

Kylie suddenly got shy, but one of her bells hummed quietly. Taking out some string, the cat suddenly produced even more bells from a secret little pouch and secured them around her ankles. Tapping a paw on the ground, the bells began tolling, a rhythm being produced from them. It was loud enough that people on opposite docks climbed higher to see what was going on. Beginning with some arm movements, she began twirling, her eyes shut as she let the bells take over. A light green haze formed around her, as time slowed and her movements were slow, making it look almost as if she were floating. In combination with the bells, it was a very interesting and unique sight. Coming to a close, she finished in a curtsy, the bells fading till they went silent. Kylie's chest heaved slightly as she was out of breath, but her smile was genuine.

The captain smiled and hopping off the barrel he shook her hand. "Welcome on board the Water Master XII." The Captain walked on board the deck to check some more things before launch. Hachen smiled at Kylie, "I didn't know you could dance." He said walking up the gangplank with her. For some reason it was much larger than other gangplanks he had seen. Hachen used his wand to re furl the sail he used for the demonstration and waited with Kylie and pig for the other people to come aboard. Then a plethora of species came on board. There was an orc, two trolls, a strange blue dog that walked up right, rather like Kylie. There was also a bird man that flew over the ship and landed in the crows nest, despite how cliche that is. A few dwarves, a gnome, a lizardwomen.

The genders showed mostly men but there were a few females besides Kylie. Hachen turned to her with a smile, "Now this is a ship I could get used too." He loved to see different species of humanoids but even more so when they worked together. It showed that the wounds and prejudice of past racial wars were starting to heal. He had heard they were bad, especially the Orc and Human battles. The captain yelled to cast off and with a flourish of movements Hachen waved his wand like a conductor and the sails all dropped in a nicely synchronized way. "I really do love this thing." He said looking at his wand before turning to Kylie. Pig on the other hand walked over to the side of the ship where he saw some merfolk playing around the ship near the surface of the water.

She grinned, and stuck her paw in his hand as they walked. Maybe they would receive their own quarters. That would be nice. "Will pig be okay? I hope no one tries to eat him..." She watched the captain go about his duties, still hiding her nervousness of the ocean around them.

"Nah, people will know he's my pig. After seeing what I just did with the sails they'll probably think I'm an all powerful wizard." He said with a laugh. "Besides, he's had worse try to eat him. He'll just squeal and I'll toss some lightning bolts. So how are you feeling, I thought you looked a little worried on the docks. Not too thrilled about water?" He also figured she might not like the water because that was how a lot of cats are.

"Um, well, I can't swim. I don't mind water, just not deep water..." Kylie confided, "And being on the ocean... in a boat... just isn't my thing. But, we need to do this." She hugged his arm. "So, where do we stay?"

"Usually on ships everyone sleeps in the hammocks below deck." Hachen said thinking back to the three other ships he'd been on. "The hammock are quite comfortable actually. The captain though probably has a bed in his quarters."

"Ah, alright." Kylie glanced at the other sailors, then let out a short sigh, "I'm a little tired from dancing, I think I will go take a nap, and maybe it will take the edge off my nervousness." Her eyes looked to him, then pig, "Will you join me? Or, are you needed up here still?"

"That depends." Hachen walked over to the main mast where the crows nest lie above. There was a long metal tube that opened up up on the deck and way up on the crows nest for quick communication. "Oi bird brain, we got any clouds a brewin'" Hachen's words came out like people would think a sailor would sound. Then the bird mans voice sounded, "Nope, alls clear fer miles. I'll give ya a squawk if the wind blows." Hachen turned to Kylie and winked, "You heard the man alls clear." With that Hachen reported them going below to rest to the captain. It took five days to sail to the continent of Landor but they finally made it. Luckily for them there were no attacks or harsh storms, just a few light showers. When they got to shore Hachen told the captain they were leaving so he paid Kylie and Hachen for their services. He paid them in Landor currency five gold each. "Nice." Hachen said walking along the docks with the others. He looked up at the sun and it was about noon. "So what to do first?"

"Hmm, probably should check the local taverns, yes?" Kylie desperately wanted a bath, having been immersed in sea air for so long. It would also be nice to be with Hachen in private once more. "So pig, glad to be back on land?" The cat wondered briefly if he missed digging around for tubers, or if pigs could miss anything.

Pig snorted a couple time at her question. "Sounds like a plan then." Hachen said rubbing his hands together. "Lets go... find a tavern." They didn't have to go very far though because it was a small port town. When they entered the bar pig had to stay outside... like always. Although this gave pig the opportunity to listen to people in the streets. The tavern was a rather large tavern. It seemed very well kept as well, no lingering smell of alcohol and smoke like in some taverns. Hachen found a table around the middle of the room to sit at. "So what do you want to eat?" He asked Kylie. Despite his question though he was at the same time picking out words for the multitude of conversations buzzing through the room. So far nothing about what they were looking for.

