CHPT 357: A Lupine's Terrain...

Claude sat at the mouth of the cave, crouched down on one knee like a man in the presence of a god. A god that stalked behind the puffy white clouds rolling across the dark skies. In an odd sort of mirroring, they mimicked the tumbleweeds, loose snowy sand and sticks below that followed the clouds wind led trajectory.

Every gust and woosh of the unseen force fell on his ears. Every touch, every ruffle of dried bushes, every echo. His ears twitched and turned in response to it all while his nose grabbed the dozens of scents that stuck to each current that happened to fly under his nose.

Even his fingers that rested on the cold stone floor of the ground felt every small crack and uneven groove with perfect clarity.

Sensory Focus. A blessing and a curse. In times like this, all it could be seen as to him was a blessing. Currently, a blessing failing to deliver.

Failing to find what had lead him to waking up in a cave occupied by a dead oversized Lion of arguable origin. As soon as Ursula said it was something she was running from, his stomach clenched and hadn't released it's hold since. Whatever it was, Ursula had said in her dazed state that she was happier to fight the grizzled old Lion instead of figuring out what was in the desert.

But for Claude, it didn't take much figuring out to form an accurate assumption. One small detail of her story told him everything.

Gil noticed whatever it was first.

Demons. Large scale demons that scared off the ever growing pack without even fully being seen. Not a good sign. It could've been a new HellBreeder, some powerful Monster empowered by an Armament of the UnderWorld-- or worse. It could've been the one's at the helm of it all. They were in their lands after all.

None of it was a good sign. In fact, it was terrible-- the falling sun had now become their clock, and when it struck six and fell behind the dozens of sanded hills and mountains....their chance of survival was about as close to zero as Claude was close to being eaten by yet another Snake only an hour ago.

Many things were wrong. The Demon's errily-- too perfect, appearance, the HellBred and their game of follow the breadcrumbs with an incredibly rare and mythologically recognized Serpent....and the cat. That sleek black cat in the darkest pocket of shadows in the sun baked winter desert. Seemingly the least harmless appearance of the many they'd witnessed so far.....but undeniably one of the oddest. The image of it's cold piercing green eyes made him shiver. He knew animals-- more than most. But the disconnect he felt with the cats-- it was horrifying.

In spite of all the dangers that rustled the sands of the desert, he sensed nothing. Neither a good or bad sign.

"I can't hear anything of concern...or smell...or feel. And Gil hasn't told me anything out of the usual. We need to go while we can. Sleeping here is out of the question." Claude said to the others behind him as he stood up, feeling his bare feet connecting firmly with the earth. "Dammit. I just got those shoes..."

"I was thinking the same thing. Let's move." Ursula replied after finally rising to her feet to face Claude.

Claude turned to face her, watching how she tried to hide the pain it caused to stand with all her bruises, cuts and fractures. She wouldn't ever say a thing about it-- not in a time like this. But, since he could hear her screaming and cursing obscenities in her mind, she didn't need to say a word.

"We're not leaving yet."

"What-- why?" Ursula said, slight panic heightened her voice.

Claude tapped his long aquiline nose, "If you step out there covered in all your dried blood and tiredness, we could alert a lot of unsavory figures...."

"I'm not tired.....I can go all day." She lied.

"....Right." Claude retorted with a faint smile as he strode past her and approached the Lion's corpse.

Before Ursula could even begin to question what he was doing, the sound of ripping and tearing filled the cave for the next ten minutes.

***

After it was all over, Claude's right arm and the spear he held were coated in Lions blood and strands of discarded golden fur. Even under the ruby dye of blood, it still glimmered faintly with life.

As he bundled up the hide in his arms and stood, there were a few instances where he had to take a second glance at the hide after feeling it writhe in his arms. But, every-time he looked to the hide, it looked the same.

"Weird..."

"What's the matter?" Ursula asked after jolting upright from where she leaned against the cave wall to the right of him, trying her best to pretend she wasn't just fighting a losing battle with her most often victorious foe. Sleep.

"Nothing..." Claude mumbled before addressing her more directly, "This is our diversion. I wiped most of the blood from the hide against the cave walls, most of it's smell consists of Lion fur and death. Much less drawing smells when compared to blood and the very confusing scent of Lupines. This should help us in moving under any radar's we don't want to be in."

