[ En: Cht White Chrysanthemum ]

by RandomCanis

Contact: Part-5

The sky rumbled, the ground trembled, and the air howled. Slithering ivory branches swam through the sky, leaving golden sparks to cascade onto the trees, and the rubbles, and leaving many frozen in awe and fear. A hooded figure scrambled away from their accomplice. Flinching away with a gasp when the unfortunate soul exploded in a shower of blood and ivory branches. They ran, and starved vines gave chase. Piercing through boulders, trees, and the spell the figure threw at them. The figure gasped as the spells were absorbed, as the vines grew larger and more fervent.

The white-tailed stag leaned his head away, enough for the vines to tear his hood away. He grunted his teeth as his mace sang toward the vines. Only to shatter upon impact as the flora retaliated. Change of plans, he decided as he pranced away. He made sure to keep the vines away from him by weaving through anything he could go around. This was a horrible idea. They shouldn’t have tempted fate. The stag kept his pace steady even though his fractured ribs begged for him to stop. And they said this will be easy, he sneered as he slid under a log. It didn’t do much to stop the vines but it gave him time to gain more distance.

One step to their utopia. They told him and his group. All bright and hopeful, they went ahead to retrieve the artifact they need. And looking back now, he should’ve brought more attention to the snide sneers thrown their way when they turned to leave. Remorseless and cold, he was just another pawn to be thrown to the wolves. The stag shuddered as a roar echoed far behind. A glance over his shoulder gave him the warning he needed to bank right. Just in time for spears of vines to crash into the path he was on. The promise of utopia began to fade. And his memories flashed before his eyes. His hackles raised as his instincts screamed. And at the forefront of his memories as his end drew near. He remembered the promise of welcoming his daughter home from her first day of school. Tears welled up as bloodied claws neared his neck. The stag apologized to his daughter since he wasn’t going to make it back in time.

The stag’s spine snapped as a figure slammed into his form from above. Cracking the forest floor and leaving a bloody crater once the smoke cleared. And Rutherford stumbled back onto his feet. He wobbled, coughed, and growled as he shook his body. The world spun around him, the colors so bright it hurt his eyes, the scents so strong it made his head hurt. The constant ringing against his left eye threatened to sear it shut. And as his blood cascaded to the floor. Haunting flowers made of ivory bloomed. With a short spear etched through his chest, black ichor drizzled down from the wound and his mouth. The fox shambled out of the crater. The flora spread onto the now-deceased stag and devoured the carcass.

What was he doing again? Rutherford thought hazily. His ears splayed about erratically, trying to find a sound to ground him to the present. He lurched with a hacking cough, the pain bloomed brighter in his chest. The fox tried to focus his sight. But spots kept dancing around them and his eyelids felt too heavy to open. His body burned with energy that felt wrong. Making his skin crawl and itch as something grew in him. Rutherford stumbled into a tree, and it wilted away before ivory bark and leaves replaced it. It grew larger as the fox tried to tame his thoughts. What was he doing again? Eliminating threats? Voices echoed back. Sounding like his and not his as the fox stilled. His ivory pupils in a sea of gold turned. Towards the sobbing prey that climbed a cliff miles away.

She shivered when she felt eyes on her. With tears marring her face, the porcupine glanced over her shoulder. Rutherford’s lips twitched and pealed back into a snarl. His eyes glowed brightly as golden sparks erupted from his fur. The ivory patch around his eye spread and swallowed the bridge of his muzzle and to the tips of his ears. Ichor and saliva boiled as the fox opened his mouth and the sparks swirled near his fangs. Eliminating threat. The voices echoed once more. And the porcupine screamed as a blistering bolt melted her back, the patch of the cliff in front of her, and a harsh explosion rocked the trees and showered rubbles to the floor. The fox exhaled, its fangs numb and its tongue scorched as it shuddered. That was another threat taken care of. The fox steadied itself and raised its nose to the sky. Burnt trees and flesh wafted through the forest. A metallic tang clung to it and the flowers swayed in the crater. It knew there were more left. And it was going to deal with these threats. The swift fox opened its eyes and whipped around. Grass and roots were dug from the floor as the vulpine took off on all fours. Ignoring the spear that jostled in its heart, lung, and ribs.