Her ears were also swiveling this way and that before she answered with a shrug, "Let's see what they have." She flagged down a bartender, who answered all her questions, and in the end, Kylie decided to have a pork based pot pie. "Hope pig didn't hear that," She chuckled to Hachen. They didn't have her tea here, so instead she ordered apple cider.

Hachen ordered orange juice and, to his great joy, pancakes! "Don't worry about pig, in fact its kinda weird but he likes pork based products." He held up his hand, "Yes, he does know where it comes from. He's just weird, but I guess that's why I like him." Hachen laughed a bit before saying, "I mean its definitely not for his sense of direction."

They brought out their food and drink, while some people watched the pair with envious eyes. One feline humanoid, because of Kylie's exotic coloring, and a squat man jealous of Hachen because he kept her company. They ate in mild silence, both still listening to everyone around him. "I haven't heard anything..." Kylie was of course talking about Hiuko.

"Me neither." Hachen said finishing off his pancakes. If was a five stack of pancakes, his favorite food in the world. Yet he himself could not make them, even with a magic wand. He was taking a sip of orange juice when he heard something. "There was something about a ship wreck down the shore. No one found any survivors. Pig would probably remember markings on the ship. It's worth a shot." Hachen said keeping his voice down despite his excitement. "It was near a mountain cliff a mile away. It happened just yesterday it could give us a clue."

Kylie's tail flipped around as she caught onto his excitement, "That sounds like a good idea!" Better then what she was listening to, some witched gossiping about the latest boil removing spell. "When do you want to leave?" She wasn't sure about the area they were in, but it was decently warm, with cool oceanic breezes and healthy vegetation.

Hachen polished off his orange juice. "I'll go pay and we can get going." Hachen got up and went to the bar to pay. When he got back to the table he turned for a minute with the feeling like something was watching him. He shrugged it off and walked out with Kylie. Pig was sitting next to the door and when Hachen came out pig shook its head, it didn't hear anything. "Well we found something, come on pig." Hachen said to him. Hachen found a shop where he could get a mile of strong rope and then they were off. One of the towns exits led right into the mountain path. The mountain wasn't very steep where they were looking but the mountain did eventually get high enough to breach the clouds. The path they took had the steep drop to their immediate right. The path was wide enough to walk on safely, but still, there was nothing keeping someone from falling. They found the ship and it was intact, it must have hit the rocks and get caught on them too. Hachen tied the rope around pig in a harvest like fashion and said, "Pig, tell us if its the same ship okay." He lowered pig down bit by bit. Pig got down safely and snorted something. "Okay, its the ship." He turned to Kylie and asked, "Those can stop and slow down time... but can they reverse time. As in show us what happened here yesterday?" Hachen asked, why was obvious enough.

"In a way. It isn't really a spell, and I can't use it in battle." Kylie explained. She sat cross legged on the cliff's edge, closing her brilliant eyes and putting her paws open and up on her knees. The tomahawks at her waist began to glow, their bells on the end of their strings rising into the air around her. Below them, with pig on board, the ship took on the familiar glow, as it showed it being buffeted by a storm, as Hiuko and the mysterious man fought for control. The battle last moments, as they climbed about a demon, Bangs, and flew away, letting the ship crash. Kylie sagged slightly as the glow faded, and the scene returned to normal. "Well?"

Hachen made sure she didn't fall off the cliff when she sagged but she was okay. "That was perfect. I even saw what looks like a town that it landed in. It's about a day away though." The lands around here were just long stretched of plains, a few trees were dotted along the path but the town was still visible, even if did look like a black smudge from that distance. "We can start going now or start fresh in the morning. What do ya think?" He asked while pulling pig back up. If they started now there was a tree they could make it to by sundown and he does remember her saying she preferred trees.

She shrugged, standing weakly, "Your choice, I think I can do either." Kylie looked a little ill from the spell however, trying not to think of what was in her stomach and glanced away from the cliff. Knowing there was deep water beneath them certainly didn't help her nausea.

Hachen pulled pig up quickly and kept the rope coiled across his chest. No need to let perfectly good rope go to wait. He saw Kylie was swaying a little bit in her walk and he caught up to her and put his hand on her shoulder but walking beside her, in between her and the edge. "You don't seem too good. Did the spell drain you too much?" He asked concerned she might fall out of consciousness any second. He with his hands on her shoulders he could feel that her stride was off but didn't know why. Pig stayed behind for a a second sniffing the air but it seemed to the pig version of a shrug and ran to catch up with Hachen and Kylie.

"A little, I'll be okay though." Kylie straightened her shoulders and began to walk normally, although she was still slightly drained. "Maybe it would be better if we started out tomorrow." Bummed, Kylie sighed. If only she was a stronger vessel for the bells, they wouldn't need to be dragged down by it.

