Tale of the Outcast Warrior: Sisters, Liars, and a VERY angry kittycat.

DATS UNTIL WAVE: 66

Tyler woke up the next morning feeling quite refreshed and ready to kill some Wyverns, as they would hit the forest by noon. He rose from his bedroll, and glanced over to she Malico and kaori asleep in each other's arms. What the hell did I miss last night? maybe I should set up a surveillance spell next time. Disappointed at the show he had no doubt missed, he sighed and went to get the fire restarted. Once he had the flames blazing merrily, he set some more strips of Wyvern meat on a rock, huh Wyvern bacon why not? I was so tired last night I don't remember what the meat even tastes like. He went about his task, mentally checking the Protective Warning as he did so. All clear, he doubted word would reach that prick viscount that his troops were dead that quickly, plus once the spell was done nature would clean up the mess. With the meat sizzling, he set some coffee to brewing, and put the last of their bread to toast. Huh, we're starting to run low on most supplies except for meat and water, I wonder if Malico knows of any other settlements...wait I got a friggin magical map! why the hell did it take so friggin long for me to remember that? He slapped his face for that blunder, as he had completely forgotten about the vital tool. He walked back into the tent, pissed at himself, and retrieved the large piece of rolled parchment, when he heard an erotic moan coming from by the girls,

"Oh ,Mali that DOES feel good, don't stop! please! more! give me more!"

Beads of sweat dripping from his neck, he looked over to see that kaori was deep in a dream, squirming and even gyrating against Malico's thigh. Tyler could not believe his eyes, WHAT THE HELL DID I MISS LAST NIGHT? THAT IS IT! I'M SETTING SURVEILENCE TONIGHT AND EVERYNIGHT FORWARD!!! Tyler also noticed the look of satisfaction on the sleeping Malico's face, and the redness on both her face and nipples. Tyler was now angry at himself for falling asleep so readily last night and missing the show of a lifetime AND for forgetting about the map. Tyler had no choice but to exit the tent before he lost it, both from frustration and from his second brain wanting to come out to play. So he did just that. Tyler left the girls to their unconscious fun, and returned to the fire were the meat was just about done, and the coffee was also ready. He set three places on the rock, with the map spread out in the center. Tyler cast the map spell and it flared to life. Unlike the last time it had opened it only showed basic information like towns, cities, rivers, and such. This time through, the map had a fair bit more color then it did previously, mainly along the group's travel route starting from Term, along the road to the side of the riverbank where Tyler and Kaori had been ambushed the first time. The river's name, apparently was SkyStream, heh, fitting, then the line of green grassland went to Malico's village, called Hero's Rest. Tyler smiled at the sight of the village on the map, glad that they had stopped there. Then the green line extended all the way to Dragul, and then to their current location. As Tyler traced the line to their current spot, he noticed a small town a little further north, maybe half a day's journey from where they were now. The best part was that it was situated half-in half-out of the forest with the Wyvern clan. His smile at the good luck faded as he considered the implications of the village's position, Okay, we need to move out soon, that village may have information, and wounded. ten gold says it's been nearly wiped out. Now firmly resolute with a course of action, Tyler went to rouse the girls. Striding back in the tent, he found them both still in the midst of their combined wet dream; kaori still gyrating and moaning, and Malico still purring to the blonde in her dreams. Tyler was sad he had to ruin the idyllic scene, but he wanted to get to the village and start working.

"Alright ladies, time to wake up."

at the sound of his voice, both girls jerked awake, yawning and rubbing sleep from their eyes. Kaori replied first,

"What's up another attack?"

Tyler shook his head,

"Come see this"

And left the tent, to sit by the map again. Now both curious and a little worried the girls followed him outside. The naked Warrioress and catgirl, sat across from Tyler,

"Okay what's up?"

"Yes do tell"

Tyler looked them both in the eyes, a serious expression on his face, and pointed to the forest village on the map,

"Okay so look here. You see what I see?"

Malico was the first to look, and when see did, her face went immediately pale. When she spoke, her voice a horrified quiver as she put her finger on the village,

"That's Tuska village, it's a Tailed village."

She had tears flowing freely from her green-cat's-eyes,

"MY YOUNGER SISTER LIVES HERE!"

