Chapter Text
Void, you’re terrible. Monk thought as he started to pass through the trees toward the training grounds. The lizards seemed excited to get back to training, surprisingly. Walking far ahead and way faster than he was. Though the yellow slugcat guessed it was probably because they wanted to eat more of the centipedes that were given when they correctly followed his commands. Just a useless piece of shit. Ruby did seem to notice Monk walking slower than normal and looked back at him with a worried expression, though the slugcat simply waved her off, and she turned back to focus on walking. You’ve really messed things up for everyone, and they all know it.
He whined, unable to stop a few tears from coming to his eyes. It was true; he had always known that his killing of the scavenger patrol would come back to bite everyone else. Like always, he hadn’t been thinking; Monk had just acted without thinking of any possible consequences. Because of that, they were guaranteed to get swarmed by a way larger group of scavengers than otherwise, all itching to tear them all up for the sake of revenge. He idly wondered if the patrol he had killed would be part of the assault. He idly wondered if they would look to tear him to shreds personally. He idly wondered if he should let them.
You would deserve it, guaranteed. But your friends and family don’t, you selfish bastard. Monk sniffled and wiped a tear from his face. Was it even worth it to go back? They all knew what he had done; it had been exposed by that elite. The others would not want him back, and even if they did, he just wasn’t worth the trouble, quite honestly. He sighed as the training grounds came into view, not looking forward to trying to train lizards at all, not at all as excited as he otherwise always was. Monk had not even remembered to go and fetch more centipedes either; he wasn’t even sure he had enough to keep the whole session from falling into pandemonium and chaos!
The lizards had not yet lined up; mostly, they just loitered around and did their own thing for a moment. Some were just standing around doing nothing, others were lumbering around the flat space happily without a care in the world, and a select few were napping in the sun shining down on them all. Normally, Ruby would have made them line up for Monk to train, but she seemed to notice he was not acting as he normally would. The red predator whined as he walked past and sat down on the flat ground with another sniffle, placing the spear he held in his paw next to him as he hugged his knees to his chest.
Can’t even muster up the energy to do the one thing you’re good at. Go jump in the void sea. Monk failed to suppress a sob, and Ruby was immediately at his side, nuzzling into him and purring loudly. It did little to help, but the yellow slugcat appreciated the attempt. “I-I’m alright, Ruby.” He lied, hugging the predator’s large head in his arms for a short moment as she whined again. “Just… do your own thing for now; keep track of the others. I just need to recover for a bit, okay?” Monk eventually let the red lizard go, giving her his best comforting smile.
Ruby gave him a very hesitant look, like she did not at all believe his words. However, after a moment, she nodded slowly and turned to walk across the field toward the other lizards. Luckily, the other predators had not even noticed that no training had started; they were far too busy with their activities. Topaz and Jade were both lying down in the warm sun, relaxing, seemingly enjoying each other's presence. They both looked relaxed and calm, which was the complete opposite of Garnet and Sapphire’s activities. The pink lizard seemed to have initiated a play-fight with her "playmate", though the cyan lizard seemed more like she wanted to tear the other lizard’s throat out more and more by the moment as they threw each other around. Luckily, once Ruby noticed the action increasing in violence, she walked up with a growl, and both the lizards separated to go mind their own business.
Even the lizards can handle themselves well without you. What are you even doing here? Monk felt more tears start to form in his eyes, so he hid his face between his knees and started to sob. It was useless—all so useless! Nothing he did would make any difference! Whether he tried his best or just gave up, the colony was screwed either way. Why did he willingly give himself a role in the upcoming battle, thinking he could make a positive change? All he had done was cause damage thus far! Just imagining how many more scavs might make the decision to actually join the effort to completely wipe them off the region because of his stupid choice made Monk feel sick to his stomach. If you all get wiped out, if the tree gets destroyed, if they take Arti… All of that’s on you, and only you. The yellow slugcat felt his claws extend as he hugged himself even tighter, his shoulders shaking. All he had to do was just get his emotions in check and not react to whatever was being spouted in front of him. He just had to stay in place inside that bush.
Monk could not even do that right.
He was sick and tired of always feeling sick and tired! Empty inside, almost everything felt wrong! Monk could not eat for comfort; the food tasted like nothing, and the texture was like ash! He could not do anything he usually enjoyed and thought was fun; any efforts at entertainment fell flat almost immediately, leaving him feeling even more empty than usual. The only thing that really made him feel anything was when he talked to his family or friends, but even then, the very small boost in mood only lasted until the talking stopped, and then he felt like shit all over again.
The yellow slugcat glanced down at the satchel at his side, filled to the brim with glowing flowers, the golden light almost visible through the fabric of the bag. Not even trying to end cycles differently than usual, over and over and over again, had made any sort of difference! Monk whimpered and looked back to the ground, more tears slipping from his eyes and falling to the ground below. The only thing he was filled with was pain and constant sorrow that did not go away, no matter what he did! Why would it not go away? He felt terrible almost all the time, and when he did not feel terrible, he felt nothing but a disgusting heaviness in his gut that weighed him down!
What had he done to deserve all of this?
You know why. Your mere existence is a mistake. You are a waste of oxygen. There’s a solution to your problem, and you know it. There will be no more pain or suffering for you. The others might grieve, but they will move on and be fine—better off, even!
Better off without you.
With a strangled cry, the yellow slugcat tightened his grip further. A sudden pinprick of pain from his left arm made him flinch and stop hugging his knees in surprise. Slowly, Monk turned to his left and lifted his arm to get a look. It was a very small scratch, left alongside the two others his claws had left on him. Though the other two had not been enough to break the skin, the one in the middle of the three scratches bled slightly. Not enough to really drip from the small cut at all, but enough to be slightly visible. The crimson color was especially noteworthy among his yellow fur. He glanced up at the lizards momentarily, noting the fact that none of them had heard or reacted to his cry.
Looking back at the cut, Monk came to a sudden realization. The pain, even when quickly fading, felt almost… relieving. The emptiness inside of him felt momentarily forgotten as the small scratch stung; he felt a bit lighter. It was almost as if he had poured all of his frustrations into the very small wound in his skin…
He turned to look at the dropped spear by his side next. The metal glinted slightly off the sun’s light, and the sharp edge of the weapon was clear. Hunter had spent a lot of time sharpening the head of the spear, not to mention cleaning it carefully. Monk had not understood why he had taken such good care of the weapons at the moment of watching the red slugcat tirelessly scrub off any dirt or grime from the metal rod; it would be used on enemies, not as eating utensils. However, the very clean edge would mean the risk of infection would be low.
With a shaky paw, Monk reached down and picked the spear off the ground, studying it closely. Experimentally, he held it very close to the sharp tip with his left paw and tested the sharpness with his right. It was easy to draw blood; just the teeniest bit of pressure punctured the skin and left him with a small bleeding wound on the tip of one of his digits. He felt it was not enough. The yellow slugcat looked toward the lizards again, noting that none of them were paying attention. Ruby seemed to be busy keeping Garnet from pulling Topaz and Jade out of a rest, and Sapphire was busy leaping after a poor lone batfly that had somehow strayed far from its colony.
