Author: Hiro Kouen, Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2021 10:34 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

Even Hiro had to wince as he let Cassandra took care of the Lycan couple.  She tore apart the male mate first, he had to turn away, and check to see if anyone else was watching.  No one was nearby, but it was likely to be a different story soon, considering the racket that was going on: sounds of carnage, flames, howling, and general ultra-violence.  Hiro didn't savor this kind of primal thing.  He wasn't a lycan in anyway, so this thing was alien to him.  It was gross.

When it was all said and done, Cassandra emerged from the alleyway with the head of Lisa in her hand, and utterly covered in blood and gore.  "You weren't joking about mounting that head, huh?" he forced a laugh.  She thanked him for his assistance and told the whole story about what happened.  He figured most of it from what he heard between them, but now he knew she had a family in a village, and she was able to visit them, but was afraid to stay, in case something happens.  He felt bad about that, since he missed seeing his own family after what happened to them.

"I'll accept that offer of a drink.  Name's Hiro Kouen, by the way.  And yes, we need to get the hell out of here before any guards show up.  And you need to probably clean up too," Hiro said with a laugh.  "Let's get out of this place," Hiro gestured chivalrously, ladies first, toward the way out of this alleyway.  Hiro was looking for adventure this evening, and it looks like he found it.

Author: Cassandra, Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2021 9:54 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

The two males went at each other while the female stared each other down. Lisa had regained her sword and held it out in front of her as if to defend herself. However, she knew that even with the sword, unless she got in a lucky instantly fatal stab the big red wolf could just take the hit and set upon her. By the way that Cassandra was eyeing Lisa, she knew was thinking the exact same thing.

The fight between the two men played out as Cassandra was taking her time and picking her moment to pounce at Lisa. When her mate was thrown into her and the two of them rolled on the ground in a tangle of limbs the big wolf let out a huffing laugh as she eyed Hiro for a moment. Cassandra rushed in as Hiro spoke but instead of going after Lisa she went after her mate. She snapped at his sword arm first, clamping down with her powerful jaws and twisting, the cracking of bone was followed by a howl of pain and the clattering of steel on stole as the sword was dropped.

Cassandra’s eyes widened as the taste of fresh blood made her own blood rush and raise her bloodlust. Cass then turned and clamped her jaws around the male’s throat, or, she would have, but he moved at the last moment in his pain and confusion and she ended up with his face in her jaws. Well, that was close enough. The red wolf applied all of the raw power in her jaws as he yelped in pain as she started to crush bone. Lycan’s or not, they were still in human form, while stronger than humans, bones were bones at the end of the day. She shattered his jaw with a sickening cracking before releasing his face.

By then Lisa had managed to get back to her feet, but she was without her sword, it was under her mate. In a panic she turned and started to run, not towards Hiro but further down the alley. Looking up Cassandra inhaled and let out a loud bark and from her bloodied maw came a kind of shock wave. Debre flew up and about as it past and it was strong enough to knock Lisa back down again as it connected with the back of her knees. She went down, hard, on her face, her nose breaking and spurting blood as it hit stone.

Since her primary goal was Lisa, Cassandra casually finished the male off by swiping her claws across his throat. The gashes were almost deep enough to take his head off as he gargled for breath as the wolf stepped over him towards her intended prey. Lisa had recovered from her fall and turned over to see Cassandra padding towards her. ”Please, no, I’m sorry I’m sorry!” She pleaded and tried to get up and flee.

Cassandra was after her in a heartbeat and barrled her over again into the deep shadows of the alley behind some refuse. Unless Hiro came closer the only sounds from down the alley now were that of a frenzied wolf devouring its prey, alive.

After a few moments Cassandra let out a howl into the night sky.

From the black of the alley Cassandra walked out again, back in her human form and utterly covered in blood. Most of it around her face and running down her chin onto her chest. She was breathing at a furious pace to get her emotions under control and her heart from racing. She carried her grisly trophy in one hand, Lisa’s head, by the hair, and by the ragged mess of the neck Cassandra had chewed through it.

She dropped it down next to her mate still breathing rapidly as she collected her thrown daggers from where Lisa had dropped them. She glanced to Hiro as she did. ”Thank you.” She stated simply and with sincerity, she did manage a smile, but all the blood kind of took away from it, more so what was still on her teeth.