The fox ran, weaving through the trees as it followed the vines. More grew in its wake as it followed the scent of threats that the vines told of. Rutherford pounced, and a hooded weasel slid under the fox. She hopped back onto her feet while racking the shotgun. But she resumed her run when the pellets bounced off of the vines and the fox splintered the tree she stood in front of with a hand. With ragged breaths and torrents of regret, she stumbled. And the fox lunged. Her screams alerted the trio of animals that stumbled upon the lone road out of the forest. The hare trembled as the voice was silenced afterward. A bear looked away and a deer pulled them away. “We need to keep going.”

“And go where? You know he’s chasing us.” The hare responded while looking over his shoulder. “Well, it’s better than being sitting ducks.” Said the bear. The hare sneered and pushed him as soon as he finished speaking. “Both of you enough,” The doe chastised the pair before she was startled. “Duck!” Vines burst out from the trees as the trio dived away. Before a shimmering dome halted the vigorous flora away. They pushed, the dome retaliated, and they crumbled away when the dome turned into a blast. The bear wheezed as he struggled back to his feet. Helping the hare up before he checked on the doe. The deer flinched when she noticed someone standing behind her. The beige-furred wolf sighed as she walked over the fallen deer. Her gaze trained on the slithering branches waving in the sky. “I look away for a few moments. And this happens.” Sawyer mumbled with an exasperated frown.

The hare’s frightened frown became a glare. Marching over to the canid while he cracked his knuckles. He could be civil, but the words the wolf said made him think otherwise. The bear reached for him a little too late. “Who the fuck are you?” The hare spat out as he placed his hand on the wolf. Only to get it and his body twisted and erupted into a crimson cloud before painting the road. “What the fuck!?” The doe screamed before she followed her accomplice. “Like I would allow a mongrel to touch me.” Sawyer rolled her eyes. Her button-up shirt and slacks were devoid of blood. She turned her focus to the trembling bear with a scoff. And his breath came in short, his vision grew jumbled as he stared. “You may go,” The ursine took off, tripping over himself in his haste. “When I say you can go?” The flicker of hope was extinguished as a vortex coiled around him. His ill mother was his final thought as his body ruptured.

With that out of the way, Sawyer turned to the forest. Where was her fox? She took a step, the world bending and stopped when she saw the base of the slithering roots. Her frown deepened as she saw a few hooded people laying in their blood. And to think she was only away for a few moments. The wolf wondered how long she was gone in this realm’s time. Only to shrug and turn away from the scene. She was still sluggish from the travel. So best to address it later. A roar out yonder in the south drew her attention. She turned her body and arrived at the scene. Her frown deepened at the spear lodged into the fox’s chest. At the ferocity, the vulpine lunged at the wildebeest with his teeth and claws. As well as the black ichor escaping from his wounds. So they pushed their luck too far, Sawyer scoffed.

The wildebeest grunted as he parried the fox’s claw with his great shield once more. His bones creaked and protested as he kept the vulpine away from his flesh. He had fought many before, but never has he dealt with something as savage as this one. The fox rebounded from a tree and pounce. Foolish, the bull thought as he battered the vulpine away with his shield. All the force his trusted tool absorbed was redirected back to the offender. He smirked as the savage fox was launched away with a yelp. The spear dislodged itself through his chest, painting the ground with a fresh wave of ichor. The bull turned in time to block the vines, holding steadfast even when they pushed him back. His great shield glowed and shattered the vines once he retaliated. “None of your strikes has gone through this shield yet, boy!” The bull taunted, and the fox snarled as golden sparks erupted from its body. “If you think some trick will work, then have at me!” The sparks conjoined near the fox’s fangs. The ivory fur spread more down his head as flickering rings formed against his muzzle. The bull braced himself, his shield hungry for more energy as the vulpine fired. Heat erupted and seared the bull’s hand to his shield. Glowing red hot until the bolt pierced through the metal, the bull’s chest, and trees. He let his pride get to him again, the bull fell to the floor.

The fox heaved, letting the air cool its burnt muzzle. It raised a hand to its chest, flinching away afterward once it touched the fresh wound. It needed to address its wounds, but there were still threats around. Those needed to be culled before the fox could rest again. The vulpine shook its body, ignoring the flaring pain with a snarl as it sniffed the air. Only for its hackles to rise as it got a familiar scent. “Nice of you to finally notice me.” The vulpine whipped around to snarl at the lupine. Sawyer huffed with an amused smirk at the reaction. “Now as much as I love to chat more with you,” The wolf stepped towards the fox, “I prefer the civilized little fox, Liraeti.” The fox roared as vines erupted from where he stood. They whipped toward the wolf with fervor, only to bounce away as they slammed into a shimmering veil. Sawyer leaned away as the fox slashed at her neck. And noticing how those claws were coated in a similar veil. She pushed the fox away with a resounding kick to his waist.