Looking down once again, he gritted his teeth and decided to get to work. Monk moved the spear to press against his right forearm, about in the middle. His fur was fairly short, but if he cleaned the blood off after he was done, the yellow slugcat had no doubt it would be easy to hide the cut. Before he fully did anything else, he hesitated for a short moment. Was this really the best way to handle things? Would you rather tell the others how you feel? No, they would be inconvenienced, and he would be even more of a bother if he did so. Do it; it’s what you deserve. Adrenaline started to rush through him, and Monk’s breathing quickened as he slowly started to push down on the weapon…
“Monk?” Arti. The yellow slugcat gasped and fumbled, immediately dropping the spear before whipping around in fear. Monk felt unbearable relief when he realized she was not yet upon him; the shout was coming from a few trees back. She does not know. The maroon slugcat had never visited the training grounds before and so did not know its exact location, thank the void. “Monk!” The second shout was a bit closer, and Monk’s ears twitched as he picked up on two pairs of footsteps just a bit further away.
Quickly, the yellow slugcat wiped off any stray tears as quickly as he could, grabbing the spear and standing up. Looking toward the lizards, Monk noticed that Ruby was approaching him while the rest of the lizards stayed where they were. Even despite how distracted they were earlier, they had all turned towards the noise and were watching curiously.
Realizing he had not yet said anything and was probably worrying Arti, Monk cleared his throat before finally responding. “Over here!” He heard the footsteps stop for a moment before speeding up and heading toward his location.
In short time, Arti walked through the trees in front of him, smiling when she saw the yellow slugcat. Sofanthiel the drone was close behind, beeping twice and pointing an arrow when it saw him. Night was with her as well; in fact, it was the pup that was leading the maroon slugcat along by paw. Upon seeing Monk, the little one let out a squeal of excitement, and Arti let her go to run up to him. He chuckled and knelt down as Night reached him and tried to hug him in her small arms, purring surprisingly loudly for her small size.
“Hi, little Night.” Monk whispered, patting her on the head. “What brings you out here, hm?”
Night chirped and pointed toward the lizards. “Lizor, lizor!” Monk turned over to the lizards and noticed that Ruby was approaching with her head held low, looking at the pup almost lovingly.
When Night noticed Ruby approaching, she chirped in excitement, ran up to the large predator, and hugged her head. The red lizard purred in response and nuzzled herself closer to the pup. Arti chuckled and walked over to stand next to Monk. “You’ve done a good job training her.” She said, sounding… proud? The yellow slugcat turned to look at her, and she smiled and patted him on the shoulder.
His attention was pulled back to Night by the little pup chirping and mewling a few times. The black slugpup had walked over to Ruby’s side and was busy trying to pull herself up onto the predator’s back. The lizard was pressing herself flat to the ground to give Night an easier time, but she was too short to really get up by herself. Arti laughed and stepped forward, helping her up onto the lizard’s back (more right behind the neck, as the back was covered in sharp spines). Once she was securely on top of the predator, Night chirped happily again, clumsily patting the lizard on the head.
Monk stepped forward as well, reaching into his satchel and giving Ruby a centipede for her good behavior, which she swallowed up in one bite. “Alright, Ruby. Introduce her to the other lizards, would you?” The lizard huffed and nodded confidently, turning back toward the others and giving them a glare. Any lizard that was still watching the scene in front of them turned away nervously. Ruby especially stared for a long time at Sapphire, who turned her gaze towards the trees innocently. “I trust you to keep her safe.” The red lizard chirped happily before walking over toward the other lizards slowly, careful not to jostle the small pup too much with rapid movements.
The two slugcats spent a moment watching Ruby take Night to look and say hello to the lizards before Arti spoke up. “So, how’s the training going, kid?” Monk saw the maroon slugcat looking at him out of the corner of his eye, expecting a response.
Terribly, I can’t even work up the energy to do any of it this cycle. “It’s going alright! Slow progress, but you know how it is.” Monk lied, looking over at Arti with a smile on his face.
Arti barked a laugh and nodded. “I reckon it’s a lot like teaching pups proper manners and etiquette! It’s slow, but when you finally-” She suddenly cut herself off, looking at him with an expression of concern.
Oh no. “What’s wrong, Arti?” He tried to keep the nervousness out of his tone, but it was difficult when his mama was looking at him very closely. Nervously, he tried to avert his face, but Arti gently reached out and kept his head in place.
“Monk.” Her voice was suddenly soft and quiet, maternal in nature. “Have you been crying?” Gently, ever so gently, Arti ran her thumb underneath one of his eyes, and Monk felt some moisture getting wiped off.
It seemed he had not gotten rid of all the stray tears properly. Either that, or his eyes had not stopped running yet. Or his eyes were all red and puffy still. Bad, really bad. Come up with a lie, quick! “Oh no, it’s just… allergies, you know?” Monk tried, his voice breaking in the middle of his attempt at lying. He winced and nervously smiled.
Arti narrowed her eye slightly, still looking kind but highly suspicious. “Allergies?” She shook her head slowly. “Monk, you don’t have any allergies.”
Terrible lie; void’s below. Monk tried to come up with another lie, but he suddenly became all choked up. “Um, I…” She’s going to find out; think of something! His eyes stung, and Arti only looked more worried, slowly wrapping an arm around to pat his back. You might as well open your bag and show the flower collection; you’re done. A sniffle and whine left him as he failed to suppress his emotions further. The maroon slugcat’s ears pinned against her head in response. You’re worrying her, like you always do. She worries for you, though she shouldn’t. You don’t deserve any of it.
“Monk?” Arti whispered, and the yellow slugcat finally felt a sob leave him. Like always, you just cause trouble. Without another word or moment of hesitation, the maroon slugcat wrapped her arms around Monk. The warm embrace finally broke down Monk’s defenses, and the floodgates fully opened. With a quiet wail, he wrapped his own arms around Arti as best he could and buried his face inside her warm fur.
Monk’s mama purred loudly as he sobbed, sniffled, and cried. “Shh, it’s okay, kid. It’ll be okay.” Arti whispered before giving him a lick on the top of his head. No! Nothing is okay! Everything’s messed up, and it’s my fault, all my fault! “None of us blame you for what happened, Monk.” She added between purrs, as if she could hear his thoughts. “It’s a bad situation we’re in. No one’s at fault, least of all you, my little pup.”
The yellow slugcat whined, his tears drying up for a moment. “I-I’m not a pup; I’m an adult.” His voice cracking as he tried to defend himself definitely did not prove his point.
Arti chuckled lightly, a comforting sound Monk could feel in her chest, making him purr quietly. “You’ll always be my pup, kid. No matter how old you get.” He whined and mewled in protest, but did not respond.
The yellow slugcat only nuzzled further into his mama’s fur and kept purring, his shoulders temporarily lightened of the constant burden he otherwise always felt. She started to run her paws through the fur on his back and gave him a few more comforting licks on the top of his head. Eventually, Monk’s sobbing faded completely, and he sighed in relief. Slowly, he backed away from the hug, and Arti let him go but kept her paws on his shoulder.
"Are you feeling better now?” Arti asked after a moment, leaning down to give him a lick on the cheek as he chirped.
Temporarily. I’ll feel like a mess again in just a very short amount of time. Please stay with me, mama. Don’t leave my side, please. “Y-Yeah, I’m good.” Arti gave him another narrowed-eyed stare, and he sighed. "Better; I’m better.” He clarified, and she nodded with a soft smile on her face.
“That’s good.” Arti said simply, turning to look at how Night was doing. Monk followed her gaze, seeing Topaz following Ruby closely and nuzzling the pup with his head.
The pup looked happy, reaching a paw toward Garnet, who was sniffing at Night curiously. Sapphire seemed to want to stay far away, hissing at Ruby if she tried to approach. Meanwhile, Jade had gone back to napping in the sun. In any other case, Monk might have been nervous at seeing so many predators near a small pup. Though he knew Ruby could handle the situation, even as Garnet was doing nothing but picking up the black slugpup’s scent, the red lizard gave the other lizard a glare of warning in case he was stupid enough to try something.