Cassandra sat down, she had to, at least for a moment, they would not have long before guards came along and found this mess. ”Fucking bastards.” She swore. ”You heard most of that I assume? I was out hunting for deer in the Virens Forest one evening. I made a mistake and didn’t remember that it was a fool moon, and a thunderstorm rolled it and made it dark far sooner than I had anticipated. They tracked me down out there and, well, you know the rest. Serafina found me, she was out there to, gave me some of her blood to heal, nursed me back to health at her place. She’s trained me to control it, embrace it even, at least I can go and see my parents and siblings without fear of losing control around them. I don’t trust myself to stay with them, so I stay with Serafina, work for her, do what I can.”

She dragged herself back to her feet. ”I’d kiss you, but…” She gestured to the blood on her face. ”At the least, I can buy you a drink, hell, I’ll buy you all the drinks you want. We need to get out here anyway, feel like traveling to Vilpamolan for that drink?” She asked. She was physically unharmed, but she was emotionally drained at the unexpected turn of events for the night.

Author: Hiro Kouen, Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2021 1:09 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

Hiro watched as the initial stalemate began to change.  That initial sense of something different in Cassandra's aura was spot on.  She revealed she had partaken in blood of a Goddess, of the Divine.  She received training from the Goddess Serafina, the Infernal Queen.  He'd heard the name before, but never met her, but he had met several other deities, such as Lord Torn formally of Heroics, Lord Drae formally of Magic, and of course Mother Angela Rose herself.  He had actually received training from Lords Torn and Drae, training in combat, heroics, elemental magic, and because of that training, he was able to achieve unique magic.

Hiro laughed and grinned.  "I knew it!  I knew I was right about you, Cassandra!  You are a step above these two!"  She had shifted into her lycan form, a giant red monster of a wolf.  Lisa was definitely looking like she was ready to start running, and her mate was looking like he was going to team up against Cassandra.  She asked HIro to keep the male away from her, while he asked him to move.

"I like Cassandra better than you two, and two on two is more fair than two on one," Hiro's eyes started to glow with sapphire power as heat started to ripple from his body.  He prepared himself, pushing the cloak he wore to his back, revealing an ornate set of red armor with the crest of a golden Phoenix on the front.  He drew his blade from the sheath on his side, revealing a unique silvery sword glowing with the self-same heat Hiro was glowing with.  "Pierce the highest heavens, Empyrean.  My name is Hiro Kouen, Phoenix Knight, son of Sabishii Kouen, Legendary Hero of the Old World."  The male lycan showed a flash of fear, then anger, as he charged toward HIro with his blade.  The man used a longsword which he swung with both hands at the youth, who gripped his own sword, a bastard sword-sized blade, with one hand.  He parried the attack easily.  "Too bad, old man."  The man kept swinging his sword furiously, as Hiro managed to block each attack, he could see the man start to sweat heavily, as the exertion and the heat radiating from the Phoenix Knight was too much for him.  Hiro knocked him back with a powerful shockwave of heated wind from his blade.  Playtime was over.  Hiro gripped his blade with both hands now, and charged forward.  Raising his blade, he swung a vertical slash.  The man tried to block it with his own sword, but found the powerful swing smashed through his own sword, breaking it in half, sending melted metal chunks flying.  A wave of flame erupted, searing the man and sending him flying backwards into Lisa, his mate.  The two of them were stuck in heap.  The man's flesh and garments were burning from the wave of flame, even though the sword did not directly hit him, he still had a burning cauterized cut across his chest.

"Yeah, you're not getting past me.  Cassandra, Ma'am, would you like the honors?  I know you've got a grudge against them, if you'd like to settle it yourself," Hiro said, moving forward a bit, gesturing toward the pair, all wrapped up in a tangled mess of limbs, as they struggled to get up over themselves.

Author: Cassandra, Posted: Mon Feb 15, 2021 11:31 AM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

As the two women fought, they each got in a strike here and there against the other, so blood had been spilled. However, with their enhanced healing each cut, gash or puncture was quickly healed over before it became too much of a problem. Lisa’s grin was slowly fading as she was finding that Cassandra would not be such an easy fight as she had first though, while Cassandra remained focused.

They came together again as their blades locked and their faces were only a few inches apart as they each pushed back. ”Getting tired yet, pup?” Lisa asked with a grin.

”No, I’m fine, you look a worse for ware, ya old bitch.” Cassandra replied with back with her own grin.

Lisa did not seem to like that comment and braced herself before pushing Cassandra away and slashing at her. Cass hissed in pain as Lisa’s blade dug into her stomach and carved a bloody line in her flesh as she caught her footing and in a blur threw the daggers she had been using at Lisa. The dagger Cass had been using were not normal steel daggers, they looked much different more stylish, almost like a feather. Lisa’s reflexes allowed her knock away both daggers and they spun away jamming themselves into some of refuse in the alley.

