While
walking down the street, I heard an echoing meow.
Ren's
eyes bulged when a large group of alley-cats surrounded us. He hissed. They
returned the gesture. The blazing sun above made it difficult to count the
exact number of bandits.
A
sour taste brushed against my tongue. "Just passing, fellows." I
tried to keep my voice even. "No need to trouble yourselves with a few
travelers."
A
scared female--missing her left eye--stepped forward. Unlike the other
alley-cats, she carried a toy bag. "No trouble ... just leave your fish
and toys, then you can go on your merry way."
I
licked at my whiskers. "I'm afra--"
The
scent of burnt fish entered my nose. A black suit wrapped around Ren, and he
charged into the alley-cats.
My
heart thumped. "What are you doing, Ren?" We could have ended this peacefully.
An
explosion ripped through the ranks of alley-cats. Three of the bandits charged
me from behind. A second wisp of burning fish entered the air.
No
choice. I added a third. "I'm sorry it came to this." Reaching out
with my mind, I took hold of the feather-and-stick toy in my bag. My body felt
hot. My fur began to grow.
The
three alley-cats leaped into the air.
My
heart pounded. I truly was sorry. In the blink of an eye, my fur turned into
steel spikes and impaled the three cats.
More
explosions erupted from Ren's black haze. Echoing meows rolled through the
streets. A strong gale hit me in the face, pushing me backwards. The bandits
turned to run. Dust filled the air.
After
blinking the pain and grime from my eyes, I looked at Ren. "Are you
alright?"
Ren
spat. "I'm fine, but I burned a good bit of fish, and my mouse-chew toy is
ruined."
I
tried not to laugh. ... I failed. "That's not much, considering you took
about half of them out."
Something
felt wrong. For some reason, my load was lighter. I glanced back and saw that
the food bag was gone. With a quick look at Ren, I noticed that his was missing
too.
I
gasped. "We've been had."
No comments:
Post a Comment