Once she saw the pup was doing well, Arti nodded to herself and turned back to Monk. “We’re all a bit on edge right now, considering the situation.” She purred again as she wiped another stray tear off the yellow slugcat’s face. “If you want, we can talk about it. A burden is easier to carry with others.” Arti tilted her head with a gentle smile. He wasn’t forced to talk if he did not want to, but she was encouraging him to do so, thinking it would help.
I’m scared. Scratch that; I’m terrified. I feel sick to my stomach all the time; I feel cold and empty, and I need help. I need you to hold me; never let me go. I don’t want you all to go. I don’t want any of this! Please help me, Arti. I want to understand why I’m feeling so shit all the time. I need help. “W-When I… attacked the scavenger patrol…” Monk started, and Arti hummed and ran a careful paw over his head. I did it because I wanted to hurt something. I wanted something to die. I saw the scavs as targets; what they said pissed me off, so I killed them. And when I did, I felt good. Just for a short moment, I felt better. Afterwards, it made me feel sick—so sick with the thought that I would ever entertain the idea that hurting something else would make me feel better about my own pathetic skin. “They said some pretty messed up things, and I lost my cool." He said instead, more of a white lie than a full-on deception.
Arti hummed again, her eye filled with nothing but understanding, comfort, and love. None of which he deserved for the actions he had taken. “Like what?” She asked softly, giving him another, more gentle hug, which he reciprocated just as carefully.
Monk looked over towards Night again, who seemed to have made friends with every lizard apart from Sapphire. Garnet was excitedly running circles around Ruby with a dopey look on his face. Jade was lying up close, resting his head on the red lizard’s back, as Night ran her paw along his head. Topaz was lying on Ruby’s other side and vibrating, probably purring loudly. Sapphire was still keeping her distance, busy looking at something else. The red lizard looked annoyed at her predicament involving the other lizards and the pup on her head, but at the same time, Ruby almost looked a bit accepting of her “fate” as a cuddly pet.
Slowly, he turned back to Arti, who was still looking at him curiously as she softly patted his fur. “They threatened Night.” Monk said quickly, wincing as the maroon slugcat’s expression immediately took on a more hardened look of anger for just a short moment.
Her moment of anger dissipated as fast as it came, however, as she put her paws on his shoulders again and sighed to calm herself down fully. “I would’ve done the same, kid. Don’t blame yourself for your reaction.” Arti said, giving him a soft smile. “Okay?”
You don’t deserve her forgiveness; you deserve her wrath. She’s treating you like a pup, and you’re lucky she is. Otherwise, she would have taken you out, and you deserve it! Despite his inner thoughts, Monk could not help but smile softly and nod. Arti purred and gave him a fond look as she ran her tongue across his head one more time and patted his shoulders before straightening back out.
Then, she suddenly reached out and pinched Monk’s cheek as he mewled in complaint. “I will blame you for your horrid appetite, though!” Arti laughed softly, though her eye still held some concern as she let go of his cheek and gestured towards his body. “You’re practically skin and bones, kid.”
“I eat fine.” Monk muttered, crossing his arms over his chest with a pout.
Arti huffed and shook her head. “No one ate any breakfast this cycle, Monk!” She said matter-of-factly with a smirk. “When we get back to the tree, I’m feeding you at least three blue fruits.”
The yellow slugcat groaned. “Three? That’s way too much. I can eat two, that’s it.” Monk knew he could eat way more; in actuality, he just did not want to or have the appetite for it.
“Okay, just because of that, we’re making it four!” Arti responded, barking a laugh when Monk gave her a glare that was meant to be threatening but probably just ended up looking goofy and likable from her angle.
He opened his mouth to protest again, but was interrupted by the sound of rustling leaves right behind him.
Before Monk even had a chance to react to the sudden noise anymore than a slight flinch, Artificer had already pulled the yellow slugcat behind herself and taken the spear from his paw, pointing the weapon at the bush where the sound originated from. “Who’s there?” She shouted angrily, with Ruby coming up on her side with an aggressive growl as well. The maroon slugcat turned to look at the red lizard, noting that Night was still riding on top of the predator, right in the danger zone. Luckily, Monk seemed to spot the same thing at the same time, as he quickly sneaks up and plucks the pup off the lizard’s back, retreating to stand behind Artificer.
Turning her full attention back to the bush, there had been no response at all. Maybe you were just imagining it. No, did you not notice the way Monk reacted as well? It was real. It might've just been a squidcada or something. Do you want to take that risk? No… Artificer growled at the lack of response from the bushes, smoke trailing from the corners of her mouth. She heard Night mewl in fear behind her at the sudden display of anger, but she was forced to ignore the reaction despite her instincts telling her to comfort the pup.
“Whoever’s in there, you are tiring my patience! Come out, or I’ll drag you out myself! ” Another short moment of silence followed, with no sounds coming from the bushes whatsoever. Artificer slightly untensed and started to move out of her combat stance. Maybe I did just imagine it… Yeah, don’t worry! Everything’s fine.
Suddenly, the bush rustled again, however. This time, a figure could also be seen standing up. Immediately, Artificer raised her spear again, pointing it at the stranger. The shape looked vaguely like a slugcat, about the same length as Survivor. Though it obviously was not him, he would have made his presence known by that point. The figure stood completely still for a short moment, seemingly sizing her up. Were they looking for a fight or something? Because Artificer would sure deliver.
The maroon slugcat growled again, more smoke pouring out of her as she practically trembled in anger. Who the fuck do they think they are? Not coming out when I ask them to. Arti, calm down. Don’t lose your temper. “Are you deaf or something? Come out here, now!” Another moment of nothing happening passed before, and finally, the stranger walked out of the shade of the forest and fully revealed themselves in the sunlight.
It was a slugcat, alright. With two-tone fur sporting dark blue and cyan colors, red-tipped ears, and skinny arms. Not to mention, they also had very odd-looking eyes. With pupils that looked like circles with lines going through them. The slugcat that Monk had been explaining to her, the one that seemed to have been dreamt, was actually real, it seemed. She could not remember what he had said their name was; she only remembered it was something odd. Now that she saw them, she realized odd was quite fitting. That’s mean, Arti. It’s true! Don’t judge a book by its cover… Sofanthiel hovered up to the slugcat, flashing a symbol she had never seen the drone use before, pointing an arrow at the stranger. Artificer felt like she had seen one of the symbols before, maybe on one of Pebbles’ murals. She had forgotten which one, however… They looked her up and down again, and that’s when Artificer noticed they also had a weirdly smug smile on their face despite having a weapon pointed right at them.
“Wow!” The odd slugcat finally yelled in a loud tone, making Artificer jump about a meter into the air and being forced to suppress a yelp. They took a couple more steps forward, their eyes staring at her in what looked like shock. The stranger stopped right before the spear would pierce their flesh and dropped what they had in one of their arms on the ground. Is that another fucking egg? Then, they put their paws together by their mouth and took a deep breath. “I have to say, you are…” They seemed to stop for dramatic effect, letting Artificer come to the realization that their loud voice seemed so offensive to her senses that she was starting to get a headache. After a moment, the cyan slugcat pointed their paws toward her, their smug smile widening slightly. “Absolutely gorgeous.”
What?
What?
Okay, maybe they are odd. Artificer lowered her weapon and narrowed her eyes, staring at the mysterious slugcat in confusion. Who reacts like that when they have a weapon in their face? “Monk, my beautiful banana boy, you never told me you knew such a babe on par with your own beauty!!” The stranger turned to look behind Artificer, presumably at Monk, batting their eyes at him in a disturbingly fast manner.