At the words, kaori and Tyler exploded into action, downing the bacon and coffee. The pair of Warriors then broke camp with furious intent, Tyler tore the tent down, and put out the fire, Kaori dressed and readied the horses using all her speed and agility to hasten the tasks, Tyler looked a the still seated and stunned catgirl and barked at her,

"Don't just sit there! Move! We need to go...NOW!!!"

At his shout the catgirl was galvanized into action, throwing her shorts and crop top on, then aiding in the breaking of camp. Camp was broken in under two minutes flat, and the trio were mounted and ready to move out. Tyler released his spell, and gave the order,

"Let's go!"

thus the companions raced forward, desperate to rescue Malico's younger sister. They thundered along as fast as the horses would go.

"Hey! is this another sister then the one at the tavern?"

Kaori was asking the concerned catgirl,

"Yeah! she's the same age as Miyuki, she lives out there with our cousins, as she didn't like tavern life! and Houndra let her!"

Tyler then issued an updated combat plan,

"Alright, listen up! Our only priority is rescuing Malico's sister, the village is secondary, understood?" "Understood!"

"Right!"

Both girls were ready to aid in the rescue operation. Malico was deeply touched at the pair's immediate reaction,

"You guys, thank you for this!"

Tyler wasted zero time with his response,

"Don't thank us Malico, your loved ones are our loved ones."

Here he turned to look her in the eye, "And I protect the ones I love!" He held her gaze for a moment before turning back to the road. Kaori also chimed in, "That's right, Mal, we love you! And we'll save your sister, I promise!" Malico started tearing up in the face of such starch friends, "Don't you waste those tears Malico! save them for your reunion with your sister!"

Tyler called out. Malico steadied herself,

"Right!"

She then lowered her head, focusing on going even faster. Tyler was proud of her, but inwardly he berated himself, I KNEW there was something off with that jackass's story! Why didn't the full hunter party return? Why did only one scout return? Why wouldn't he tell me the full story? And most importantly why didn't he tell us about the village? I was lazy, he didn't tell us because the village is the friggin BATTLEFIELD, and given how much that city tortures the Tailed races, I'm amazed they went at all! The hunters probably lead the monster to the village in the first place! But a village living on the edge of a place like that has to be full of capable fighters, not the cowering, terrified push overs they'd been used to dealing with. The hunters probably had to fight the Wyverns for real, instead of their usual patterns, and were overwhelmed. The scouts probably were ambushed as well, both by the villagers and the Wyverns. It's gonna be a mess when we get there. I just hope for Malico's sake her sister's okay. BUT....Here Tyler's thoughts turned dark, If what I suspect is true, and there ARE no Wyverns, but a group of village fighters by the same name, and her sister died during the skirmish between the "hunters" and the "Wyverns", I WILL BURN THAT CITY TO THE GROUND. Tyler spurred Thunder with his heels,

"Come on show me why you're called Thunder!"

The horse respond with a scream and dug his hooves into the ground, propelling them even faster. kaori spurred Gloss, and Malico did the same to Night.

They heard the village before they saw it, namely the screams, clash of steel and loud hissing. The village was under attack. Tyler drew Oblivion, Kaori drew Dawn, and Malico readied her daggers. The village had a barricade guarding the front entrance, but Thunder leapt over it with ease, so did Gloss and Night. The center of the circular village was a scene of utter chaos. In the dead center were small group of Tailed people wearing chainmail and wielding spears, surrounding them were a large platoon of soldiers and full-knights. The knights wore full plate armour emblazoned with the Viscount's insignia: A Tailed girl kneeling before a human with her mouth open and the humans pants down. Tyler didn't wait further and began casting his new spell, I call to the water goddess, Ravical, Lend your loyal servant the power of the oceans! Drown those who would oppose the power of the sea! Pierce those who try to fight the waters of life with ice WATERBURST!!!! Tyler had upgraded the Wallgate commanders spell into his own style. As his chant was completed, a massive ball of water appeared over the heads of the Tailed people, causing them to groan with despair at the clear arrival of a powerful mage. The ball then dropped upon the brave fighters incasing them in a wall of roiling water. They were about to panic when they realized they could still breath in the massive ball, and their wounds were starting to be healed as well. For that was the secondary purpose of WaterBurst that Tyler had given to the spell" an area was encompassed in a barrier of wildly roiling water, creating a protective wall, next it would sprinkle droplets over those inside and since they were infused with Divine Care, one of his healing spells, it would begin treating the wounded while protecting them from further harm. But that was the secondary Purpose, The primary was..."BURST!!" The wall then grew spikes of water and it exploded outward flinging the hard as steel, razor sharp spikes in all outward directions, impaling a fair number of the enemy knights right through their fancy armour. Tyler charged the confused attackers,

"GO NOW!! KAORI!!! WITH ME! MALICO GET THE WOUNDED OUT OF HERE! WE'LL DEAL WITH THE SURVIVORS!"

