Elemental Soldier Neko
A pretty catgirl wrapped up in a dangerous tail...err tale.
Episode Three ~ Chapter Two
BekkaNeko was having a hard time enjoying dinner. Brad was trying to be fun, but she was hardly paying attention, constantly looking around, trying to spot Lily hidden somewhere in the room. ReaNeko on the other hand, seemed to have completely forgotten the danger. She and Steve were chatting together, occasionally broken by her giggles.
"Is something wrong?" Brad asked. "You seem very distracted."
"Well, I..." BekkaNeko was saved by the waiter's arrival with the meal. Her mouth watered as he set a plate of mashed potatoes, freshly cooked green beans, and a large slab of grilled steak. The meat still sizzled and had nearly perfect seared lines.
Conversation at the table all but ceased as they began to eat. Having something to do physically helped BekkaNeko calm down, and within a matter of moments, she and Brad were discussing last week's geometry exam. Neither of them was anxious to get the results back.
They ate quickly, making sure they had ample time to reach the theater before the movie started at seven. The line wasn't too long when they arrived. As they stood, waiting to get their tickets, BekkaNeko noticed someone familiar in the line ahead. That mysterious elf was only ten feet away, buying a ticket to see the same movie! Her tail puffed out a little bit.
Steve paid for the tickets and held the door open as they slipped into the lobby. It was slightly crowded, with hoards of kids buying snacks for the new Kercpa Rangers movie. They swarmed like ants over the candy racks, scooping up large amounts of sugary snacks before jostling each other for position at the soda machine.
The strange elf walked through the crowd, children quickly getting out of his way as he filled a large soda cup and picked a few chocolate bars. They scurried to clear his path without seeming to really notice him as he walked up to the counter and paid for his snacks. His eyes narrowed as he noticed BekkaNeko, but he said nothing and filed past them towards the screening rooms.
"What would you like?" Brad asked.
"Umm..." BekkaNeko looked over the few remaining items on the candy racks. "Some of the sour things sound good, and a small cola." She smiled sweetly at him. Brad grinned and purchased her requests. He took her hand and they went to find seats, followed closely by Steve and ReaNeko.
They sat down just in time to see the first previews. It looked like the next month or two would have some interesting movies coming out. More than half of them were going to be animated features, one of which was mostly about catgirls. BekkaNeko made a mental note to come see Nekomimi when it opened in three weeks.
The movie was exciting and seemed to follow the basic formula of an Eros Hentai movie, with lots of monsters, muscles and mammaries. The elven bard was fighting hordes of orcs and goblins to rescue a princess from an evil villainess who reminded BekkaNeko very strongly of Lily. The movie seemed rather short as Eros defeated her easily and rode off with the beautiful princess. Yet, when he got her back to the palace, someone was still trying to kill her.
"Which way now, Princess Hime?" Eros asked, hefting his thin bladed longsword and looking peering into the semi-darkness.
"Through here. There's a secret passage behind the statue. We should be able to get out through there. Only one other person in the palace even knows of its existence." The young girl took his hand and led Eros into a small gallery filled statuary and other objects of art.
"The trigger should be right about... Ah, here it is." The princess pushed a stone in the wall, and a section the size of a small door swung open, revealing the secret passage. "I used to run through here all the time as a little girl, there should still be some torches we can use."
Eros ducked through the doorway and felt around until his fingers found one of the torches. He ignited it with a bit of magic and stepped aside to let the princess in. She joined him and pushed the hidden door shut behind her. They started down the passage.
After a few moments of walking, they could hear something ahead. It sounded like someone walking towards them, tapping a sword on the stone wall. In the darkness they could see something moving closer. Light glinted off of what looked like eyes. An older human with white hair, spectacles, and dressed all in white stepped into the light.
"Its, its... The Colonel!" the princess screamed and cowered behind Eros.
BekkaNeko jumped slightly and felt Brad's hand squeeze hers gently. She blushed in the darkness and kept her eyes glued to the duel on the screen. The Colonel was an excellent swordsman, but of course, Eros eventually defeated him, and Princess Hime was safe once again. The movie ended as the princess took Eros off to give him his reward. They sat through the credits, then finally got up and left as the janitors arrived to clean the place before the next showing.
"That was good," Steve said, poking at his brother.
"Yeah." They began fencing with their fingers, poking and jabbing at each other as they crossed the dark parking lot. The catgirls giggled at them. The boys stopped when they reached the car and opened the doors for the girls. Steve climbed into the front seat and turned the key. Nothing happened. He tried again, with the same results.