Banana boy??? What the fuck?!
The maroon slugcat turned around to look at the yellow slugcat, who was face-palming with a groan. “Inv, please don’t call me that.” He muttered, his voice muffled by his paw.
Turning back around, Artificer yelped as “Inv” had stepped way closer, almost up in her face as he peeked around her at Monk. The maroon slugcat stepped back with a hiss, ending up between the two off to the side. “Awe, but it’s such a fitting nickname!” The cyan slugcat responded, completely ignoring Artificer in favor of discussing nicknames with Monk.
“It’s embarrassing and stupid.” Monk answered, crossing his arms over his chest.
Inv hummed, tilting their head and putting a paw to their eerily smiling mouth. “What would you rather be called then? Baby yellow?” These guys are definitely mates, right? Don’t ask me!
The yellow slugcat groaned again, shaking his head. “Just call me Monk; it’s my regular name!”
“While ‘Monk’ is very cute and befitting such a beautiful creature such as yourself, I feel we can come up with something much better! All we have to do is put our minds to it, baby!!” Inv clicked their tongue and pointed finger guns at Monk, who sighed and looked over to Artificer for help.
The maroon slugcat nodded and slammed her tail onto the ground, generating a fairly quiet explosion that was still loud enough to get Inv’s attention. “Enough of this; you haven’t even introduced yourself!” Artificer growled angrily, already very sick of the cyan slugcat’s shenanigans.
Inv perked up for a moment before they bowed their head in what seemed like an apology. Only, his bow suddenly turned into the slugcat kneeling down on the ground before her. Artificer took an awkward step back in confusion as they looked up at her with sparkling (?) eyes. “My deepest, humblest apologies, my lady! I go by Enot, Inv, or anything else up to your discretion.” She glanced at Monk, but the yellow slugcat looked just as confused as he shrugged. The maroon slugcat looked back towards the cyan slugcat and narrowed her eyes as they raised their paw towards her palm up. “May I ask your name, fair maiden?” Artificer winced at the word choice, wondering if Inv simply wanted to shake her paw in a very odd way.
“Artificer.” She responded simply, putting her paw on his palm against her better judgment. The maroon slugcat had definitely expected a pawshake, so when Enot instead suddenly leaned in and kissed her knuckles, she reacted by instinct. With a hiss, she used her other paw to punch them in the jaw, knocking them on their ass.
Monk gasped, and Artificer turned towards the yellow slugcat to see him covering Night’s eyes. “Arti!”
The maroon slugcat scoffed and rolled her eyes. “What? They’ll be fine!” Artificer turned back to Inv, watching as they moved to stand surprisingly easily. “I think, at least.” She snorted as the cyan slugcat stood up and shook their head
Inv definitely did not seem to mind having been hit in the face; if anything, they seemed to have “enjoyed” it in some way. “I guess strong arms run in the colony.” The cyan slugcat mumbled with a lovestruck smile sent in Artificer’s direction, which made her send him a glare in warning. “Is violently beating others a natural way for you guys to show love? I can get behind that, fo’ sure!!”
Doing her best to squash down the instinct that told her to punch the bastard again, Artificer instead turned to Monk questioningly. “Did you also hit them?” It wasn’t a judgmental question, but more one made out of curiosity. The maroon slugcat reckoned one would have to avoid Monk a lot to warrant getting a punch in the face.
Still, despite the question not being delivered judgmentally, the yellow slugcat reacted like he was just put on trial. “I didn’t mean to! I had a branch in my paw, and they snuck up on me!” Monk explained desperately with a frown on his face.
“And boy did you knock me out!” Inv suddenly cut in, smiling widely once again. “I still have a headache from that branch you broke over my head, big guy~” The cyan slugcat sent Monk an excruciatingly stiff wink.
Monk sighed as Artificer huffed and sent him an amused smirk. “I swear I didn’t hit them that hard, Arti!” That’s our boy! Hell yeah.
Enot never once dropped their smile; still, they only seemed happier as they patted a spot on the side of their head. “Had me knocked out for at least thirty whole seconds, for sure~! Served me right for trying to sneak up on such a big, badass mountain scug!!” They whistled loudly and sent Monk another wink while the yellow slugcat groaned again.
He turned to Artificer, but she only smirked and nodded. “Not bad, kid. Not bad at all.” Monk looked comically betrayed by the maroon slugcat’s reaction, sputtering on the spot for a short moment.
Artificer laughed at her child’s reaction. After a moment, Monk finally calmed down and took a deep breath. “Okay, enough of all that!” He shouted before turning to point at Inv. “Why are you even here?”
“I got hired, ‘member?” Enot responded easily, puffing up their chest, straightening their back, and delivering a serious salute. “I come to help you kill the spear-toting guys with antlers!” They added with a smirk on their face, pausing in the pose for a moment too long before breaking it in favor of bending down to pick up the weird egg.
Artificer turned to Monk in confusion, and he sighed. “They mean the scavengers." Odd name for scavengers…
She was, frankly, not impressed. The random slugcat standing in front of her, the one she had never seen before up until that moment, wanted to join their side in the battle. Artificer’s very first reason for why that was probably a bad idea was that they had no way to be sure Inv was not working for the enemy. A few cycles ago, when all of the bullshit involving the scavs was starting, Hunter had shared ideas that the scavengers might start to send out “spies” that would be keeping an eye on them, relaying their plans to the enemy, and sabotage them. She had found that incredibly stupid, because the only members of their colony were slugcats or trusted scavengers. For a “spy” to find themselves inside their colony, they would most likely have to be a trusted slugcat in the first place!
However, seeing Inv, she started to question if the red slugcat might have had a point. How could she trust the essential stranger in front of her? Especially considering they did not communicate or act at all like a normal slugcat should…
The second reason, she simply did not like the cyan slugcat. They were annoying and odd, and they creeped her out. Besides, Artificer was still having a pounding headache just from hearing them speak. “It’s true I did hire you Inv. My apologies.” Monk finally responded, looking a bit embarrassed over having forgotten that he “hired” the cyan slugcat.
Enot did not look all too miffed at Monk for forgetting. “Apology accepted~” They sang with a small nod.
“I was thinking they could help us out with the fight against the scavengers; we could need all the help we can get.” Monk explained to Artificer, who hummed and turned her attention back to Inv.
She crossed her arms and glared a hole through the cyan slugcat. “It’s true we need the help, but I’m not sure if I trust you enough.” Artificer looked him over for a moment, her gaze pausing especially long as she looked over his skinny arms. “Besides, you don’t look like a slugcat that can hold your own in a fight.”
Enot simply laughed in response. “I take that as a challenge, y’know?” The cyan slugcat said, suddenly using their leg to kick a branch off the ground and grab onto it with their free paw that wasn’t holding the egg. “Let me prove myself! I never disappoint in any aspect, I assure you~” Artificer rolled her eyes with a huff as Inv did some sort of kissy mouth in her direction, already getting sick of the other slugcats constant flirting.
Oh, so he wants to spar, then? So be it! The maroon slugcat opened her mouth to accept the challenge when Monk suddenly walked up next to her, holding a branch of his own in the paw that wasn’t holding Night. “Alright, let’s do this then.” Artificer turned to look at the yellow slugcat in surprise, and he tilted his head and gestured towards her stomach. “You’re pregnant, Arti.”