Tyler and Kaori smashed into the men, scattering them like pins on a perfect strike. Tyler's strength and unpredictability aiding him as he cut through first one, then two, then three soldiers in quick succession. His brute force and savage ferocity on clear display as he drove the soldiers before him. Kaori was the far more elegant, graceful fighter but she was no less deadly. Her long slender blade slashing into the gaps between armour and diving into the flesh beneath. Her dodges and counterattacks were perfectly timed, making her seem like she was merely dancing. whereas Tyler's fighting style was unorthodox and savagely brutal, Kaori's was an elegant dance of death. Together the pair were both breathtakingly beautiful to watch, and impossible to face. Malico had to force her eyes away from the perfectly in sync pair, and turned to evacuate the now-safe villagers. Only the find them completely hypnotized by the display of power and beauty of Tyler and Kaori fighting together. Malico had to slap a few faces to get their attention,

"Hey!!!, Heyyyy!!!! dammit we need to go!!"

The village fighters recovered their senses first, and seemed to want to fight as well, but Malico stayed true to Tyler's order to evacuate the villagers, one particular fighter, a tall broad-shouldered lizard man, glared balefully at the much smaller catgirl through his reptilian eyes,

"What'sss that? you wnat usssss to run away? no ccchanccce!"

Malico roared at the stubborn lizard,

"YOU CAN'T H

ELP THEM. YOU'LL JUST GET IN THEIR WAY!!! THEY CAN HANDLE THIS, THEY'RE BOTH WARRIORS!" At this news the lizardman's green scaly skin seemd to go pale as he realized his error, and then began backing the busty catgirl,

"Warriorsss? Sssssorry! Everyone form up, get the women and ccchildren to sssaftey! We need to leave thisss to the Warriorss! Move!"

At the cold reptile's voice the remainder of the village militia moved into action, guiding the weak and infirm to a large building made of stone near the back of the village circle. As they went a few soldiers who had escaped the main pack battling Tyler and Kaori rushed them. Unfortunately, they had to deal with an angry Malico and her whirling daggers. The soldiers grinned at the prospect of such easy prey, for they were armed with longswords and the righteousness of their Viscount, and a mere catgirl with massive breasts wasn't gonna be enough to even scratch them. The men charged, eager to incapacitate the girl so they could play with her, but they had made a fundamental error in their reasoning: They had forgotten who she'd arrived with. Malico ran with Warriors, and even stood among the pair as an equal, plus the faith Tyler had in her made her stronger as well, since like hell she'd ever disappoint HIM! Malico surged forward, her long tail strung out behind her as she closed the distance with the soldiers with lightning speed. She crouched low as she moved ducking under the first soldier's blade as she went, she hit the man in fifteen different places before he could blink. He fell to the ground as Malico settled into another low-slung stance her blades reversed gripped, and a feral smile on her face. Her tail waved hypnotically over her back and a soldier's eyes left hers to follow it a split second, and she made him pay for it, carving a new smile on his throat with her blades as she passed. There were only two left of the group who had tried to go after the evacuating villagers. They held their blades straight out as they'd been trained and pressed forward, seeking to pin the catgirl either against the wall, or between themselves. The began swinging their blades in tandem, one would strike and the other would cover with their own attack. Malico dodged every time with a playful smile on her face, she knew their plan, Wow, how simple. I guess hanging out with Tyler and his way of seeing the world is starting to rub off on me! She kept up the farce of avoiding the humming blades of the soldiers, that is until tyler's voice rang out to her,

"Hey, kittycat, quit playing and hurry up, we're already finished over here!"

