Michael, Vodra and Nushii have been swapping turns fishing, the little hole in the ground with water where they would dump their catches already being near full.

As the fishing got slower, the three kept talking, Michael and Nushii being the one to handle the rods while Vodra rested.

"So you are barely a young adult by your kin's standards?" Vodra asked as she laid back in the grass.

"Y-yeah, but honestly it didn't even feel like that back home. My own family still keep treating me the same as always in certain regards, but also thought I should be more mature about others. It felt so confusing at times that... they almost looked at me like a child pretending to be adult, but honestly it was infuriating at times. Also don't get me started on how hard my perception changed with time on being a mature person. When I was little I thought adults had their life figured out, it is so weird when you realize even they barely knew what they were doing... it certainly got easier to see that once I got older though." The young man went on with his rant, letting out a relifed sigh as he finished it.

"Hm... you miss your mate back home? Leaving out of nowhere must have been scary for her." Nushii said while yanking out of the water a fish, this time with more finesse, tossing it in the fish hole after.

"Well I'm certain my family's having a god damn mental breakdown over it. My mother must have bawled her eyes out, my grandparents might feel miserable, I'm kind of afraid for my father. He and my mother... didn't get along and he was living alone, we... didn't talk as much as I wanted, but he cared for me in his own way. My sister, I think she'd miss me too, but I don't think she'd show it to many others except maybe mum. As far as... 'mates' go... I didn't have one. Finding partners back home... well... it is a complicated headache. Not like it is going to get easier here." Michael said scratching the back of his neck.

"Why not? The Cackle had captured before couples of different kin. Hells... I remember for certain we had an apillian woman at some point that was together with a lopien man." Vodra replied back curious.

"Lopien? How'd he look?" Michael quickly inquired, interested in knowing what other species were there.

"Uhm... short, really strong legs, long ears, big teeth..." Vodra said with small pauses as she tried remembering.

'Ah-... that's a rabbit guy. Wait... that means there's rabbit women. Ho god no... playing that damn mmo, End Story XIV, might actually spell my doom... god were the rabbit women nice in that one. I'm not a furry, but... man... it'd be nice to have a girlfriend. Still... forming that kind of attachment is not good if I'm planning to go back home... I'd break a person's heart.' Michael would then clear his throat as he nodded listening, crossing his legs harshly in the process. "Hm... hm... interesting... yup." He said nonchalantly, trying to give as less of a reaction as possible.

While Michael kept imagining what Lopien women might look like and Nushii was focused on her fishing, Vodra, who was relaxing, shot up as a smell hit her nostrils. Looking around she noticed immediately the moving figures all around them in the grass, covered in mud and plants. "It's an ambush!" She growled as she unsheated a short sword and dagger.

Nushii dropped her rod and turned around with two daggers drawn herself.

Out of the 12 Hay-yen that surrounded them from all sides, the river being the only open direction, one yelled out. "You might not want to turn your blade on your own Cackle, sisters. Unless the Daeman properly has you under its spell." Roared out a voice.

"Retzen?" Nushii yelped confused as her ears flopped.

"Hah. So you didn't forget your own cousin, you mangey airhead." The Hay-yen replied back quickly. "Speak quick, for we wish to gut that blasted thing. Are you traitors or bound by its magicks?"

Michael who was still rather slow, sat there as a chill went down his spine, only having seen the dozen of attackers with the corner of his eye. 'Oh fuck... this couldn't have been a worse fucking time. We're alone, my body is all sorts of fucked still and trying to do magic might end up crippling me even worse. What the hell do I do? I have a vial of Woh's poison so I'll be able to fight, but it's just too many...' As Michael dripped with sweat, feeling a panic attack building in his heart, his eyes then widened with a realization. He still had one weapon he could always rely on.

Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

As Vodra growled and was about to reply to Retzen's question in a equally agressive manner, Michael then laughed loudly. This action got the attention, not only of the dozen attackers, but also his two companions.

The young man then stood up, the way he carried himself changing entirely, oozing a cocky confidence and a wicked look in his eye. "Traitors? Bound? No, no. They're just... house broken, pets as one could say. Took a while, too." Michael said as he walked inbetween the two Hay-yen. He would then in the most casual way wrap an arm around Nushii's waist and his other would grasp Vodra's head by going under and grasping the other side of her face, pulling her closer. "Gotta satisfy more than just my hunger for raw flesh and blood. They seemed... fitting, like a glove, one could say."