Artificer glanced down and placed a paw on her plump stomach, ignoring Inv’s muttered “Aw, what a shame.” at hearing the news. He’s right, you know. You should rest instead; you can be the judge of the sparring match instead. The maroon slugcat sighed and gave Monk a nod. The yellow slugcat responded with a smile and a nod of his own before handing over Night. Then he walked over to the other side of the field, Ruby following behind and giving the lizards some sort of growled command as they passed by.
She walked up to Inv, getting up in their face and bearing her teeth. “Go easy on him, or else.”
The cyan slugcat, unsurprisingly, did not look threatened. “Don’t worry ‘bout it. We’ll go easy on each other, trust!” In fact, Inv did not even drop the smug smile as they nodded. Night chirped in confusion as she looked at the stranger slugcat, reaching a paw out to touch them. “Oh, hello, tiny slugcat!” They said, leaning down slightly and letting the pup touch his face.
Artificer got ready to pull away at any time if Night got scared of the cyan slugcat’s unnerving eyes or smile, but to her surprise, the pup did not seem to mind at all. After a while, though, the maroon slugcat considered enough to be enough and took a small step back to stop the interaction. Enot straightened in response and turned to look at Monk, who now stood in position just a few meters away, branch at the ready. Bringing Night along, Artificer walked over to a spot a bit further away that let her get a good look at each of the slugcats.
Simple sparring meant both opponents would be going at each other with nonlethal weapons in rounds with small breaks in between. Each round, the goal was to knock the other slugcat down to the ground, or if you were using weapons, disarm the weapon of your opponent. Every knockdown meant you got a point; the sparring went on until both participants were too tuckered out to fight; or the judge ended the game when the results of the winner were clear. It wasn’t ever much of a competition, mostly just a way to let off some steam, have some fun, or hone one's fighting skills. She settled in comfortably and let Night sit in her lap, the slugpup chirping in confusion as she watched the two slugcats stare each other down with curiosity. The lizards were gathered in the background, lined up, and ready to watch the fight as well, it seemed.
“You guys ready?” Artificer yelled at the two combatants.
“Ready!” Monk responded, moving into a decent fighting stance.
“Y’know it!” Inv responded cheesily, sending a blown kiss to the yellow slugcat across from them before moving into a fighting stance unlike any Artificer had ever seen before. Maybe they’re fully self-trained and have never sparred? Then Monk should easily have this in the bag. Sure, I just hope they know the rules… She noticed the cyan slugcat had left the egg a couple meters back in the grass.
“Alright! Have at it!” The maroon slugcat yelled, starting the combat.
Both fighters started to approach one another, their branches held like spears. In close-quarters sparring, throwing the weapon was not at all recommended. Mostly because it probably would not do much to help one score a round, but also because one would be without a weapon if it did not do any good. Technically, sparring without a weapon if you made the choice to drop it was allowed, but when meeting someone who had a weapon to swing or jab with, it was a clear disadvantage!
As soon as they got within range, Inv attempted to jab their branch towards Monk’s chest, but the yellow slugcat sidestepped the attempt. When the cyan slugcat instead went for a wide swing to catch his opponent, now standing at his side, off-guard, Monk blocked the blow with his own branch. Quickly, he swung his weapon around, catching Enot in the shoulder. He tried to follow it up with a kick to the cyan slugcat’s legs, but Inv quickly backed away and got their branch free before jabbing forward once again. Monk was hit in the stomach and hunched over slightly, with Enot attempting to capitalize with another fast swing to try to knock the yellow slugcat to the ground. It did not work well, as Monk recovered far quicker than they had expected and ducked underneath the swing into a roll that ended him up behind the other slugcat. Then, before Inv could make a move to right their mistake, the yellow slugcat swung low for their legs, knocking them to the ground.
“That’s one score for Monk!” Artificer yelled excitedly as the yellow slugcat helped Inv off the ground. Night squealed in excitement, her gaze locked at the action in front of her. “A short break, then we go again.”
The next couple rounds went by surprisingly quickly. While the first few rounds were fairly slow, with both fighters getting a feel for each other, things quickly evolved into both sides giving it their all. It was a very fair matchup, surprisingly. Artificer already knew Monk was a shockingly fierce combatant for his size and strength; he had been trained by her and Hunter after all. Not only was he a fast learner, but he was also surprisingly ferocious at times. The maroon slugcat was proud to notice some of Hunter’s and hers lessons in the way Monk fought. Sometimes, he would make use of jumps, rolls, or backflips to get to better positions or Inv’s blind spots, inspired by Artificer’s own explosive jumping to better positions to gain an upper hand. The way he sometimes jabbed several times in quick succession with the branch was taught by Hunter, and his more aggressive “attack-attack-attack” way of fighting. Artificer also worked by overwhelming the enemy with a large flurry of strikes, but she also had to ensure she was in a good position to do so, and that she could retreat if her opponent tried to counter and respond.
To give credit to Inv, they were definitely holding their own. Obviously self-taught, the cyan slugcat seemed to fight via impulse. While every move Monk made was cool and calculated, planned before hand, Inv’s fighting was chaotic at the best of times. They would spin their weapon and themselves at times, hoping to catch Monk off guard and strike him hard. They would sway and weave a lot, feigning attacks that often caught the yellow slugcat completely by surprise and forced him to react. Though, the fighting style was not always effective, and were usually just a detriment if Monk actually saw the attack coming as it would leave Inv wide open for a counter-attack afterward! Still, when it worked, it definitely worked well. High-risk, high-reward, Artificer supposed.
While watching, in fact, Artificer came to a different realization. Inv was definitely holding back. Sometimes when Monk swung out towards them, she saw the cyan slugcat realize the attack was coming, and their body would twitch as if they wanted to dodge, yet they would stand in place and take the blow or try to dodge at the very last second. Many of their swings were also held back; she could see the way they sometimes slowed down the momentum of their blows before they landed to cushion the effect. It could be explained as regular sparring, as one was never supposed to strike with full power during practice. However, something told Artificer that it was something more than that.
Something the cyan slugcat could not hide was just how much endurance they had. During a proper sparring match, even Hunter, with his enhanced strength and stamina, could hold up a few rounds without taking at least one break and breathing heavily. However, Enot wasn’t breathing heavily at all. While Monk was seated in the grass and panting, preparing for round thirteen, the cyan slugcat was just patiently standing around, sometimes sending a wave, air kiss, or wink toward the “audience” or their resting opponent. Maybe they could help us out during combat, after all? Maybe…
Eventually, Monk seemed to recover enough to stand up and fight, shaking himself off and raising his branch with a nod. Inv responded with a nod on their own, and they prepared to fight what Artificer considered the final round. Both their scores were equal, a clear six to six points. Whoever won this last round was the winner of the whole sparring match, and Artificer, Night, and even the lizards were watching with bated breath as the two approached each other and-
BOOM
Artificer instinctively hugged Night close and turned her back to the noise of the explosion, covering the pup with her body. Though she quickly came to the realization that it had been an explosion in the distance, it was not close. Despite that fact, it had been incredibly loud, carried by the silent air through the trees. The tree, it came from the approximate direction of the tree! Fuck! Night chirped in confusion and a healthy amount of fear as the maroon slugcat placed the pup on her back and rushed over to the two previously sparring slugcats, who were now looking in the direction the explosion had come from.
“That explosion, it sounded like it came from the tree!” Monk yelled when Artificer got close enough, his lizards quickly running over to stand by his side in a protective semicircle, covering the yellow slugcat’s flank.
Enot whistled and looked in the general direction of where the sound had come from. “A VERY BIG boom, quite impressive, really…” They dropped the branch and used a finger to clear one of their ears as they went over to pick up their egg from the ground.