The soldiers turned at the new voice and they instantly went pale, every single soldier that had been behind them had been slain by the duo. The men's cowardly hearts broke and they dropped their swords, running for the village exit as fast as they could, desperate to return to their city, and their easy lives of tormenting the defenseless Tailed people inside the walls. Unfortunately for them, the villagers had other ideas, as a pair of tall, lithe catgirls, with clear yellow and brown striped spots took off after them. Tyler watched them run, heh, guess they're the cheetahs of the Nekoplesians. Certain the two escapees would be caught, Tyler turned himself to other matters,

"hey, Malico, where's this sister of yours?"

Malico's head perked up,

"Oh right!"

She ran over to the same Lizardman who'd taken command of the evacuating villagers,

"Excuse me, but is there a smallish NekoPlesian with a solid black tail and ears in the village? Her name's Juniper, and she's my sister"

The Lizardman's eyes grew wide at the name, then they grew sad,

"Yesss, there wass,"

His voice trailed off, Tyler, who'd been on watch nearby was at Malico's side in a heartbeat,

"Juniper, hassss gone into the foressst, but ssshe hasssn't returned asss of yet. But the sssoldierss attacked usss, and we can't go look for her."

The lizardman seemed saddened at this. Malico dropped to her knees, tears falling from her pretty face freely.

"NO"

Her voice a broken whisper, Tyler then faced the Lizardman,

"How long ago did she go in?"

The lizardman dipped his long-snouted face at the Warrior's searching gaze,

"Three weekssss your grassse"

Hearing the length of time her sister had been gone, Malico couldn't control her feelings any longer and she burst out in sorrowful sobs. kaori ran over and wrapped the catgirl in her arms, holding her tight. Tyler was not having it however, he roughly grabbed the catgirl's shoulders and hauled her to her feet, "Hey get a hold of yourself! We don't know she's dead for certain! come on, pull yourself together." Malico was stunned at his callousness, Kaori was too, in fact everyone was. Tyler wasn't done,

"If someone were to tell you I was dead, but you didn't see it happen, would you believe them? what would you say?"

Malico was still sobbing, her hero had betrayed her but she still answered,

"I'd demand to see the corpse!"

Tyler nodded, and then hugged the sobbing girl tightly, stifling her sobs with her surprise,

"Okay then, don't give up till we look, okay? I mean she's your sister! If she's anything like you, she'll be fine, so have a little faith in her, kay?"

Malico started sobbing again, but this time from relief that he was behind her, and even though he was an ass, she knew he'd never let her sink into despair.

"Alright, then"

Her voice a resolute and strong belltoll,

"Let's go get my sister back!"

Tyler nodded,

"damn straight we will, and gods help anything in our way!"

Malico and Kaori finished the war cry,

"Cause nothing else can!"

Tyler and his girls went to retrieve their horses, ready to start searching immediately, when the village leader, a hulking member of wolfmen, approached them.

"Um, pardon Warriors but you're not seriously going in after a single lost kitten, are you?"

Tyler responded without looking at the seven-foot tall wolfman,

"of course we are, she's my friend's sister, so even if she'd been gone for years We'd still go in after her."

His voice had zero fear or hesitation, but was laced with pure determination. The wolfman was stunned at the young Warrior,

"But you're a Warrior! You're supposed to protect us! How can you hope to do so if you go after her? she's been gone for weeks! Why waste your time on a hopeless cause when we need you here and now?"

Tyler swung up onto Thunder and turned the horse towards the forest,

"That's quite simple really. We didn't come here to help you. We came for Juniper, that's the only reason we're even here, other then killing a few Wyverns. Now move, and don't get in our way. Kaori, Malico, let's move! We got plenty of daylight left to work with."

TYler clicked his tongue, and Thunder started moving towards the forest, leaving the wolfman speechless behind him. They were about to leave the village, when a tall catgirl with a long black tail approached the party,

"wait! There's somethings you need to know!"

Tyler looked at her.

"I'm listening."

The black catgirl reached into her dress pocket and pulled a map out.

"Juniper loved that forest, this is a map of all her favorite places. As for the Wyverns? Our village Militia are CALLED WYVERNS."

Tyler sighed.

"Of course they are. And the grand wyvern?"

She sighed as well.

"There is indeed a grandwyvern in the forest. It lives near the center of the forest though and nevers go too far."

Tyler looked to kaori and Malico.

"We'll start with Juniper's haunts and then move to the wyvern get nothing."

He looked back at the catgirl.

"is Juniper a mage?"

She nodded.

"She's a follower fo the brown Path."

"Juniper uses brown?"

Tyler looked at a now shocked Malico.