As Lisa closed in Cassandra started to prove that her hand-to-hand training had been going well. She used the leather vambrace on her left arm to deflect the short sword and allowed Lisa’s momentum to bring her close. Cass turned at the same time and drove her right elbow into Lisa’s stomach, stopping the woman in her tracks. In that moment as Lisa needed to recover Cassandra grabbed the wrist that held the sword and twisted, trying to disarm Lisa, but the moment Cass grabbed her wrist Lisa reacted. She used her off hand to drive a hard punch into Cass’s stomach, making Cass grunt, that hurt, even with her leather armour on.

Lisa regained her held wrist and broke Cass’s grip and in a flash of movement Cass was yelping in pain and backing away as blood flowed from a wound on her face. Lisa had drawn a dagger of her own from somewhere on her body and slashed Cass’s face from top right to bottom left across her nose. It was already healing, but that so far was the worst either woman inflicted on the other. Lisa seemed pleased with herself and pressed her advantage moving in again.

Cassandra, ignoring the pain as the wound healed, braced herself. Instead of trying to disarm Lisa this time, Cass knocked the sword and dagger aside with her vambraces and got in close, and just grabbed Lisa. Lisa went to counter what she thought would be some kind of close range strike, but, instead, Cassandra caught her off guard when she heaved up and got Lisa off her feet long enough to throw the woman towards her mate. Lisa spun in the air and did manage to land on her feet at the last moment, but, as she did, she cried out in pain suddenly, making her mate glance back.

From her back Cassandra had drawn more daggers and had thrown them, catching Lisa in her left arm and right leg. They bone bladed daggers were not exceedingly long, the blade itself only about three inches, but they dug right to the hilt into Lisa’s unprotected flesh. Lisa was forced to drop her own dagger to go and remove the ones from her skin, only to have Cassandra throw another one and that found its mark in Lisa’s other arm. Lisa cried out again and now had to drop her sword and used her wounded arms to try and remove the daggers. A flash of motion and another dagger sank into Lisa’s other leg. ”HOW MANY DO YOU HAVE?!” She howled in pain still going to remove the first dagger she had been trying to work on.

Cassandra smiled. ”Just those.” She held her hands out and uttered a sword and the two feather bladed daggers twitched and flew from where they had been laying back into Cassandra’s hands once more. She settled into a ready stance again as the scent of Lisa’s blood filled her nose and the wolf inside started to get hungry.

Lisa removed the bone daggers from her limps and got up, she was now in a rage of her own, no longer calm and enjoying herself. The four wounds were already starting to close as she picked up her sword again. She had heard what Hiro had said about fighting as wolves. ”You know he has a point, we should be fighting this out as our true selves. What say we call this little fight a draw and meet in two weeks time where we first met, you, me, my mate and if you want to bring him that young human who followed you. Fight it out fang and claw under the full moon like proper wolves.”

Cassandra raised a brow. ”Why not do that now?”

Lisa cocked her head in confusion. ”Because it’s only a half moon, pup, or have you noticed?”

It clicked; Lisa and her mate could not shift unless it was a full moon! Cassandra had thought of that until now, she had assumed Lisa would have shifted at some point. Cass had to assume that it was because of Serafina’s blood that she was able to control her shifting to be outside of the light of the full moon. Cassandra started to laugh, oh, yes, this would end very soon then if she had that advantage over Lisa.

”What’s so funny?” Lisa asked, hesitation in her voice.

”I have a confession to make, Lisa, I lied, I didn’t survive because of luck that night. You two weren’t the only ones out hunting, there was another and she found me and saved me.” Cassandra was still chuckling as she sheathed her daggers and removed the cape she had been wearing and set it aside. ”Does the name Serafina mean anything to you?” She asked calmly and the look on Lisa’s face was enough. ”I thought you would. She found me, allowed me to drink of her blood to heal myself, took me in, trained me, gave me purpose. Most of all she taught me control myself, my powers, you cursed me, but she turned into a gift.” Cass smiled as she snarled and fur rippled up her exposed skin.

”You can shift?! No, no no, that’s not possible for our bloodline!”

”I’m no longer part of your bloodline, not wholly anyway. Now, I think it’s time you know what it’s like to be a helpless chew toy.” Cass smiled and then called over to Hiro. ”Remember how he said to keep it between us? Wanna keep it that way for me, please?” She requested as by now Lisa’s mate had turned to face what was going on.