"What the...?" he muttered, climbing out and popping the hood. He looked at the engine and swore loudly. "Umm...we've got a problem here." They all got out and looked at the engine. It had been ravished. Every tube, cable, wire, and hose had been ripped apart. The battery had been torn open and was leaking acid over everything near it. BekkaNeko looked down to see a puddle of oil glistening in the glow of a street lamp.
"Somebody's going to pay for this," Brad growled, slapping his fist. "Why would they only do this to us?" He looked around at the empty parking lot. A bus pulled up along the sidewalk, the doors opened.
"We'll take you two home, then come back with Dad to see about this," Steve said, nodding towards the open bus.
BekkaNeko looked at the lighted number on the side; it was the 4B bus, the one that would drop them about five minutes away from home. "Are you sure you don't want to just call the police first?"
Brad thumped his fist again. "I think I have an idea of who would do this. I'd rather deal with them directly than get the police involved right now. Come on, let's get you home," she said, taking BekkaNeko's hand and starting for the waiting bus. They climbed on and flashed their school ID cards at the driver. He waved them on and shut the door behind them and started forward.
They took the first set of seats they came to and sat down. They were alone on the bus, except for a cluster of six diminutive delinquents sitting at the back of the bus. The knot of heads looked at them then huddled again. There was muffled laughter.
The bus rumbled off, starting the long loop that would eventually bring them back towards the catgirls' house. Over the entire route, only one other person got on and off the bus. The small gang in the back of the bus remained. At least the bus stopped, but when BekkaNeko looked out the window, she realized that they were still a mile or more from home.
"Ok everyone, last stop," the driver said, turning on the lights and opening the door. "You have to get out here."
"We need the stop another two stops up from here. Can you drop off there? Please?" ReaNeko asked, batting her lashes at him.
"I'm sorry, miss, I can't do that. I gotta have this thing back to the garage in twenty minutes, and its back in the other direction."
The catgirls and their dates got off the bus and looked around before heading back towards home. After they'd gone a few meters, they could hear the others getting off the bus as well. As they kept going it seemed like the gang was following them. They were all feeling somewhat uncomfortable with that idea.
Fifteen minutes later ReaNeko saw familiar territory ahead. "Let's cut through the park," she suggested. Realizing that it would trim thirty minutes off their walk, BekkaNeko agreed. The passed through the arched gateway and down the path into the park.
As they headed deeper into the wooded park, BekkaNeko turned to look behind her. The gang was still following them. The six bad looking kids were spreading out and a few where going off into the trees. She tapped Brad on the shoulder.
"I think we may have a problem. Those guys are still following us, and it doesn't look good. They're giving me a really bad feeling."
Brad squeezed her hand. "I'll protect you."
Just then, giggling broke out in the dark bushes all around them. Things skittered among the leaves and taunted them with glimpses of movement. "You might protect her, but who's going to protect you?" a deep voice said from the shadows ahead of them. Something large stepped into the weak light. It was about the size of the rugby players at school, but with dark, leathery skin and big, protruding teeth. It was holding a short curved sword in one of its massive paws.
None of them moved for a couple of seconds, then there was a thunking noise and Steve collapsed. Before ReaNeko to see to the wound on his forehead, which was just starting to ooze blood, several smaller things stepped from the bushes. They looked like the creatures BekkaNeko had seen before. Their red eyes were glowing dully. One of them was holding a sling and hefting a small stone in its hand.
"You two are pretty, too bad we were told to kill you. It would have been much nicer if we could bring you home to play with," the big thing snarled.
"You leave us alone!" Brand shouted stepping between the big thing and the girls. "Otherwise, you'll have to deal with me." He dropped into a karate stance and prepared to defend himself and the catgirls. The things began to laugh raucously.
"Is that so, little human?" the big creature laughed again. "Come then, test yourself against me. If you win, I promise, you will be allowed to go free." It grinned, showing its massive, crooked teeth. It tossed its sword into the bushes.
"Brad! No!" BekkaNeko screamed as he launched himself forward, charging at the thing.
Brad attacked with a flying kick, which was merely dodged. Upon landing he pressed on with a flurry of lightning fast punches, each one landing on the creatures muscular stomach with a meaty thud. He finished with a punch to the jaw before backing up a step to see the results.
"It's my turn, human." The thing swung its ham-sized fist in a broad, flat arc, which slammed into the side of Brad's head. He cried out as the blow knocked him off his feet. Brad crumpled, sprawling on the path. He tried to rise, but flopped to the ground unmoving.