"What's it specialize in?"

She sighed with relief.

"Brown Paths are forest based magics. So, essentially, Juniper is lost in a place with the best tools to survive."

"Remember my talk of faith? That's why."

He nudged Thunder and they set off into the trees. Tyler pulled the map out and held it over his enchanted map as they moved through the woodland. The trees on either side being dozens of feet thick and hundreds tall. Kaori was right beside him as Malico looked at the surrounding under brush as if expecting Juniper to just walk out. Kaori was curious.

"What are you doing with the maps?"

He had an eye on his surroundings as he explained.

"I'm adding the map that cat gave us to the one we already have. Since maps are valuable in cities and cartographers' guilds, more complete ours is the more we have to sell."

He finished his task and the was Absorbed into the enchanted one. Soon as it was he looked at the filled in spots and sighed. Malico was right beside him.

"What's wrong?"

He rubbed his eyes.

"We're going straight for the Wyvern. All of her hangout spots are located near the center of the forest…where she said the wyvern lived."

Malico slumped in her saddle.

"You think it got her, don't you?"

"I'm 60 percent it did."

Kaori looked at him.

"What's working against it?"

he put the map away and drew his bow and nocked a set of shafts.

"A few things actually. One. Juniper's Malico's sister. Unless the difference between them is more extreme then I thought, she wouldn't get caught like that. Two. I've a nasty a suspicion something OTHER then a wyvern got her. This point it's just a suspicion. Three. The brown path that specializes in forest magic. It's like me fighting while ankle deep in a stream. This is her element. Malico, what kind of spells can a decent brown use?"

The catgirl sat back in her saddle.

"Mostly animal spells. Like for example Animal Friend can calm an angry animal or discourage a predator. Those that walk the path of brown do tend to prefer the forest to other people."

Tyler smirked.

"That was another option. She just said fuck off to the world and went to live in the forest."

Malico just looked at him.

"But the wyvern?"

"Until I see the damned thing with my own eyes, I don't believe there is one."

Kaori tilted her head as they clip clopped along.

"You don't think Juniper herself started the wyvern story, do you?"

Tyler let two shafts off his string as he lifted the bow, aimed as he drew and let fly. The shaft whistled as it took a large rabbit in the eye on the side of the path.

"if such a large predator lived in these woods, a rabbit like that wouldn't be here."

Tyler swung off the large thoroughbred as he went to retrieve his kill. Kaori right beside him as he lifted the animal for inspection. Her green eyes were shining with surprise at the size.

"That thing is EASILY 15 pounds! Okay, I get your point. I don't think there's ANY predators in here if a prey animal like a rabbit can get to THAT size."

Tyler got his undamaged shaft back and handed it to Kaori.

"I think we have a separate issue as well. Feel that fur."

Kaori did, and the experienced outdoors woman picked right up on his point.

"There is NO reason a rabbit in a forest of this size's fur should be that soft and well cared for."

Tyler looked to where Malico had come to join the duo examining the rabbit.

"Why is a single rabbit so fascinating to you?"

Tyler smiled.

"Because you can tell a lot about an ecosystem from those at the base of it. Look at this rabbit's sheer size alone. A rabbit this size is prime wolf or hawk prey, and the fact it grew to this size tells me three things. 1: The food sources are extremely plentiful to sustain a rabbit of this size. 2: The fact this is a rather young rabbit, like maybe a year old tops, and it's this size already shows that predators are scarce since rabbits are the base of the food chain just above mice. 3. The fur on this thing is just as soft and white as the fur of rabbits raised in our old world for the clothing industry. This forest has a caretaker. What kind of caretaker I can't say. Kaori. We'll use everything of this one. If it's a nature spirit, then we go Navajo."

She nodded in agreement.

"Nothing wasted."

Tyler handed the animal to kaori for harvesting as he looked around at the ground. Malico was amazed that such a simple creature had told him so much. She watched as Kaori skinned the animal, and began stripping the flesh off it's frame with the efficiency and know how of a practiced butcher. Tyler was now inspecting some plants with bright purple flowers. Malico's eyes went wide.

"That's Royal Hemlock!"

He looked at her.

"Is it rare?"

The big breasted catgirl shook her head.

"Not rare so much as a restricted plant for commoners. The leaves make a simply divine tea when boiled in water, the stems when placed in a chamber both freshen the air and fill it with a lovely scent, and the roots are great additions to stews as they are both hearty and nutritious. Only the king and high level nobles are allow to even look upon it."

