Henry drew in a deep breath with a gleeful expression of delight. The smell and taste of fresh air were revitalising and he couldn’t help but shudder against the delight coursing through his body.

“Are we lost?” Yula asked, looking around her surroundings. She didn’t know how far they had travelled as everywhere looked the same to her. She wasn’t able to distinguish what was different about each area. They had ventured out of their home ground in order to hunt. Yula donned herself in a cloak made of her shadows. Not only did the cloak of shadows conceal most of her presence, but it also functioned as protective gear.

“We’re not,” Henry answered

“You sure? I can’t even tell where we came from.”

“Yes, I’m sure. And don’t worry, I can tell where we came from.”

“How?”

Henry tapped his nose.

“I should leave a trail of crumbs or something.”

“You should”, Henry said.

Yula willed her shadows to carve a mark onto a tree she walked past.

Suddenly, Henry halted in his tracks, stopping in front of a clearing that was a small patch of field in the midst of trees. He gestured for Yula to come close and be silent with her steps.

Yula trotted beside Henry with steps as light as she could take. “What is it?”

Henry put a finger to his lips, which was an awkward sight since he was in his Dragon form, and pointed towards the clearing where a buck was grazing the field. “Supper,” he muttered.

“I don’t think I've ever had venison before. How does it taste?”

Henry shrugged. “No idea. This is my first time seeing a deer around these parts.”

“Seriously?”

Henry nodded. “Curious, for it to appear now of all times.”

“Maybe it migrated?”

“Which begs the question, why would it do that?”

“The change of seasons?”

“Deers aren’t birds. They don’t migrate. They shed their old fur and grow a new and thicker one to get through the cold. They still eat their usual diet of barks and twigs in winter. But then again, this isn't Earth, so who knows?”

“Wow, you know a lot.”

“Only from what I remembered reading and there’s no guarantee I remembered them correctly or this info is even true in the first place. Nevertheless, this buck shall be our supper for the night. We’ll worry about the backstory after we secure our supper.”

“Alright, as you say, Henry. So, what do I need to do?”

“Nothing.”

“Nothing?”

“You just need to watch,” Henry said and activate his camouflage ability. He lowered his stance and crawled quietly towards the unsuspecting buck. He could easily bring the buck down from a distance but it would ruin the meat and make a huge mess. He wanted to be as clean and smooth as possible.

The buck still didn’t notice Henry’s presence despite him being less than ten feet away from it. Henry raised his body and his claws. He purposely let a faint trace of his presence slip, causing the buck to rear its head up to look around. Henry lunged at that window, slashing the buck across the neck and her camouflage came undone right then and there.

“Wow,” Yula gasped in awe. “That was swift and spectacular.” She was even clapping. “What’s next?” she asked with stirring anticipation.

“Next comes the gruesome part.”

“G-gruesome? How gruesome are we talking about?”

Henry took the carcass of the buck and slung it over a thick branch of a nearby tree. He then cut the already-present wound on the buck’s neck, opening it wider and allowing the blood to gush out.

Yula recoiled with a frightened frown.

“This level of gruesomeness,” Henry answered belatedly. “Too much?”

Yula shook her head. “I was just… taken aback. The first time is always the hardest.”

Henry chuckled.

Yula sighed breathlessly. “Do you ever get your mind out of the gutter?”

“Not when I’m with you.”

“Oh, really?” She cast Henry a smug and appraising sidelong glance. “So even now, you are thinking of screwing me, in the middle of a forest while we are waiting for the blood to be drained from our supper?”

“It sounds awfully queer when you put it like that but yes, mostly. However, this is but one of many impulsive thoughts, which I have no intention of following any of them through.”

Yula looked mildly disappointed at hearing those words. “I see…”

“But don’t worry. I don’t plan on neglecting you when the night comes.”

“Oh, my,” Yula tittered. “How lewd.”

“Speaking of night, we need a bed, don’t we, if we are to sleep in an embrace?”

“You don’t already have one?”

“I just plopped right down on the ground and closed my eyes.”

“Wouldn’t the ground be too coarse and rough to sleep on?”

Henry assumed his human form and got to one knee. He laid his hands on the ground, feeling the surface. “Hmm… it does feel coarse and rough when I’m feeling it with the feeble skin of a human. Perhaps the hide of a Dragon is too tough and thick to be bothered by such coarse surfaces.”

“Regardless, we definitely need something to sleep on. Ah, I know. How about leaves?”

“Leaves?”

“Large leaves. Like the leaves of banana trees.”

“Banana leaves…” Henry mused. “I don’t recall seeing any trees with leaves as large as the leaves of banana trees around here but we don’t exactly need leaves now, do we?”

“Then what can we use as an alternative?”

“Your shadows.”

“My shadows?”

“Can’t you just make a sheet that’s large enough to accommodate two of us?”

“I can but…”

“But?”

“I-I treat my shadows as an extension of my body. To have both of us sleep on it together for the whole night is just too much for me…”

“Oh, honey…” Henry caressed Yula’s face with just a single finger and it was nearly as thick as her face. “If this is already too much for you, I fear for your health for the things I wish to do to you.”

Yula shrieked in fear and excitement upon hearing Henry’s words. She was grinning and panting. Her thighs were unconsciously rubbing against one another and fluids were already trickling down her legs. But before she could open her mouth and ask to be fucked right here and now, all of her lust went out of the window as a tremendous wave of unpleasantness swept past her. She jumped on the spot and turned in the direction she felt the unpleasantness come from.

“You felt it, that’s good,” Henry remarked.

“What was that?”