"Ya." Hachen felt kind of bad he asked her to do that, she seemed sad now. A thought struck his head though and he put it aside for future reference. The inn was next to the tavern and this time they had a two bed room thrust upon them. The inn keeper wouldn't give a single bed room to two people without wedding rings. When she left to get the key Hachen let out a little chuckle because of how she explained it, "No ding ding without the wedding ring." The room didn't have a fireplace but the night weather was a good temperature. After getting settled in Hachen opened the window to a wonderful view of a full moon high in the sky, the stars shown brilliantly across the sky as well.

Kylie made a sound of annoyance, "What a way to rip us off and blame it on such a silly thing as marriage." She jumped down on the closest bed, hiding her face within the blankets and taking in the clean smell. The room at least had come with a complementary fruit bowl, so they needn't have to buy their dinner anywhere else.

"Hey, think of it this way." He said grabbing an orange and sitting on a nice chair. "We got free dinner, a nice night, and good weather. To me this seems like a win." He pulled up a chair next to him for her and leaned back, the table catching the back of the chair while he peeled his orange with his nails. The chairs were better than the last inn, they were wood but they had very nice padding on them.

Kylie sighed again and began to get a little sleepy. Sitting up with her back to Hachen, the cat undid the knot between her breast and allowed the clothe to drop to the floor. Then, she turned and positioned herself on her side, bare chested towards him. "Do you think they have horses here to rent?" She asked casually, while one of her paws innocently traced the white line of her fur to her perked chest.

"Maybe. They probably do since this is a port town because you can't always take your horse with you." He said casually looking over at her. He didn't expect her to be topless so he almost choked on some orange. Luckily when he sat back upright in his chair it dislodged. He caught his breath again and sat back on his chair, "Dang near made me choke." he said with a laugh and a smile. He let it pass since it wasn't major, in fact he even found it funny.

Kylie smiled, and shifted her position slightly, making two certain parts of her body jiggle. "Getting sleepy?" She asked in a sultry voice.

"A little." He said finishing off the orange. He was looking at the stars and planets to see if they were still moving in the right direction. He made a little hand motion his father taught him and he remembered how they were supposed to move. He checked a couple constellations and everything seemed okay. Eventually though he closed the window shades and made his way to bed.

Morning came quickly to Hachen and when he got up he stretched, put on his jacket and he saw that pig was up. Pig was also on the table eating all the fruit that was left over. He pushed pig off the table and found only an apple left. When he pushed pig off the table it made a loud thud. "Jeez pig, did you put on a few pounds? You must be eating like... well you." He said in a low voice before checking to see if Kylie was woken by the commotion.

Her ears twitched to the sound, and her arm stretched to where Hachen had laid, but otherwise she did not wake. Much like the species she resembled, Kylie slept, a lot, and more then thoroughly enjoyed it.

"Wow, she's a heavy sleeper." Hachen said watching her sleep. Hachen looked through the shades and the sun was just rising. He'd give her another hour before waking her up. Glancing over at her tomahawks, the idea crossed his mind again, which he thought about while waiting for sleeping beauty to wake up.

One of the bells, the one from her breast wrap tinkled ever so quietly to him. Whispers started, the noises swirling around the room. Who are you? Why are you here? What is your purpose? I know you. Who are you? I know why you have come here. What will you do with your gift? Is it a temptation? Try it. TRY IT. Wait. He is her mate. Don't take him... The voices seemed of quite a few entities, each with their own questions, their own opinions.

Hachen wasn't startled by the bells, in fact he thought they were part of his own thoughts. "I'm not sure if it would work." He seemed to be entranced, "The idea is sound but I'm not sure." Pig looked back and forth between Hachen and the tomahawk and noticed Hachen's trance. To break the trance Pig bit Hachen's leg. Hachen yelled and reeled back in pain and he went back so far that his chair tipped back and fell with a rather loud crash. Nothing broke but it certainly sounded like it.

Kylie was on her paws in an instant, hackles up and thinking someone was attacking them. When no attack came, the cat glanced to the fallen Hachen, "What... just happened?" Her eyes were golden, with the sage of the bells entering them slowly, but without her noticing.

Hachen got up and turned to pig. "Pig what the crap!" He turned to Kylie and said, "Pig bit me for some reason." Pig started a string of snorts and squeals to try and explain what happened. When it was done Hachen was nodding his head like he understood. "I have no clue what he said but it sounds like he had a good reason." Then he stopped and turned to Kylie, "Good morning by the way."

"Morning," She replied, stretching and stepping off the bed. Getting dressed, Kylie pumped her arms, "I feel strangely energetic today!" Grinning evilly at pig, Kylie lowered herself to all fours, growled and made a mock feint at him to see if he would run. By the look on her face, one wouldn't know she was joking if they weren't human.

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