Tyler reached for his Sgian Dao.

"WHO DARES DISTURB THE SANCTITY OF MY FOREST?!"

The voice echoed off the trunks thundered around them. Kaori was beside the horses as Tyler addressed the voice.

"We are travelers looking for a lost NekoPlesian by the name of Juniper. We mean your forest to harm. We merely seek our friend."

"YET YOU TOOK THE RABBIT?"

"I had never seen such a healthy, well-cared for rabbit in my life. I know not of your forest, thus my taking of the animal, for knowledge of your home, and food for ourselves. Not a piece of that animal is to be wasted."

Malico's tail was fluffed out several times it size as she stood beside kaori helping her calm the horses as Tyler bartered with the voice of the forest. The Warrior using a firm yet polite tone as he addressed the forest spirit. The spirit spoke again.

"I ADMIT I DO NOT SEE HOW THE TAKING OF A RABBIT WOULD TELL YOU OF MY FOREST. BEFORE I CAST JUDGEMENT UPON YOU, AS I HAVE DEEMED YOUR WORDS TRUE AND FREE OF FALSEHOOD, A RARE THING FOR A HUMAN, EXPLAIN WHAT THAT RABBIT TOLD YOU."

Tyler was smiling inside as he had more or less understood the nature spirit.

"If you want to learn of the top of a food chain, the very best place to start is the bottom. The size of the rabbit showed a very plentiful supply of it's food, which in turn also shows a healthy plant base as well. The size also told me that predators such as wolves or foxes are either scarce, not here period, or have better more plentiful prey to chose from. I also got the impression from it's meat as my friend as skinning it that is was also as healthy as it could get. I learned more from the plant I was about to take."

Kaori smiled then, now understanding why he'd taken the rabbit period.

"FOR A HUMAN, YOU HAVE A RATHER DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF THE FOREST AND HER LIFE. YET I DO NOT SENSE THE PATH OF BROWN IN ANY OF YOU. CURIOUS."

Tyler smiled.

"Myself and the blonde are Warriors from another world."

The voice gasped.

"WARRIORS WITH A CLEAR KNOWLEDGE OF THE FOREST? AND DARE I SENSE A RESPECT FOR IT AS WELL?"

Kaori spoke up then.

"In our world we have a race of humans known as Native Americans. In their culture, they believed that living as one with nature was the best way to live. I myself was taught the ways of the forest as they understood It. Him?"

She jabbed a thumb at Tyler.

"He's still learning.."

"Gee, thanks Barbie."

"Shove it."

There was a now thoughtful tone in the spirits voice.

" YOU SAY YOU'RE MERELY LOOKING FOR A LOST KITTEN. YET I SENSE AN ULTERIOR MOTIVE."

Tyler shrugged.

"Our plan was to go to the den of the grand Wyvern we heard dwells her. Kill it, and search it's den for any indication it got her."

The spirit's voice was now more firm.

"THERE IS NO GRAND WYVERN IN MY FOREST. IT IS MERELY A LESSER DRAKOLISK. NOW, I AM AWARE YOU WERE ABOUT TO TAKE THAT PLANT."

"My cat friend said it was useful. Plus a good spit in the face of the crown and any nobles we come across."

That made the spirit burst out laughing. Malico laughed as well.

"He really HATES them don't he?"

Kaori smiled as well.

"More he's looking to make a point. He does hate them, or more what they represent. Moreover it's a spit in the face of that Pope."

Tyler smirked as the spirit got its mirth under control.

"WARRIOR, YOU ARE A VERY STRANGE HUMAN. I HAVE LIVED FOR HUNDREDS OF YEARS, AND HAVE NEVER ENCOUNTERED SUCH A STRANGE ONE AS YOU. I HAVE REACHED A DECISION REGARDING YOUR PRESENCE IN MY FOREST. AS YOU HAVE ALL DISPLAYED A PROPER RESPECT TO THE FOREST AND HER LIFE, AS WELL AS MYSELF, I WILL TOLERATE YOU IN MY WOODS UNTIL YOU FIND YOUR FRIEND. WHERE SHE IS, I AM AFRAID I KNOW NOT. IF YOU NEED SUSTANCE, NOT A SCRAP IS TO BE WASTED. DO WE HAVE A DEAL?"