Undeterred, the fox bounced back. And the pair locked themselves into a vicious dance. The vulpine was a storm of claws and fangs as the lupine deflected them with grace. Sawyer clicked her tongue when the fox managed to catch some of her furs with his fangs. So she caught his next strike, flipped, and threw him into the floor. The wolf glanced over her shoulder when vines erupted behind her. Keeping her rooted in place as the fox charged another bolt and fired. Sawyer scoffed and caught it with her bare hand. Letting it sear and burn as her chains clanged into existence. And with a harsh crackle, they chained the fox to its knees and muzzled it. The fox strained with hackling, pained snarls as the restraints dug into its wounds. The wolf flicked her charred hand as she walked to the fox. Grabbing ahold of the fox’s chin before she forced it to look at her. It froze as it saw her ivory pupils in her amber sclera.

“Behave yourself, whelp.” The fox’s ears splayed as it saw fangs that touched the sky and a maw that swallowed the ocean. It tucked its tail between its legs and bared its neck with a whimper. Satisfied, Sawyer released her hold on its chin. Letting it curl into itself to appear smaller. Some upstarts just needed a little reminder, she scoffed as she turned to the maturing sapling a fair distance away. The leaves blooming on its ivory branches were a gorgeous sight. For her at least, it didn’t bode well for this world. “You made quite the mess.” The fox curled up tighter while shuddering. Sawyer hummed as she raised her hand to the sapling. Amber sparks erupted and formed the necessary runes she needed to cull the tree. And just like that, it crumbled away along with the vines the fox grew as weapons. She gathered the residual energy from the sapling. Coating her hand with it before she laid it on the fox. And its wounds stitched itself anew with flesh and blood without leaving a trace. The wolf gently coaxed the fox to lift its head. “You’re too volatile to roam free right now.” Her hand glowed with flickering runes as she caressed the fox’s temple. “Sleep,” Sawyer ordered as she etched the runes around its left eye. And it became limp, the ivory fur residing back into a single patch as the beast hibernated. The restraints released the fox and the wolf leaned him against her front.

Now, what prompted you to go to this length? Sawyer wondered as her eyes glowed. Flashes of Rutherford herding several children through oak trees filtered by. The fox patiently taught and played with them in a camp before they all flinched at the sound of gunfire. And the wolf stopped her spell once she saw the fox lead the offenders away into the woods and away from the hiding children. “You need to worry about yourself more, pup,” Sawyer muttered quietly as she gently brushed her claws through the fox’s matted fur. A low, amused whistle made her ear swivel. “That was a close call.” Sawyer nodded with a hum to the newcomer. The coyote stepped forward, pushing his sunglasses up to his temple as he stared at where the sapling was. His ivory pupils slowly faded away to cobalt eyes. “At least we don’t have to do much to cover it up here.” The coyote shook his head with a chuckle as he turned his attention to the unconscious fox. “Hm, still intact too. Not bad.”

Sawyer smirked at the comment. “I told you he was resilient.” The coyote rolled his eyes, “I have my doubts about a whelp, thank you. But enough of that, I got what you asked for.” The latrans’ eyes glowed and the lupine accepted the prods against her mind. Giving the coyote a pleased nod afterward as she gently laid the fox down. “They sowed their roots deep. You won’t cull all of them at once?” The coyote inquired and the wolf shrugged. “Just enough to stall for my plans. Watch the pup for me.” Sawyer brushed the dirt and grass from her clothes as the coyote scoffed. “And what do I get in return?” “He could unleash his potential.” The lupine nodded to the fox. “That ‘could’ is a big if.” The coyote huffed, so she was betting. “I’m aware. But I’ll still make sure to thank you properly, of course.”

The coyote smiled at her. Then again, that was one of the many reasons they worked well together. The wolf made to leave, only to stop when the latrans cleared his throat. “Words from the vine. You ruffled quite a few people.” That wasn’t much of a surprise after what she told him of the fox. The smirk from the lupine caused him to chuckle more. “Finders keepers.” She vanished and his chuckle ascended into boisterous laughter. He took his sunglasses off his temple. Tucking it into his jacket’s breast pocket as he made himself comfortable against a tree. He glanced at the fox one last time before he lulled himself into a nap. Wonder how long it’ll take for the whelp to notice what the wolf did to him.