“I’ll move to check it out; you two will stick together, keep the lizards close, and follow me, alright?” Artificer explained quickly. Night whined on her back, noticing that serious things were happening, and she purred to try to calm the pup.
“Alright!” Monk yelled. “Ruby, you and the others watch our flank!” The red lizard nodded, hissed, and growled at the other lizards. “Inv, you’re with me!”
The cyan slugcat immediately walked up to Monk’s side, blushing deeply as they held the egg close and stared at the yellow slugcat with shock. “Oh my void. Monk, you beautiful, radiant being… Are you taking me on our first date?” Then they giggled, covering their mouth with their paw in flustered embarrassment.
Monk only rolled his eyes while the Artificer decided to completely ignore Enot’s shenanigans for the time being. “I’ll meet you back at the tree!” She shouted instead, turning around and immediately taking off in a sprint. As she reached the trees, Night whimpered again. “I know, sweetie, I know. Just hold onto Aunt Arti tight, okay? It’ll be alright.” The pup chirped what the maroon slugcat guessed was an affirmative, and she waited just a moment longer to really let the pup prepare, before explosively propelling herself onto a branch that looked strong enough to hold their weight.
From there, she leaped across the trees, using her explosive jumps sparingly to avoid completely exhausting herself.
I might have to fight when I reach the spot of the explosion…
This view really is something. Hunter thought to himself as he scanned the horizon from his and Collector’s vantage point. Though the red slugcat’s body still ached really badly from his and Fixer’s earlier scuffle, he felt fairly at peace with his situation. Who knew that apologizing for previous wrongdoings would feel so good? A good person shouldn’t be asking that question; they should know that being good feels good. Hunter frowned, thinking back on what his mate had told him. “You’re acting just like The Red Death.” It was not what Survivor had said word-for-word, but it was what he had meant. He was right, too; the red slugcat really admitted to loving the carnage and chaos that came from killing scavengers. Did he mean it? Hunter was not sure; he was mostly just trying to defend his heinous actions.
Then his mate had run off, the white slugcat terrified of his words, asking for some time alone. I need to apologize. Hunter thought, suddenly standing up so quickly that Collector flinched slightly at his side. Survivor had asked for some time alone, but some time had already passed at that point; surely his mate was ready to see him again and hear him out. Besides, it did not seem safe to run off on one’s lonesome, with the situation being as it was.
“Hunter? I-Is something w-wrong?” The red slugcat turned to look at his friend. The orange scavenger looked nervous, glancing back and forth at their surroundings as he reached out and picked up the explosive spear at his side.
Hunter hummed, coming to the realization that he did not actually have a weapon on paw. He had hid his weapons near the edge of the field leading toward the tree, mostly to avoid scaring Collector. Walking over to get the weapons seemed like too much of a detour when Hunter could simply wander the straight path toward where Survivor likely was. Oh well, my bare paws should work for any minor threats. “I just remembered something important, is all.” He said cryptically, not all too willing to discuss his mate’s and his argument. “Very important; it needs my attention.”
As he turned around to leave, Hunter heard Collector get to his feet before speaking up. “A-Are you sure I s-shouldn’t follow? It's not s-safe to go a-alone during these cycles..."
The red slugcat glanced back, noting that the scavenger was indeed standing, holding the explosive spear in a tight grip. Hunter thought about it for a moment before shaking his head and flashing Collector a grin. “Thank you for the offer, but I think I’ll be fine.” He wanted to have a private chat with Survivor, and it would probably feel a bit awkward if the orange scavenger just stood in the background during their conversation (no offense meant to the guy, of course). Collector nodded, though a bit unsurely, and Hunter responded with a nod of his own before turning to walk and giving a wave. “I’ll see you back at the tree, Collector.”
“S-See you, Hunter.” The response came as the red slugcat started to walk through the trees back in the direction of the small forest oasis where he and his mate had had their talk.
The way towards where he and Survivor had their “discussion” was luckily an easy trip, with it being a straight-forward run from the cliff. Hunter did not even have to walk past the tree, which was a good thing considering his bruised face and body. The red slugcat huffed in discomfort as he felt the blood running from his nose and the cut on his brow start to dry into his fur. Maybe he should take a moment to wash himself up in the small lake near where Survivor probably was, even though Hunter really hated being wet. It was probably better to not be covered in visible blood when walking up to his mate; otherwise, it could be believed he has gone all “Red Death” on something before coming to apologize for acting like he was “Red Death”. It could lead to a lot of awkwardness, even if he did explain the situation around Fixer. Either way, his face was swollen and bruised, but at the very least the bruises on his skin were covered up by his fur.
It didn’t take too long for Hunter to reach the small lake and kneel in front of the blue water. He took a moment to study his reflection, staring into the eyes of a beaten-down slugcat. His right eye was black, he had a bleeding cut on his left brow, his lip was split and bleeding, and his nose was bruised and swollen. That wasn’t even mentioning the rest of his face being bruised or cut in some way. Luckily, the bruises that were no doubt forming around his neck from getting choked out would be covered by his fur. Had it not been, Survivor would have likely been very worried. Hunter winced at his reflection; he definitely needed to clean up at least a bit, lest he still scare the shit out of his mate. With a sigh, he gathered some water in his cupped paws before throwing it up into his face and scrubbing gently. The red slugcat flinched slightly at the feeling of cold water and the slight pain emanating from his nose as he rubbed his paws against it. He repeated the process a few times before looking down at his reflection again. Well, at least his fur was no longer covered in blood, he supposed. Still, Hunter looked a mess either way, not helped by the fact that the fur on and around his face was all wet as well.
He huffed and stood up, shaking his head to get as much moisture out of his face as possible, as he started to walk in the direction that his mate had run. Hunter hoped Survivor had not run off too far; he was really not looking forward to walking any longer than needed. The red slugcat picked up the trail quickly, following broken twigs and occasional visible footsteps as he walked. His side screamed in pain with each step, aching badly after Fixer threw a hook at his torso. The scavenger was a surprisingly strong combatant with no weapons; it was frankly impressive. Unfortunately, the beatdown delivered had definitely not helped Hunter with his pounding headache. A bad cycle already because of his illness, turned even worse by his head getting smashed up and his throat squeezed. He had deserved it, for sure. Still, that thought did not help the pain.
Survivor, how far did you run? Hunter thought to himself, groaning quietly as he kept following the tracks through a bunch of broken-off branches. Being out alone could not be a good idea, not only considering the number of predators that might be outside the safe zone of the tree but also considering the danger of scavs hanging around and ready to jump out and attack! At the thought of his mate getting attacked by a group of enemies, Hunter found himself speeding up slightly, going from a fast walk to a quick jog. What if he gets taken by the enemy? If they took Survivor, what would they do to him? If they hurt him in any way, it’s your fault for leaving him behind. The thoughts quickly had the red slugcat start to sprint through the trees, ducking underneath thick branches and jumping over outsticking roots. Please, let him be okay. Don’t let him be dead, captured, or, worse, gone forever.
Finally, Hunter broke through the thick collection of trees. The red slugcat was standing in another small area clear of forestry, the trees chopped down or fallen in some way, only leaving behind a small collection of stumps. Due to the lack of thick leaves above the location, the bright sun was allowed to shine down undeterred, lighting the area up in a beautiful glow. In the middle of the area, sitting on a stump, was the white slugcat he had been looking for. Survivor looked scared, clutching a spear at the sudden interruption; however, he put the weapon away when he saw it was his mate. He’s safe! Thank the void! Hunter had to suppress a whine when he noticed his mate’s red and puffy eyes. Survivor had been crying.