Nushii and Vodra looked at Michael with blank stares as if they just saw the weirdest creature in existence just pop out of a bush. The latter though quickly caught on to what was happening.

"Michael, what d-" Nushii uttered confused before a snarling Vodra grabbed her snout and closed it.

"You dumb bitch! We are not to utter Master's name lest we are in his chambers!" She said loudly, lowering her head and ears before Michael.

Retzen was taken aback for a moment, before her anger came back up, as she pointed a short sword at the three, the other eleven Hay-yen getting ready to pounce. "Daeman, what have you done to them?! Release them at once, we have you surrounded."

The young man with an unimpressed expression, looked at the impromptu attack leader. "Pardon me a moment." He then turned his gaze to Vodra and Nushii. "Now you two, no more fighting. Also don't jump like that with weapons ready, I could sense them in the brush, but I hoped they'd just pass by. Sigh... so much for a relaxing day. Gods this is... so much more exciting!" He said turning to face the dozen attackers with a big toothy smile and a laugh leaving his throat, a continous, mad and excited laugh.

Part of the twelve Hay-yen found themselves taken by surprise by Michael's reaction, a clear hesitation showing in their posture.

"Hah?! You think you can take twelve of us you hellspawn? You really underestimating the Hay-yen might." Retzen snarled as she kept showing a strong willingness to fight.

"Perfect! That is what I want. Spirit. Hell... the blood tastes so much better when they truly believe they have a chance." Michael said loudly, but quickly his expression changed to one of surprise and then sheer angered frustration. So angry in fact did he seem that he even angrily yelled. "WAIT A FUCKING MOMENT?! MOST OF YOU LOT LOOK LIKE YOU ARE STARVING?!" He nearly screamed, his voice roaring indignantly.

This remark managed to take even Retzen by surprise. "Hah?"

"You come here, looking to give me a bloody and good fight and you think you can satisfy my blood lust when most of you look already half dead?!" Michael said as he tossed his arms up in the air. He then once more wrapped his arms around his two allies. "Look how I have been feeding these two. Proper muscle and fat on these ones." She said giving the twos thighs some slaps, which got them to yelp, Nushii genuinely and confused, Vodra more to keep up the act. "Hufufu~ they can sure take a pounding."

Retzen at this point was falling into a sort of flustered confusion, along most of her comrades, but she tried pressing on. "Y-you are just a vile vermin! You still don't stand a chance and your intimidation shall not work. Your blood will be spilled!" She continued, a slight unsteadyness to her hand.

Michael nodded agreeing as he slowly walked to the hole of fish they had. "Of course we are fighting, but not like this. I want nothing more than to spill your blood and mine. Mmngh~... let it mix in the soil and give us that wonderful fragrance of death. Agh~... I want you all so badly..."

"W-what?!" Asked another attacking Hay-yen as he or she heard that, which got Retzen to look back to see who it was.

"YOU HEARD ME! I WANT YOU ALL! Gods in hell... the sheer thought of the smell of your blood, crunch of your bones as you try to cut me open and I massacre you... hmm~ pets, after we're done here, you'll be busy tonight." Michael said as he picked up some fish and he began gutting them in the middle of speaking, tossing their blood and innards around playfully. "Ahem... before I get ahead of myself. I shan't fight you before you eat." The young man continued most calmly and pleasant in tone.

The twelve Hay-yen were now throughly thrown off, Retzen just as much as the others. Her ears flicked downwards for a moment. "P-pardon?" He voice came out like a creaky whimper this time.

"You lot, my dear new play mates, have gotten me hot and bothered for a slaughter, but I shall not be disrespected by having you come at me looking like starving vagrants. I want blood to spill out of your full guts, not dust." Michael said as he then ordered Nushii and Vodra to start a fire.

After he took a moment to make a few skewers with fish he turned around facing the group of Hay-yen with a warm expression. "Come and eat! For after we may rest and then be jolly as we kill one another! Hahaha~" He said with a most welcoming and happy tone.

The Hay-yen ambushers stared into his gleeful eyes as a sense of dread began being set in by this monster's welcome. All was going according to plan as the seed of self doubt had been planted and the waters of confusion make it set.