Cassandra howled and dropped to all fours as her changed happened, and it only took a few moments before it was complete. Instead of a human she stood as a huge red wolf, four feet tall at her shoulders and seven feet from nose to tail and nearly a hundred and fifty pounds of pure muscle and claws. The wolf snarled exposing her fangs as she started to stalk forward towards Lisa, her brown eyes glinting in what light there was as she stalked towards her prey.

Lisa was looking nervous as she backed up until she bumped into her mate who was now staring down Hiro. “Move, boy.” The big man growled and raised his sword. The situation had changed, they were on the back foot and they knew it.

Author: Hiro Kouen, Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2021 11:28 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

HIro watched as the two ladies talked it out.  Lisa was trying to get things to end peacefully, but eventually it seemed the two were going to come to blows.  And so the shoe dropped.

The two went at each other, their blades clashing and sending sparks into the cold night air.

"Now, boy, if you even think of interfering, I'm going to end you, you understand?"  The male lycan said with distain in his voice.

"I may interfere in some things, but I can see this is personal, and I'm invested in seeing how this plays out.  I don't want to get a limb torn off if things get . . . hairy in there," Hiro responded, motioning with his hands in front of him.

"Huh?  Hairy?  Oh, right, yeah, sure kid."

Wait.  Hiro looked up at the sky, it was a nice, if not somewhat chilly night, clear enough to see the moon out.  And survey says . . . the moon was a half moon  Now the million gold question, could these lycans shift.  He knew nothing about Cassandra, but going by all the shit Lisa was saying (even if her honeyed words were just trying to get Cass on her side), there had to be some truth in what she was saying about not being able to control herself or her mate during the full moon.  If the lycan couple could shift at will, wouldn't Lisa have done it already?  They were just fighting with their weapons, and Lisa was starting to lose, she would shift immediately to gain an advantage.

The theory Hiro came up with: they can't shift at will, particularly not on a night were there was no full moon.  Now could Cassandra shift at will?  What caused the difference between lycans being able to shift at will, and not being able to, and being at the mercy of the full moon phase?  Was it something with control?  Magic?  The breed of lycan?  Inner strength and willpower?  There was something different between Cassasndra and Lisa despite them both being lycans, and Lisa and her mate being the ones to turn her.  Maybe something subtle in their auras, there was something else there in Cassandra that wasn't in Lisa, when Hiro used his aura sight to look at them.  Some kind of magic that Hiro wasn't completely familiar with.  Unknown to Hiro, he never met Serafina the Infernal, never even came in contact with her, so that would be why he didn't recognize the magic in her veins.  He did meet several other deities in the past, including Angela though.  He sensed something powerful, but he didn't know who's power was there.  He was going to not interfere with their fight.  It was personal, and Hiro wasn't going to white knight her Cass.  She was an adult.  She was older than him, she could probably handle herself without his help, which would probably not be appreciated.  However, he was sure the mate would butt in if Cassandra started to turn the tide in battle, and get Lisa on the ropes.  Let's see what happens with this information out in the open, he thought to himself.

"So, they're really going at it huh?  Evenly matched?  Too bad it's not a full moon, huh?  Instead of a cat fight, we'd get a wolf fight," Hiro said with a chuckle at the end, maybe a little too loud.  The intent was that maybe Cass would overhear him.  He didn't know her, but he was betting on her being able to win, and he did not like Lisa and her mate one bit.  Especially about that spiel she spun about the night Cass was attacked by them.  The male tilted his head and said nothing, looking at him funny.

Author: Cassandra, Posted: Sun Feb 14, 2021 7:17 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

Cassandra’s emotions were all over the place now as she eyed the hand that had been reached out to her by Lisa. Part of her want to just rip and tear Lisa apart for everything she and her mate had done on that night, leaving her for dead in the forest. If Serafina had not been in the area and found her than Cass would have died from blood loss. Another part of Cass wanted to take that hand and hope that things would work out. That Lisa was speaking the truth and that they could in fact start a pack, somehow, though Cass would have to explain things to Serafina. That could get awkward as she didn’t want to abandon the Reaper, not after everything she had done for Cassandra. It was because of Serafina’s tutelage that Cassandra was able to her parents and siblings again once she had control of herself and accepted what she was. She was able to visit them from time to time, but ultimately stayed away in case she did lose herself and hurt someone. That was not a chance she was willing to take. Not to mention the animals on the farm, when she first visited there, had become terrified of her, the horses stayed away, the cows made terrified bellows, the dogs barked at her constantly. It just was not a good situation.