As the red slugcat panted and started to slowly limp toward his mate, he felt the soreness in his body combine with his exhaustion from his mad sprint through the forest. Survivor’s expression twisted from tranquil to shock and worry as Hunter got close enough for the white slugcat to see just how bruised and swollen his face was. Quickly, he stood up and rushed to his mate’s side, looking him over anxiously.
“Void, Hunter. What the hell happened?” Survivor whimpered as he looked back to where he had run out, his eyes scanning the trees as he clenched his spear closely.
Hunter sighed and shook his head as he caught his breath, flashing a comforting smile. “This happened a while ago; don’t worry.” He gestured to his face with a chuckle, but Survivor did not seem to find it all too funny, frowning as he gently took hold of the red slugcat’s chin and looked over his bruises.
The white slugcat winced as he studied the damage. “Was this done by an enemy scavenger?” He asked, looking out at the trees nervously once again. Survivor’s gaze was scanning for any sort of threat, his expression in “serious-mode” as Hunter called it. Only in his head, he did not dare make slightly mocking jokes when his mate was being serious.
Try “done by a friendly scavenger”. Hunter thought with an amused huff. “It does not matter, my love.” He mumbled instead, wrapping his mate in a gentle hug and purring softly. Survivor purred in response, reciprocating immediately. “I’m sorry.” He added after a while, the two leaning back slightly, holding onto each other still as they looked into each other’s eyes. “About what I said earlier, I uh…”
Man, Hunter was bad at communicating. Good thing his mate knew this was the case, simply waiting for him patiently as he tried to get the words out. “It was messed up, and it’s wrong to think that way. Even despite the situation, it’s not a good idea to be more violent and brutal than needed. In any situation, in fact…” Hunter stopped himself for a moment, trying to gather his thoughts. Why is apologizing so damn difficult? He at least seemed to be doing something right, judging by his mate’s soft smile as he waited for him to keep apologizing. “I’m sorry for saying all of the stuff I said, and I’m so sorry for upsetting you.”
Survivor leaned in and nuzzled their faces together with a purr as the red slugcat sighed, closed his eyes, and continued. “I want to better myself and leave behind my need for undue violence. For you, and for Night.” The two leaned back again, looking into each other’s eyes. His mate raised a paw and stroked Hunter’s cheek, smirking when it made him blush. “Do you accept my apology?” He ended up asking, smiling nervously as Survivor chuckled.
“I already have, my love.” He whispered, slowly leaning in toward Hunter’s face. The red slugcat closed his eyes and moved to meet his mate.
Their imminent kiss was interrupted by the sound of a twig breaking; both slugcats quickly turned toward the noise. Survivor gasped in surprise, and Hunter growled as a scavenger walked out of the bushes, holding a spear and looking really pissed off. Just one, easy to handle! The red slugcat thought as he moved to stand in front of his mate, extending his claws and hissing threateningly at the enemy. He saw Survivor turn towards where he left his spear by the stump, his eyes widening as he spotted something. There were noises all around them suddenly—sounds of the rustling of bushes and footsteps. Hunter looked around to see several more scavengers surrounding the two slugcats. They were outnumbered, and neither of them were armed; there were seven scavs, by the red slugcat’s count. Not to mention, Hunter had not yet recovered from the beating he sustained. The scavengers looked at least decently competent, holding the spears in their hands like warriors as they stared the two down.
As their enemies approached, the slugcats were left back-to-back in the middle of the circle formed around them, rotating to keep a careful eye on all seven scavs. “Hunt, what do we do?” Survivor whispered fearfully, gaze glancing for any sort of way to escape their predicament.
Hunter tried to look as well, but he could see no escape. If only one of them had explosive jumps like Arti! They could have jumped over one of the bastards and made a run for it! The scavengers were only harmed with regular spears; had one of them just had a weapon, they might have had a chance to do something at least! “I see no other option, Surv. We have to fight.” The red slugcat hissed at the nearest scav, who flinched back for a short moment before approaching aggressively again.
“Slugcats.” A dark brown scav chirped, his eyes narrowing as he looked at the duo like they were nothing but pests to be eradicated. “We have orders to take alive, surrender.”
The red slugcat spat on the ground between him and the scav. “Fuck you, come and get us!” He chittered, pushing his back flush with Survivor as the two slugcats prepared to fight.
Immediately, all seven of the scavs charged forward, many of them swinging their spears to try to catch one of the slugcats with the blunt handle. Hunter, determined to shield Survivor, dodged and swayed, absorbing blows against his already battered body. His focus was unwavering—every strike he took meant one less for Survivor. Despite their best efforts, the pair was eventually separated as the relentless assault forced them to dive away from each other. The focus of the red slugcat was protecting his head. There were at least four scavengers trying to beat down on him, but he could take a lot of punishment. One hit to his head, however, and he might just immediately go down.
Hunter tried his best to dodge and run back from any attacks, but his enemies were relentless. Determined to retaliate, he grabbed one spear just below the tip, attempting to wrest it from his opponent. It seemed he would get a hold of a weapon for a short moment, but he was stopped. A scavenger suddenly appeared from behind, wrapping their arms around Hunter's torso and pulling him back. The weapon was still flush against him, and pain seared through Hunter as he felt the spear cut into his side.
“I got him!” The scavenger yelled, holding onto him tightly. Unfortunately for them, Hunter still had one of his arms free, and he whipped around as best he could in the tight hug and swiped for the scav’s eyes. He knew his attempt was successful when he heard the enemy scream loudly and felt his claws catch on something and tear through.
The scav unfortunately responded by lifting him higher and quickly slamming him into the ground, which definitely did not help with Hunter’s aching body. Looking up and ignoring the way his head spun and throbbed with pain, the red slugcat noted that many of the scavengers that had been bearing down on him had flinched back slightly when they had witnessed his brutal assault on their friend. One was still close enough to strike out, however, and tried to swing down for him. Hunter only just managed to recover enough to roll out of the way, the weapon striking the ground harmlessly as he quickly got his paws underneath him in a crouch and lunged forward. His attempt at a tackle and maul was cut short as a metallic rod swung for his face, the other scavengers having recovered from their shock and stepping forward to stop him.
His face exploded with pain as he heard his nose audibly crack, the blow knocking him down on his back. Hunter wheezed and coughed as he tried to stand again. Everything hurt at least twice as much as it had earlier, and the red slugcat struggled to recover. A sudden kick to his side strong enough to flip him over on his back certainly did not help at all, as he was left lying on his face, hacking up a lung as all of the air was knocked out of him.
As he was left to lie on his stomach, trying to recover, a suddenly optimistic thought hit him. At least they are no longer beating me… It immediately lost its relevance as rough arms suddenly grabbed hold of his shoulders and pulled him to his knees. Hunter’s arms were swiftly grabbed by two pairs of hands and pushed behind his back as he kneeled. In front of him was Survivor, kneeling down with two scavengers holding his arms as well. The white slugcat looked worse for wear, was barely conscious, and was bleeding from a cut in his head. He chirped when he saw Hunter, his eyes half-lidded.
“You fuckers!” Hunter yelled, ignoring the pain in his whole body to struggle against the scavengers holding him. They hurt his mate, his love, his everything! He would kill them all for this! “Touch another fur on him, and I swear…” His threat hung in the air as he locked eyes with each enemy, the red slugcat's determination unwavering Seeing as four scavs were holding him and his mate, there were three who were simply watching the display.