“Hostility, to put it simply. Someone or something is holding the desire to kill you. The murderous intent of an individual. In this case, you are being seen as prey by some beast or monster.”

“Surely it would not attack me with you by my side, right?”

“It wouldn’t but there’s no telling that I will always be by your side every second of each day or they could decide to be daring and should my concentration fall. You need to show these daredevils that you are not to be trifled with even when you’re not even in my presence.”

“B-but how?”

“Yula, you are not on Earth anymore. Your powers are stronger than you think now that you are my bride. I can tell you are still on to your fear of being exposed. But this is Ulrum. You need not be afraid of showing off. Now, my dear bride, show me what you can do.”

Yula stared resolutely at Henry for a few seconds before nodding and started walking towards the spot she felt the murderous intent emanating from. The closer she got to it, the heavier intent became as if readying to pounce on her the moment she got close enough.

“I can’t be a burden to Henry,” Yula told herself. “I must become his strength, not his weakness. That way, he will never abandon me.”

As soon as she took a step into the shade of the trees, the leaves rustled and a growl could be heard echoing among the trees. Yula steeled her nerves as the rustling of the leaves drew nearer and nearer. Whatever was lurking behind the covers of nature, it was anticipating Yula’s approach with delight, perhaps thinking Yula was a fool to approach it on her own accord.

When Yula was close enough, the lurker sprang from its hiding spot, lunging towards Yula. It was a baboon but the size of a human. Yula took a step back, recoiling from the fright, but she returned the step she had taken and stood her ground. She raised a wall of darkness and the baboon ended up slamming its face into the wall.

The baboon cried out in pain as it stumbled backwards. Yula sent shadow tendrils at the baboon. The monster ape leapt to the branches, dodging the shadows. It then threw itself at Yula again once the obstacles of shadows subsided. Yula lashed out a large piece of shadow. The baboon went flying, crashing through branches and barks. It caught its balance by digging into a trunk and swung itself back to its feet on a branch. Aside from a few shallow bruises, the baboon was barely hurt.

“Damn it…” Yula cursed under her breath, clenching her fists.

“Yula. Do not be afraid.”

“I’m not afraid of this accursed ape. I’m angry.”

“I’m not talking about the ape, Yula. I’m talking about your own powers.”

“My powers… I’m afraid of my powers…?”

“You are afraid of the destruction you will cause but you needn’t be. Let yourself go. Unleash your true strength!” Henry roared, unleashing his devastating blazing breath into the sky.

“Whoa…” Yula saw the magnificence that was Henry’s fire breath for the first time and she felt her legs going soft from the brazen and powerful display of her significant other’s might. She held herself upright using her shadows.

The baboon was also taken aback by Henry’s display. It was beginning to contemplate retreating but the delectable prey in front of it was messing with its desire for self-preservation. Yula smelled like a high-class dish to monsters like this baboon. They couldn’t just ditch such fine meat just because their lives were in danger.

The baboon shook itself out of its daze and rushed towards Yula with a crazed expression of a glutton. It hopped and swung from branches to branches.

“Don’t be afraid of your powers. They are the ones who should be afraid. Show them who you really are, Yula.”

Yula gulped down the doubt in her and thrust her hand out. Barbed tendrils of shadows erupted from beneath her and shot towards the rushing baboon. The monster ape shrieked at the onslaught of shadows and immediately turned around to run, its self-preservation instinct finally overruled its gluttony. The shadows crashed through the trees, instantly trimming a good portion of the forest with a single wave.

The baboon did not get far before the shadows gained on it. The darkness swallowed the monster ape with the trees. When it had all but receded like the recession of a flood, logs and fallen leaves were strewn about the area and stumps were all that remained. The baboon lay amidst the aftermath, mortally wounded with cuts all over its body. Blood dripped incessantly, forming a small puddle, from its multiple injuries.

Yula stepped forward and stood over the dying baboon, looking down at its final moments. The baboon’s gaze found her but she could tell it wasn’t looking at her properly with how clouded its dying vision was. To shorten its misery and suffering, Yula beheaded the baboon with a swift slice. Its head went rolling and it rolled off a slope, down into a pit that was out of her sight.

Yula sighed and raised her gaze, surveying the destroyed surroundings that she was responsible for. A sense of terror overwhelmed her for a brief moment but she assuaged her fears by reminding herself this was no longer Earth and she didn’t need to worry about being persecuted should anyone see what she was capable of.

Henry was laughing and clapping as he approached her. “You are amazing, Yula.”

“R-really?” she asked with a soft and hesitant tone.

“Really. I know you were strong but this— this is another level of my expectation. Looks like I don’t need to worry about your safety too much if this is the level of destruction you’re capable of.”

“You’re really not terrified by all of this?”

“I am not, Yula. I mean look at me. Look at what I am. Do you think this is something I should be terrified of considering what I am?”

“You know... I have killed people back on Earth, Henry…" Yula confessed. "They were rapists… thieves… murderers... They deserved it but… I killed them… I killed humans… And I don't feel bad about it.”

“I know,” Henry said, taking on his human form as he walked up to Yula. Though he didn't know about this, he did always have an inkling knowing her disposition and tendencies.

"Does that make me a terrible person?"

“Back on Earth, maybe. But this isn’t Earth anymore. You will kill more in the future. Humans and monsters alike. Or do you not like the idea of killing?”

“I just don’t want to be hated by you, Henry.”

Henry smiled and took her hands, caressing them. “I won’t.” Due to the height difference, he had to make Yula kneel before him in order to reach her lips, which he kissed it fully until she ran out of breath. “Come on, Yula. Let’s head back home.”