Cassandra had stepped closer to Lisa while she had been thinking and had been reaching for Lisa’s hand. She stopped short however and furrowed her brow as she stared at Lisa who was smiling hopefully at her. Cass reached out and took Lisa’s hand in hers and Lisa smiled more as went to hug Cassandra, who accepted the hug but after a moment she broke it and smiled as she held Lisa at arms’ length. ”Thank you for your apology, Lisa, now, please, can you tell me the truth?” Her voice was pleasant, but it was hallow.

Lisa put on a frown as she stepped back from Cassandra. ”Wha, what do you mean, Cassandra?” She asked, her guard up.

”Please don’t talk to me like I’m stupid, Lisa. You know full well if you had stayed you could have stopped the bleeding long enough for me to turn and heal it. I survived, did I not? So, tell, me, the, truth; why did you attack me?” Cassandra demanded, the dagger she had sheathed before now back in her hands again.

Lisa frowned for a moment, but then a small smirk appeared on her lips. ”Alright, Cassandra, you’re no simple farm girl after all.” She chuckled. ”I did attack you partially by accident, we didn’t expect anyone to be out in that part of the forest that night. We thought we could hunt and mate in peace, so when we came across you we let our more… baser instincts take us. It had been too long since we had taken another and turned them, but, we didn’t feel like raising a new lycan that night. No, instead, when we found you, I wanted to taste your blood, and it was sweet I will add. If I hadn’t went a little too far my mate would have had his turn with you, and I would have been happy to watch. He does tend to get a little rough though, but the whimpering you would have made would have just made it more enjoyable. Then, after he was finished, we would have made sure to make good use of you as a chew toy. But, as I said, I went too far when I first bit you, so you were useless to us then. Not strong enough for him to play with, and bleeding to fast too last for any other kind of fun.” Lisa finished, by the time she was done her smile had turned wicked and she had her short sword up at the ready.

By the time she was done Cassandra was literally snarling, there was almost foam at her mouth with how much of a rage she was on. ”I thought as much, you were way too nice at the start.” Cassandra got into a ready position with her daggers. ”I guess the only thing left to do is see who is stronger between us, and, after we’re done, I’m going to mount your head someplace nice. Maybe in the middle of a dart board.”

The two women stared each other down while the big male only watched Hiro to keep him from getting involved.

The tension in the air was thick enough to touch and after a silent minute of waiting to see who would blink first, they blinked at the same time. Steel rang on steel down the alley again, and after a few moments a few things started to become clear; they seemed evenly matched on strength, Lisa seemed a bit faster overall but Cass’s daggers were lighter and she had two of them so between them they were a blur of motion as they traded strikes.

Lisa had a content grin on her face while Cassandra had a determined expression, trying to keep her rage from influencing her fighting.

Author: Hiro Kouen, Posted: Sun Feb 7, 2021 7:55 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

Hiro watched as Cassandra walked into the alleyway, a woman and a man appeared.  Cassandra and the woman clashed, though Hiro was tempted to step in, he held off, not sure what exactly was going on, who all the players were in this stage.  But it seemed the man knew Hiro was there, and the man approached him.  Hiro could listen to them chat.

They were all lycans/werewolves.  Seems the woman he was tailing, Cassandra, was attacked by said lycans and left for dead.  She then survived, turning into a lycan.  Hiro himself didn't really care if someone was a lycan if they could keep it under control.  If she was forcibly turned into a lycan beyond her control, he felt bad.

"Hey!  Boy.  I don't know how you know her, but I strongly suggest staying out of this, and letting the ladies talk things out," the massive male lycan said to him.  He was in human form, but he was still even taller, and more muscular than Hiro himself was (HIro was a litlte over six foot).

"You know.  I don't know her at all, honestly.  I thought she was going to stab or rob someone for a moment.  Maybe I shouldn't have tried to get involved, but I'm what they call . . . a good Samaritan.  I sometimes get involved in things that aren't my business.  I don't trust you two, you and your mate.  I don't appreciate people who potentially murder or leave people for dead, whatever the excuse may be.  I understand lycanthropy is a hard thing to deal with, I don't envy it.  But I'm just going to stay here for the moment.  I'm going to make sure Miss Cassandra over there can walk away from this alive, you understand?" Hiro stood with his hands crossed in front of his chest, revealing a glimpse of his crimson armor, and the large sword sheathed by his side.  This guy was massive, taller than him, but Hiro wasn't going to let himself be intimidated by this giant lycan.  He could only imagine how big this guy was in lycan form, but Hiro was confident he could take him on, at least get him to retreat.  Hiro had taken on larger opponents than him.