Tyler smiled.

"We do indeed. If we need to contact you again, how do we do so?"

The trees all rustled in a sudden breeze as the spirit spoke again.

"I AM THE FOREST. SHOULD YOU HAVE NEED TO SPEAK WITH ME AGAIN, THEN SPEAK TO THE FROEST AND I SHALL HEAR."

The voice died and Tyler pulled his dagger to collect the Royal Hemlock. Malico came over.

"Here, plants are my thing."

He past her his knife as he checked on Kaori. The blonde beauty was stroking the now calming horses soothingly.

"Hey, you good?"

She smiled.

"Made me jump. I'm good though. So that was a nature spirit."

Tyler smiled.

"I'm not entirely sure about that. But, not our issue. We'll start with the lesser drake. Kill it and search it's den."

Malico came over with the three foot plant.

"A Lesser drake?"

Tyler watched as she stored the plant in her bags.

"They hard to kill?"

She sighed.

"They're smaller then Wyverns, are blood red, and can breathe fire."

Tyler swung up into his saddle.

"Are they dragonkin?"

Kaori became nervous at the word dragon. Malico sighed again.

"They are. A Lesser Drake is near the bottom of the list of dragonkin though."

"They easier to kill then a wyvern?"

Malico and Tyler began his deep discussion as Kaori finished the rabbit in the saddle. She was wondering what to do with the scraps.

"Hey, Tyler, what can we do with the leftovers?"

"Bait. We can use the leftover scraps as either fish bait or to bait the drake."

"ah."

She smiled at his never ending planning ahead. She stored the animal parts in her saddle bags as they moved along the trail. Kaori took out the rabbit pelt and felt the soft fur again. She loved just how soft it was and the way it felt on her skin, as the brown fur had the patches of white used for blending in with the forest shadows. The blonde was curious again.

"We only have the one pelt. What can we make with it?"

Tyler thought for a moment.

"Good point. How many to you think we'd need for a decent bedroll?"

Malic thought for a moment.

"Maybe….8?"

Kaori had a thought as well.

"How will we transport all that? We only have so much room on our horses."

Tyler smiled.

"We can do a resupply here in the forest. We're nearly out of a lot of things, meat, tea leaves, bread's nearly gone, and the meat from the Wyvern's nearly gone as well. Plus we need to refill our canteens. If we need to make camp here, we'll burn through the last of our town bought supplies."

Kaori was shocked.

"Did we really go through that much that quickly?"

Tyler sighed.

"We're three people, Kaori. We all eat a lot. I'll cop to it. My long term plan was at some point getting us a wagon."

Malico smiled.

"That seems wise. Since Warriors of old roamed a lot."

Kaori looked as a bit of movement caught her eye, only for a large white tailed deer buck was eating alongside their trail. She reached for her bow.

"Leave it Kaori. We don't have the space for a buck of that size."

Tyler had seen the magnificent buck as well. Kaori sighed, and left her bow where it was.

"Okay. We need to be careful."

"Yeah. I'd rather not piss off the forest. If you spot another rabbit or other small game, take the shot. Malico see if you can spot any useful plants as well."

Malico smiled as her long tail flicked.

"it's almost like you have a clue Tyler!"

"Barely."

Kaori smirked,

"He's trying to look cool for the ladies."

Tyler just smiled, when he felt a mental nudge. He knew that feeling.

"We'll pull over here for a bit."

Kaori and Malico looked at each other as he hitched thunder to a tree. Malico was the one that spoke.

"We need to hurry! Juniper needs us!"

"The Monster wants a word with me."

Kaori groaned.

"Malico and I will set up camp."

Tyler walked over to a tree and sat against it as Malico looked at the now grim faced Blonde.

"Kaori, what did he mean, The Monster wants a word with him?"

The childhood friend of Tyler sighed as she watched her hero's eyes go lifeless.

"It happens from time to time. The Monster tries to dominate his mind and issues a challenge. Tyler explained it like he's king of the castle, and has to fight off it's bids for the throne. He won't be able to lift a finger for a few hours."

Malico looked again, and she saw his dead-like eyes.

"Will he be alright?"

Kaori was seeing to the horses.

"It's always risky. And a gamble. If he loses, the Monster gets control until Tyler can take it back. If that happens, Malico, we run. Fast."