Of those three, Hunter could only see two from where he sat. One was the one who had offered the two a chance to surrender, and the other was the one he had clawed in the eye. As the one-eyed scav glanced over at the red slugcat, he smirked. Hunter laughed as the scav tried to lunge for him, having to be held back by the other scavenger standing by his side.
Survivor’s eyes suddenly opened a bit further, looking at him. “Hunt…?” The white slugcat’s voice was weak, barely above a whisper. The bleeding wound ran blood down into his left eye, and he closed it tightly with a small whine.
Hunter forcibly pushed down his anger at the scavs around him in favor of giving his mate a confident smile. “Surv, everything will be fine. We’ll get out of this!” Some optimism couldn’t hurt, right?
However, Survivor's gaze shifted, fear overtaking him. Hunter followed his mate's line of sight just in time to see a flash of metal. His head was pulled back, exposing his throat to a sharp blade. Flinching as the blade broke his skin, Hunter felt warmth as blood trickled down.
“NO! PLEASE DON’T HURT HIM!” Survivor screamed desperately, audibly trying to fight against the scavengers holding him. Hunter heard footsteps and then the sound of a slap, accompanied by his mate yelping in pain.
He growled as he tried to struggle again, uncaring of the weapon against his throat. Unfortunately, or maybe fortunately, considering the knife, Hunter was completely unable to move an inch. “What’s this for, huh? This for your tribe filled with cowards?” The red slugcat taunted, attempting to take all the heat off his mate. "You can't fight us fairly in three cycles, so you pull something like this?” He barked a laugh, and the knife pushed down a bit further. “Pathetic!” A moment of silence reigned, with only whispered chitters that he could not make out being audible.
There was shifting behind Hunter, and not before long, the holder of the knife was chittering in his left ear. “We are actually not here on command of the tribe; this is more personal than that, red one.” The red slugcat froze. Personal? A scavenger he had wronged? He did not recognize the voice, he did not think it was the scav he had executed the past cycle. Who could it be then? Fuck, as always, his violent ways had come back to haunt him and his mate!
Hunter gritted his teeth. “Listen, if you want to enact your revenge on me, you can do whatever you like.” He swallowed nervously, hearing his mate sob quietly. “Beat me, torture me, kill me, and fucking throw me in the void sea, if you’d so like.” The red slugcat failed to suppress a growl as his tone darkened. “But don’t fucking hurt him; he has nothing to do with any of what I might have done to you.”
The sound of cruel laughter right next to his sensitive ear made him wince in pain for a short moment. “Oh, but this is way better. We never cared much for getting revenge on The Red Death; getting revenge on you will feel so much sweeter.”
Hunter growled loudly, his voice dropping to a rough whisper. “When we meet again, when I find where you are hiding in the future cycles, when I come to save my mate, I am going to personally ensure the rest of your living cycles will be spent in horrible pain. Do you understand?” There was no response, so he screamed instead. “You’re dead! You hear me? DEAD!”
Suddenly, the knife was removed from his throat, and his head was let go. Hunter’s gaze fell back on his mate, who looked relieved to see him alive. “Enough of this.” The scav with the knife muttered, walking around the red slugcat and stopping in front of the cyclops-scavenger. The red slugcat did not recognize the scav's voice, nor his appearance. “Here, you finish the job.” He handed the knife over and walked into the forest.
Survivor suddenly started to get pulled away by the scavengers holding him, and his expression turned a lot less relieved. “H-Hunter!” He yelled in a panic, struggling against the ones holding him. “HUNTER!”
“LET HIM GO, YOU BASTARDS!” Hunter screamed, his struggles renewing as Survivor was taken away in the same direction as the scav that had held the knife to his throat, the dark brown scav following as well. Eventually leaving only the one-eyed scav and the ones holding his arms. They’ll kill him! No, worse… They have him alive! Who knows what they’ll do? I have to save him; I have to break free!
Suddenly, Hunter’s view of his mate being pulled away was blocked by the ugly bastard with one eye. He had a wicked grin on his face as he showed the red slugcat the knife made of sharpened bone, probably lizard. The scav spat some blood that had run down into his mouth from his eye onto the ground. “I’m going to enjoy this.”
The red slugcat huffed and put on a brave face as he stared the scav down. “Do your worst.” The sooner the cycle restarted, the faster Hunter could work to save his mate.
With a grin, the scavenger roughly grabbed hold of his throat and squeezed. The air escaped Hunter's lungs as the scavenger's grip constricted, and he choked panickedly. Swiftly, the knife’s sharp edge plunged into Hunter's gut, pain exploding through his torso. The red slugcat's strangled scream echoed through the trees as the one-eyed enemy in front of him smiled even wider at his pain.
The scavenger withdrew the blade, admiring the blood-soaked edge for a short moment, before ruthlessly thrusting it in beside the initial wound. Hunter's vision dimmed, enveloped in an overwhelming wave of agony. Desperation crept in as he started to hope for a quicker end through fainting and blood loss.
Unfortunately, the scavenger wasn't content with mere stab wounds. With sadistic intent, he forced open Hunter's right eye using his fingers, a menacing glint in his lone eye. The scavenger suddenly aimed the blade for the red slugcat’s eye, and he felt fear and dread overtake him.
A sudden impact on Hunter's left side snapped him to attention, warm liquid splashing onto his face. His left arm was suddenly free, and the scavenger in front of him, frozen in his menacing pose, looked equally shocked and blood-splattered. Seizing the opportunity, Hunter, fueled by adrenaline, squirmed out of his captor's hold. With a burst of unexpected strength, he snatched the knife from his adversary's hand and, before the scavenger could react, plunged the blade into his other eye. A scream echoed through the trees, not Hunter's this time, as he pulled the blade free and turned to confront the remaining scavenger.
Hunter’s attempt was cut very short as the scavenger thrust a spear into Hunter's shoulder as soon as he turned around, sending the red slugcat collapsing to the ground with another scream of pain. On his back once again, more injured than ever, Hunter gazed up at the sky through a haze of sun and blood loss. An orange shape rushed past him, screams and chittering voices filling the air as there were sounds of a struggle. Through the fog in his head, Hunter vaguely registered the fully-blinded scavenger's cries and a struggle nearby, a familiar voice joined by a stranger.
Struggling to put pressure on his stomach wounds, Hunter felt the pain dulling, replaced by an ominous coldness. Panic surged through him—he couldn't die, not now. Survivor was still taken, and he needed to save him. More chittered shouting filled the air, abruptly silenced by a deafening explosion, the ensuing shock wave ruffled his fur, and the boom left Hunter disoriented and his ears ringing.
An orange shape, vaguely familiar to Hunter and covered in red splotches, appeared before him, urgently shouting as he pressed down on the red slugcat's wounds. Hunter's injuries no longer pained him, and a sense of detachment settled in. He knew he did not have a lot of time left and that he was fading fast. Coughing up something warm onto his chest, he struggled to communicate. "Surv..." he coughed, tasting copper, unable to comprehend the response from his orange friend. "Did you...see where they went?" Hunter pleaded, seeing a nod from the orange shape. "Go... save him... please." As Hunter felt himself slip away, he understood; there was no point in wasting energy on him. Collector needed to track down Survivor; he needed to save his mate.
Collector hesitated for only a short moment, then bowed his head and chittered before swiftly departing. Please save him, Hunter thought, coughing as his vision darkened. Void, save my mate. He tried to move, to look around, and to stay awake, but it became impossible.
Save him... Survivor...
My love... I’m… sorry… I…
Then everything went dark.