Author: Cassandra, Posted: Thu Feb 4, 2021 10:05 AM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

Drawing a second dagger Cassandra started down the alleyway at a slow pace, inhaling the air as she did. Yes, this was the way that they had went, that same scent was down here. Her heart was starting to race in her chest, why had she followed that scent?! She knew it and yet she did not know it at the same time. How could that be?

She was about halfway down the alley when she inhaled again and in that instant the scent was at its strongest. At the same time, she heard a rustling noise behind her and spun, getting her daggers up as steel rang against steel. ”Who are you?!” Came a feminine voice as Cassandra got a look at her attacker as she held back their sword with her daggers as they were face to face with each other now. It felt like she had come out of nowhere, only Cass’ enhanced senses had saved her from the attack.

The woman looked in her early forties, in amazing shape, not a bit of fat on her body. Her honey-coloured skin was flawless as she held the short sword in a lose yet steel like grip as she pushed her weight against Cassandra who was pushing back. They seemed evenly matched, but that did not mean one of them was not using all her strength. ”I was going to ask you the same question!” Cassandra snapped back and pushed hard back on the woman, who only pushed back with equal strength in turn.

”You were the one… wait, ah, yes, we have met before now that I get a look at you. You’ve changed a bit since then.” The woman smiled and it wasn’t a friendly one and pushed with all her strength breaking the lock they had and kicking at Cass who just managed to hop back a few steps away and get herself in a ready position.

At the same time the man came out of the shadows holding a broadsword, he looked the same age and was a Hulk of a man with broad shoulders and thick muscles. A powerhouse indeed, though he still carried himself with practiced grace and ease. ”Watch the alley, I’ll talk with our little pup here. I think it best the ladies have some time to chat.” The female said looking over her shoulder.

”Yell if you need me, love.” He replied and turned and walked down the alley a bit to wait for Hiro if he came down. He would not attack right away, just discourage the guy from getting involved. Though with how loud the alley was making their voices, Hiro would still be able to hear everything if he was close enough.

Meanwhile the woman smiled to Cassandra who only glared back with confusing and hate in her eyes. ”What? Don’t remember me? Hm, I suppose not, it was only for a brief moment we met and it was dark and raining.” That caught Cass’ attention was her eyes widened and it clicked. ”Ah, now you remember. I’m surprised you survived that night, you’re stronger than you look then, but I’m glad you did.”

”It was you, you were the one who attacked me that night and used me like your chew toy!” Cassandra half yelled, her voice echoing down the alley. ”Why?! You took my life from me, why did you attack me and leave me for dead?” Cassandra demanded still half yelling.

The woman sighed. ”Let’s start over. My name is Lisa, can you please tell me your name?”

Cassandra snarled. ”Cassandra.”

”Ok, Cassandra, I’m sorry about that night, things went too far. When my mate and I found you that night out in the forest, well, we let our instincts get the better of us I’m afraid. The moons, they had stronger affect on us than normal that night, and had not before that night attacked a human while we were shifted.” Lisa explained as she lowered her sword to her side. ”When we came across you we were, um, overtaken by the power flowing through us that night. We had mated, a few times, that evening so we were riding rather high on emotion and passion. I was the one who ultimately bit you, Cassandra, and I am truly sorry I got carried away.”

Cass had lowered her daggers by then, though she did not remember doing so. ”Carried away?! You chewed me like a piece of meat, like I was some quick snack for you. Then you left me to die, to bleed out in the mud under the rain of that storm. If it wasn’t for…” She stopped herself short of saying Serafina, they didn’t know about the Goddess’ involvement Cass didn’t think, she could leave that information to herself for now. ”If it wasn’t for pure luck I’d be dead, I just managed to keep myself from passing out long enough to stop the bleeding.”

”And I am truly sorry, Cassandra, after I realized what I had done to you, we panicked and fled, we didn’t think we could have saved you. Please, let me try and make up for it? You seem to be thriving as a lycan, it’s very impressive. We could start a pack, the three of us, be a family?” Lisa pleased with what seemed like genuine sympathy and understanding as she held out her free hand to Cassandra.

Author: Hiro Kouen, Posted: Sun Jan 31, 2021 8:39 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

Hiro figured he was about to stick his nose into something it didn't belong in, he could have looked the other way, and potentially hear some rumor about a body found somewhere by a guard in the morning.  His desire to do the right thing, prevent a murder or something from happening got the best of him.  When he intervened, she was understandably pissed at him.

