Some more Zeldi training - Kiko was finding she loved this weapon, it was so cool! - stamina building and strength building exercises and an hour of what was apparently becoming enlightened to the flow of the universe through all things. It was apparently magic related, and Kiko used that to catch a quick nap because it was not going well for her at all.

After all this activity - and a restful night that was very serious because Ele didn't even ask to bed Kiko tonight - came the morning. The kitsunes were outfitted with proper shoes, leather jackets to go under the uniform, and weapons of choice. Kiko picked up a Zeldi to match Ele, and a brace of knives. She wasn't super talented with throwing shit, but she had manual dexterity and depth of vision down enough to make an accurate throw if needed.

The excursion was a lot more than just a few guys going to cut trees; carts prepared and followers bringing rods for fishing, baskets for gathering herbs, bows for hunting. Apparently people took advantage of the situation to get a bit of everything, which was understandable. Feeling nervous and not sure if she was going to be able to connect properly with the guards and Fatherborn, the caravan set out!

Not content to just smack the closest tree and call it a day, they wandered for an hour until they got to a specific grove of trees. Darker than the trees that surrounded it, and thrice as tall, this was what the Kitsune Woodsmen were looking for, as tools were retrieved and work began. The followers had dispersed, taking a guard with them to fish and gather, or leaving alone to hunt. Splitting into four quadrants of five men to cover each direction, it was here that Kiko found why the party was so large.

Far from the patrolled cities and policed outskirts, in the depths of the forests and mountains, stalked the Beasts. First sighting was called by one of the Watchers, a pair of Scraps approaching the noise. Scraggily looking dogs with little cohesion, they were known to attract their own kind with baying howls once they had found an point of interest. Furious and cadaverous, they were little threat to a trained warrior, but did have a habit of appearing in large number and could overwhelm small groups of two or three. Smaller clans had to set traps and clear out a parameter before gathering, but large clans like Yeni's would just match the number of Beasts wholesale and meet them head on.

The howls came, signalling the attraction of it's kin, and a few seconds later the howls stopped as Kiko threw a knife at it. Not a shot that would kill instantly, but one that caused a great deal of pain. The second beast would rush into the group of Kitsunes and be impaled on the tightly packed formation of spears and Zeldi.

This was the next hour, Watchers calling breach points for each quadrant of Kitsunes to cover, and beasts being slain. Kiko got laser focused on the incoming targets and thrusted for the skull as accurately as possible, focusing on ignoring the blood and jolt of driving the metal through flesh and bone. Just when everything seemed to be going well, a nearby tree was almost obliterated when a bulky suit of armour was smashed into it. Following, came a trio of giant bull-men, taller than the suit of armour and massive in muscles. The front bull was bleeding out of numerous wounds, and then died when the suit of armour launched a twelve inch nail through it's eye with a resounding crack.

Pushing out and off from the tree, the suit of armour met the charge of the second bull-creature head on, catching it's horns and digging short spikes into the ground with it's feet to reinforce posture. From here, the suit smashed it's head against the bull's skull and then activated high beam lights from the eyes, burning the bull's retinas. While it seemed the suit was doing pretty well against this bull creature, the Kitsunes had their own problems with the fact that the second creature had decided to not bother trying to deal with the suit, and turn it's head towards the Kitsunes gathered instead...

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

As if taking advantage of the Bull-creature, the Scraps appeared again in large numbers, throwing themselves at the formations of Kitsunes and leaving Kiko's group to deal with this bull alone. Seeing how well it's brother was pushing back an anchored metal robot, the Kitsunes quickly dispersed the tight formation and got into a mobile gathering. Kiko threw the rest of her knives at it, but might as well not have bothered. Big though the head was, her aim was not amazing and the thing actually dodged the one knife that was threatening to do more than graze or lodge in the horn. Though the knife was helpful in the fact that it showed this creature as not just a monster, but a monster with a brain.

Didn't mean it wasn't going to have base instincts however, and so it ran straight at the Kitsunes, who scattered out of the way and then lashed stabs and slashes at the beast with their long shafts. Harrowing the beast, they could not manage to get a good enough hit, only grazing at it's side. One Kitsune stepped in and thrust their spear with great force, but got stuck in the thick muscles of the beast, and the crunch of bone that followed the bull's backhand made it clear they weren't getting back up again.

Seeing this situation seriously turn against them, Kiko pulled off her necklace and be filled with fire in her veins. Violently tossing the spear at the beast and then setting off at a sprint, she caught it's attention with the powerful impact. It was only a few moments before she launched off the ground and up. Catching herself from overshooting on the beast's horns, she'd drag herself in and smash her foot against it's head. Planting her foot there, the handhold on the beasts horns would then be used to rip them out of it's skull.

The bull did not take kindly to that and grabbed Kiko as the horns ripped out, the grip crushingly tight as he slammed her against the ground and then threw her into a tree. Blood Moons were a resilient bunch, but even Kiko's vision was going grey as her body screamed in pain. Needed to get up, to attack, to kill! Hands curled into fists so tightly the nails dug into her palm, she stood up shakily and let out a scream. The bull, currently crushing the chest of another with it's hoof, looked over to Kiko with a surprised and shocked expression.

But, this was it. She was shattered, and the beast's hide was incredible. There was no way she'd be able to win. She had to....she needed....more. Something better. Something stronger. Her heart let out a beg, a demand, an order! If there was anything in the universe that was hers to hear the call, then do so now and come to her!

Not waiting for a reply, the Bull rushed at her, thundering gait stumbling some as a pair of Kitsunes drove their spears into it's thigh. A furious swipe that put the pair on the floor with a glance was all the distraction that was needed. Kiko unconsciously held out her hand and caught a sword that came screaming through the forest as if shot out of a cannon. A beautiful white blade, as if made out of the perfect, flawless diamonds. These diamonds immediately shifted into the deepest of blue as Kiko grasped it, and then she sliced clean through the fist thrown at her with it.

There was hardly any resistance as bone and flesh parted. Sliding through the fist as if not even there, there was also nothing stopping this fist from smashing into Kiko's face. Already having trouble staying on her feet, the blow took Kiko from consciousness immediately, shattering her nose and cracking her skull as she passed out....