BekkaNeko started to move forward, but a stone flying less than a handspan from her face stopped her. She looked up and a pair of smaller creatures stepped into the light. One was dressed in scraps of fur with necklaces of beads and feathers. The other was dressed in rough tunics like the others, but carried a small crossbow in one hand.
It pointed the weapon at BekkaNeko's chest. "I'm going to put this one right between her pretty..." It never finished as a shot rang out of the darkness and its head exploded in a gout if blood. The crossbow wavered and fired into the night air as the body fell.
"Who's there?" the large creature shouted, looking into the darkness behind the catgirls. "Who dares to interfere with my business?"
BekkaNeko turned to look as a tall figure stepped from behind a large tree. He was an elf, dressed all in black with a black veil covering the lower half of his face. A breastplate of dark gray metal covered his chest, but it appeared to flex easily as he moved. His long blond hair was tied back in a ponytail and held out of his eyes by a dark headband. One his hips sat two things that the young catgirl could only assume were guns. They looked like something from a sci-fi anime on TV. In his hands he held a large, dark sword.
"Call me Outai Okami, if you must call me anything, you foul spawn of darkness. Since you seem to be so impressed with your strength, how about testing yourself against me?" The elf's voice was strangely familiar.
The creature snorted. "You think you can possibly defeat me? I'm one of the Wraith's strongest ogres. You cannot harm me." The ogre picked up its sword and swaggered forward.
Boldly, the elf moved to meet him. "Take your sister and get out of here," he said as he passed BekkaNeko, "I'll take care of your friends." He continued past her until he was about three paces from the ogre, then he lifted his weapon. "Have at me, darkspawn."
BekkaNeko looked at the elf incredulously. What did he think he was doing? He might be a little taller than the thing he called an ogre, but it must have outweighed him by at least 25-30 kilos. His sword was longer, which might make up for it, even with the straight bladed weapon with the talon-like hilt, it seemed like a near impossible fight.
As it was, the fight was over in almost an instant. The ogre charged forward, and the elf lunged, thrusting with his longer blade. The creature impaled itself and was dead before the weapon fell from its paw. The elf kicked the massive body from his sword and looked around. "What about any of you? Do you goblins think you can best me?"
The goblins looked at each other, unsure. BekkaNeko took the pause to act. "Soul Staff!" she screamed. The simple wooden weapon materialized in her hands with a brief pulse of blue light, and she hurled herself at the knot of goblins to her left. She leapt among them, sweeping and striking with staff, then skipping out of the way before the goblins could retaliate with their metal-studded clubs and short-bladed swords.
"Soul Lance!" ReaNeko cried, leaping to her feet. Her naginata appeared and she attacked the two goblins in the bushes to her right. Her first slash took the head from one, while a jab with the butt of the shaft knocked the other down. She raised the weapon and stabbed the goblin through the heart.
The remaining goblins charged the elf, trying to overwhelm him. Whirling his blade and spinning on his feet he danced away from them, parrying their attacks and cutting them down like grass. Soon all that remained were the strangely dressed goblin, and a handful of others, all clustered behind him. BekkaNeko recognized them as the tough looking "kids" that had been on the bus with them.
She started to rush towards them, caught up in the heat of battle, as did her littermate. As they charged closer, the strangely dressed goblin waved his hands in their direction. BekkaNeko could see the shock wave of magical energy as it rippled through the air. It hit her and the she was tossed into the air. She slammed into tree and fell to the ground, the staff knocked from her hands. ReaNeko lay on the ground a few meters away.
They looked up. The elf still stood. Energy lashed out from the goblin's hand at him. It was blocked by a glowing hemisphere that seemed to absorb the energy, and divert it away from the elf. As she watched, she realized that the elf's sword looked disturbingly familiar. A black hilt that looked a bit like a bird's talons? "That's Daeghrefn," she muttered.
The elf dropped his left hand to his hip and drew one of his guns. He pointed it at the throng of goblins. The weapon chattered loudly and jerked in his hand. Bullets chewed up the ground at the goblin wizard's feet before they tore into the huddled goblins. Bright brass casing flew through the air glistening and tinkling on the ground like a thin metallic waterfall. The gunfire stopped abruptly as the last of the goblins fell dead. The elf turned to face the catgirls before he holstered the weapon.
"You really should have run," he said. "You might know a few tricks, but next time you'll be out matched. Oni's minions won't underestimate you for long." He tucked Daeghrefn into the scabbard on his back, then turned and walked away.
BekkaNeko jumped up. "Who are you?" she shouted as he melted into the darkness.
"I am Outai Okami," his voice replied, carried by a faint breeze.
Who was that dark man...? ;)
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