"I don't know, a random, attractive stranger starts pulling out a knife in the middle of a crowded market and chases after someone, what's going to happen?  Murder?  Assassination?  Mugging?  Take your pick.  It doesn't look good," he shot back at her, trying to keep his voice down.  She broke away from him, and started pursuing . . . whoever or whatever she was pursuing with murderous intent.  He cursed to himself and started following her, keeping some distance between them.  She stopped in front of an alleyway, he kept his distance and watched from afar.  He had no idea what he was getting himself into.  Was she some kind of murder, an assassin, some roguish criminal about to mug someone, or something else.  He really had no idea, but he was sure he could get to the bottom of whatever was going on, and he could handle anything thrown at him, whether she was going to try and kill him, or whoever she was after was going to try and kill him.

Maybe it was overconfidence.

But he wasn't bored anymore, at least.

Author: Cassandra, Posted: Sat Jan 30, 2021 10:36 AM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

Cass kept following that scent through the streets until the hand grabbed her shoulder as that young guy had followed her. Cass spun as he also placed a hand on hers that was holding the dagger, he was speaking, but all Cassandra was doing was staring at him with rage in her brown eyes. ”Are you out of your fucking mind?!” Cass growled at him, also keeping her voice down. ”Are you trying to get yourself stabbed?” She continued, pulling her hand back from him and using her left hand to knock the hand that held her shoulder and backed up a step. ”Mind your own business.” She warned him as she looked around and inhaled deeply. It was faint but it was still there.

”I don’t care who you are, stay out of this, understand me? This might be my only chance, so stay out of my way.” She warned him again and turned to head back into the crowd again, inhaling as she did, clearly she was following a scent. Whether he followed or not Cassandra moved through the crowd following that scent. It had to be that one, it had to be! Why else would it seem so familiar to her even though she had never smelled it before? It was clawing at the that was her to which was even more galling that she didn’t recognize the scent.

She stopped at an alley and stared down it, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the thick darkness that was down it. The scent led this direction; but why was this feeling like a trap to her now? Had that bone headed guy make too much fuss and ruined her chance?

Author: Hiro Kouen, Posted: Thu Jan 28, 2021 8:56 PM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

She was very pretty, he thought to himself.  She was older than him, no doubt.  Age was just a number, it was maturity that mattered.  "Thank you."  Hiro couldn't really think of anything to say as he sat down next to her, giving her some space and started eating his meal.  Why should he start feeling nervous around a pretty face when he had been able to fight off hordes of monsters, orcs, or whatnot.  What would his father say, he thought to himself.  Didn't Sabishii have his own pick of women to choose from, but he picked his mother out of all of them.  What Hiro didn't realize, his own father got nervous when it came to women too.  Even though Hiro had brief girlfriend (Sapphire Rose, who ended up marrying someone else), and that . . . experience at Lord Torn, former God of Epics, palace with the Valkyries, he still didn't have a lot of experience with girls.  It'd been ages since he even thought about trying to find someone.

As thoughts and insecurities crossed his mind, and he ate his meat kebab, he didn't get to say a word to her.  The woman got up, excused herself, and started walking away, drawing out a dagger, which snapped Hiro back into reality.  She looked like she was about to shank someone.  "Shit," he muttered to himself as he tossed the left over stick in the trash and quickly got up and pursued the woman.  No one else had noticed she had drawn a dagger, but no one was looking in the direction he was, out of sight of everyone BUT him.  Hiro moved quickly, he did not want to see her stab anyone, he didn't want to be a witness to a murder, and he certainly wasn't going to let anxieties get to him for long.  His conscience wouldn't let him just walk away if this woman was about to stab someone.  "Think fast, think fast, think fast," he thought to himself.

Hiro quickly caught up to the woman, as he thought of a way to stop this, without having to bring attention to them.  He quickly placed his hand on her shoulder, moving himself directly behind her.  He put enough pressure on her shoulder not to hurt, but to get her attention.

"Hey!  Hey!  Wait up!  You almost forgot something!" he moved closer to her placing his other hand on her hand with the dagger.  "Ma'am, that's a nice dagger you dropped.  It would be a shame for you and all these people if it got dirty or lost," he said quietly to her.  "The name is Hiro Kouen.  It's a nice, peaceful evening.  What's troubling you?"  He hoped he was being . . . direct enough, while not getting attention of anyone else around them.

Author: Cassandra, Posted: Thu Jan 28, 2021 9:37 AM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

As Cass ate she noticed a young man at the same stall she had been at getting something to eat. She wouldn’t normally notice such things, but since he was rather brightly coloured in lots of reds he stood out amongst the crowd. She took another bite of her own meal just as he moved from the stall and a moment later she heard a voice talking to her and looked up to see him. ”Hm? Oh, no no, please, by all means.” She replied and scooted more to one side of the bench to give him and his armour some room.