Ursula nodded along casually, flexing her jaw in place to try and force away the yawn attempting to escape her mouth, "....Smart. But what about you? and the others?"

Claude held out his left arm, aiming his palm to the Phantom Legion that sat at the exit out of the cave. As soon as the dark mark lined with unknown lettering faced the shadowy beast, the dark aura surrounding them swirled and flowed across the cave and into his hand.

In seconds, the massive Phantom Legion was no more than a twisting cyclone of shadows with eyes that swirled into his palm. By the time Ursula looked back towards where they once sat patiently, they were gone.

Gil followed by running up from behind Claude and simply jumping into his back, colliding with his body in a burst of green arcs of flaming energy while more and more of the Hound sunk into him as if his back also functioned as an unseen gateway.

And just like that, the cave was now only occupied by four individuals.

"Hopefully Frosty won't attract much..." Claude mumbled nervously.

"And you?" Ursula persisted, now more awake looking than before.

"Oh don't worry about me. Wrap yourself in this." Claude said, tossing her the hide as he stepped deeper into the shadows of the cave, sheathing his spears in near silence.

Ursula refrained from questioning what else he had planned. They'd already wasted enough time.

With a pained growl she began fitting the oddly warm feeling hide over her scarred body while Claude disappeared into the shadows behind her.

***

After a few minutes had passed, the hide wrapped her like a cloak with the Lion's massive headpiece hanging from the back of her neck like a barbarians hood. The paws of the Lion hide hung across her chest like a loosely fit scarf.

With the sounds of her trying to appropriately wear it gone, she could fully hear the crackle and pop of bone followed by pained huffs and oddly familiar growls.

Frosty stood beside her, facing the shadowy depths behind her with his ears straight and hackles raised-- but his head twisted and turned repeatedly like a confused puppy.

Even so, the hairs on the back of Ursula's neck rose. When she went to itch away her growing goosebumps, her hand was studded by the hook-like claws of her not yet seen true form along with a thin covering of dark auburn fur running over the back of her hand and knuckles.

"Shift Inspiration....." She realized as the rush of adrenaline woke her with a jolt that had her running to grab her axes.

When she turned to face the shadows, ready to run inside to see what made Claude change, she found his green eyes bobbing right to left in the shadows with the smooth gait of his walk as he approached them.

"C-Claude...." She said, realizing with every step he made closer that he wasn't his usual six and a half foot self. Now he was closer to seven and a half.

"Yep. I'm good." He replied, stepping out of the shadows with his pawed hybrid feet making no noise with each step.

Now much more visible-- she was even more confused. His feet and legs were completely transformed-- with each muscle and tendon bulging beneath the furry and leathery grey skin. His upper body was changed as well-- just less intensely. Less fur-- less monstrous bulk. When he spoke from beneath the shadows of his long dark hair, she could see his sharpened teeth glisten in the from within his slightly elongated jaw and mouth.

She sat in silence for a few seconds before it clicked in her mind, "You unlocked the ability to transform without the Moon?"

Claude pulled up his hood and mask, "Mhm."

"....And you're all there....no bloodlust-- no feral anger?"

Claude looked at his hands, moving the fingers and closing them repeatedly, causing his claws to click and snap against each other, "All me." He said, sounding just as confused.....or amazed.

"Alright....let's move then." She said as Frosty bunched up the bundle of fangs and picked them up by the fabric of Ursula's cloak in his jaws.

FWOO!

"Ah!"

As she turned to leave, a flash of movement blew past her left side. Immediately after, her good arm was lifted and she was off her feet. The action caused her to flinch and tighten up. When she finally opened her eyes, she was on Claude's back as he lightly bounded down the rocky terrain to reach the desert beyond.

Frosty ran at their left with the bundle of snake fangs in his jaws while Blackbeak flew above them in silence.

"I can walk, you know?" Ursula protested above the howling winds hitting her ears due to their speed.

"Of course. But we need to be running.....fast....as hell." Claude replied, voice deepened by his slightly transformed state.

Ursula conceded and tried not to move or disrupt the run as she replied with a smile, "Asshole."

"You're welcome."