Having no idea who this young man, though she’d admit he was handsome, and he would probably only get more handsome as he got older to. But she knew he was still a teenager and Cass was in her late twenties so no other thoughts passed through her mind as she ate. Unless he struck up a conversation Cassandra would eat in silence.

Regardless just before she was finished eating a couple who looked to be in their late forties walked by them rather close because of the crowd. Cass’ nostrils flared and her eyes snapped open and she looked around and then stared at the backs of the couple. That scent, she had never smelled it before yet it was far too familiar to her at the same time. But how could that be? How could someone she never met have a scent that was so familiar to her as to prod the wolf in her awake? Or was that wolf that she now was awake? Cassandra had long ago now, since the night of her first human kills while in wolf form, accepted and even embraced what she was. But there had always been a nagging feeling in the back of her mind that something was lacking and something about that scent caught too much of her attention for her to ignore.

”Uh, please excuse me.” She muttered to Hiro as she casually tossed the rest of the steak in a nearby trash can and stood. As she walked away Cassandra had drawn one of her many daggers out and was resting it in her hand out of casual view, though she had drawn it in plain view of Hiro not really thinking. Something was up with her that was for sure as she was carefully looking around as she walked through the thinning crowd, following the scent that had taken her attention.

Author: Hiro Kouen, Posted: Wed Jan 27, 2021 12:46 AM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

It was a lovely night in the open air market in Adeluna.  Hiro Kouen had arrived in this city, looking for adventure, having been struck with boredom.  The tall young man stood out in a crowd, wearing dark red phoenix mantle, which covered his crimson plate mail and his ornate sword, a bastard sword.  His hair was black and spikey, with red highlights, while his eyes were a deep sapphire blue.  There were so many people here, he thought to himself, so many goods to browse too.  He'd been so wrapped in his magical and martial training, that he hadn't stepped back in a long time to walk amongst the people.  He felt his needed to get out, he needed to find something to do besides training.  There was only so much one could accomplish just through practice, having slipped into solitude after losing his father.

Hiro stepped over to a stall that was selling delicious looking meat kebabs, and purchased one, then started to look for a place to sit down and enjoy his meal.  He saw a bench, which was partially occupied by a woman with a long red ponytail.  He walked toward her casually.

"Lovely night tonight.  Is this seat taken, ma'am?  I'd like to sit down and enjoy my food," he asked the woman politely.  If she said no, he would find somewhere else to sit, but it was the only place nearby that he could see he could sit down.  But if she wanted to be alone, he would respect her wishes.

Author: Cassandra, Posted: Tue Jan 26, 2021 11:09 AM, Post Subject: Black Dog[P,R]

The evening market that popped up every once in a while in Adeluna was a pleasant experience most times. The evening air was clear and cool, the moon was night in the sky but it was only a half moon so some lanterns were needed here and there for extra lighting of the streets. Cassandra enjoyed the night markets more often than the normal day time affairs. More interesting products could be found here, sometimes produce and meats could be found at a cheaper price to, as sellers wanted to get rid of some of their wares before they went bad.

But Cassandra was here because it was her nights off from the Second Circle. Instead of staying Vilpamolan for the night she decided to travel Adeluna and see what was going on in the city. It wasn’t too crowded tonight which was also nice, met there was more room to move around and Cass had less random scents to deal with. It had been months now since she had been first attacked and turned by a random werewolf who had attacked her out on the Plains while she had been hunting game for her family. Her parents had a farm and Cassandra was the best of them at hunting, until that night anyway. Wanting to keep them safe from her losing control, Cass had taken the offer from Serafina to stay at the Second Circle and work there doing odd jobs for a while before taking up on the bar full time. She had her other fellow bartenders got along well and Cass also helped clients who needed help in picking their… company for the night in the private rooms upstairs.

She wasn’t a tall woman, at five foot eight inches with long red hair, tied back in a pony tail at the moment, a freckled face and brown eyes she was in good shape even before becoming a lycan. She was wearing well crafted leather armour, it didn’t stand out as armour, and it allowed for her full range of movement. A dagger was sheathed in easy reach on both her hips, while two more were strapped to her lower legs, and hidden behind her dark green cape were two more, but these ones were special. She had more daggers on her to, smaller throwing style ones, so she was well armed but it wasn’t overtly so, subtle enough to be passable in public.

At the moment Cassandra was standing at a vendor who had cooked meat for sale and she was getting herself something to eat. A steak, medium rare with savoury seasoning on it and barbequed to perfection, she didn’t need a knife to cut. With her meal in hand Cassandra found a bench to sit on and eat while she watched the crowd.