- Bis Ke -

Bis Ke sat rather anxiously today, her tail low along with her ears. Li Renji, her junior brother, had said that something was up. He’d just run out leaving her and the snake alone. Bis Ke wanted nothing more than to rip the bastardly creature apart, but she refrained herself from doing anything rash that might result in her losing her Great Master.

Nu Di Se was such a stupid name, definitely not comparable to hers, one that held such magnificence. Bis Ke knew her Great Master had something great in his mind when he named her. She raised her nose, her whiskers twitching. It had to be that!

Nu Di Se, the foul creature, hissed and moved about the room. Bis Ke moved her eyes and looked at it—her. What was she up to? Bis Ke couldn’t tell. It had to be something bad. However, she stopped herself again. She couldn’t do anything remotely close to hurting the snake. Her Great Master had taken the snake in, she would be damned to be in the way of his decisions.

Her whiskers twitched. Something, or someone, was here. Bis Ke moved toward the sound, followed closely by the snake. She couldn’t help but hiss, it dared. It dared?!

Calm down!

She chastised herself. Her mind wasn’t in place, she’d thought it would be after what happened. She forced herself to focus on the task at hand—the sunspot she crossed did distract her and made her go all mushy, only for a moment, though. She couldn’t lower her guard near the snake!

Bis Ke’s sleek fur bristled as she and Nu Di Se closed in on the source of the noise. Her whiskers quivered with anticipation, and her eyes narrowed into slits.

Another sound, louder this time. Bis Ke raised her paw, claws unsheathing. She was ready to pounce. But as the person in question rushed inside—it turned out to be her junior brother Renji. He cradled an injured figure on his back, blood staining his clothes. He gently lowered the wounded person to the ground. It was Kai, his face pale and contorted in pain amongst the blood smearing him. His body was covered in deep gashes, blood seeping through his clothes and onto the floor.

Bis Ke’s eyes widened. Her heart jumped out of her throat—which appeared to be held tight by a vise. Her gaze flickered toward Renji, silently questioning him. Her eyes asked the unspoken questions that hung in the air. What had happened? Who had hurt Kai?

Her muscles were tense, and her sharp claws—of all paws—extended involuntarily, digging into the floor. She looked at Kai, then back at Renji. A ball of anger, and frustration exploded. Why couldn’t she just vocalize her concerns?! She began purring and hissing, desperately wishing she could speak. It frustrated her, especially at moments like this when her Great Master’s safety was at stake.

Her gaze returned to Kai. She couldn't let anything happen to her Great Master’s disciples—her junior brothers. When she heard another hiss, different from her own distinct voice, she turned and saw Nu Di Se, the snake. She appeared angry.

Bis Ke and Nu Di Se approached Kai cautiously, their eyes never leaving his injured form. Bis Ke’s tail flicked as she observed. Her heart ached.

As Renji hurriedly tended to Kai’s injuries, Bis Ke could no longer contain her yowls of irritation at her inability to speak—and his inability to understand her.

He finally seemed to get it, however.

“Someone...” His voice quivered on the edge of breaking. “Someone attacked the town,” he faltered, eyes wide and haunted. “The guards... gone. Townsfolk... too. I don’t understand... What happened?

“Master, he... he wasn’t himself. Injured, maybe. I couldn’t tell. All I saw was him putting Kai down and facing that man.”

A heavy silence fell.

Her heart thumped.

“I... I grabbed Kai and fled. I didn’t look back. I didn’t fight. I didn’t help. I just... ran. Yeah, heh, I just fled. I really—”

Bis Ke’s fur stood on end as she dashed out of the room, her claws clicking against the tiles—she had no time to hear what her junior brother had to say. The Great Master was in danger. Outside, the world blurred past her, but her senses were sharp.

She needed to get to her Master.

Fast.

***

Meanwhile, inside the room, Nu Di Se coiled in a corner, her slitted eyes fixed on the door through which Bis Ke had disappeared. Renji’s grip on her scales was firm yet gentle, a silent reassurance. Her body remained still, but the flicker of her tongue in the air couldn’t be retained.

Renji turned his attention back to Kai. Blood stained his hands as he worked swiftly, doing his best to tend to Kai’s wounds.

Renji couldn’t help but wonder why their master was unable to protect the town. His hands shook as he applied a bandage.

***

Outside, Bis Ke’s yowls pierced the air as she raced through the town, her eyes narrowed and focused. She couldn’t let anything happen to her Great Master!

It took her no longer than a few minutes to spot her Great Master, fighting even as he was injured. He and the man seemed to be fighting with no powers at all, which was strange. However, she couldn't care less, it fell on her to save him. She would save him.

Bis Ke charged forward with everything she could muster. Her sleek body slipped into the shadows so that she wouldn’t be noticed closing the distance between her and her Great Master. The sight before her made her blood boil with rage. Her Great Master was indeed injured, but he was still putting up a fight against the man who had attacked the town.

How great could her Master be? There was no bounds to his greatness! She knew, for she was well versed in his greatness.

The man’s face was obscured by a tattered cloak.

His lips curled into a cruel smirk, and he not only taunted her Great Mater with mocking laughter, he also beat him up pretty badly from what she could get—of course, her master wasn’t backing down at all, the problem stemmed from the fact that he had old injuries!

It was clear that he saw her Great Master as nothing more than a plaything to be toyed with.

She bristled with anger as she leaped without thinking twice. She aimed a clawed strike at the man’s face. Her intent was to distract him, to give her Great Master an opening to strike back.

The man’s hand shot out, catching her paw mid-air with a vice-like grip. Bis Ke yowled in pain as he squeezed her paw, her body thrashing—and her claws retracting involuntarily. Her eyes twitched wide. This man was no ordinary human; his strength was unnatural.

Her master took advantage of the opening she had created and lunged at the man, slamming a powerful kick to the back of his knee. The force of the blow sent the man out of balance.

With a snarl, the man released Bis Ke’s paw and regained his balance. She lunged at the man once more, this time aiming for his legs. Her claws raked across his calf, drawing blood. However, before she could deal any substantial damage, his Gu flared, and two of her nails snapped.

Bis Ke yowled in pain, hitting the ground.

The man’s anger had only grown. He reached down and grabbed Bis Ke by the scruff of her neck, lifting her off the ground. She wriggled and squirmed in his grasp, her claws flailing, but it was futile. He held her with an iron grip, his fingers digging into her fur—and then, flesh.

Bis Ke’s heart pounded with fear as the man’s face loomed close to hers. He hurled her to the ground, sending her skidding across the dirt. Her body ached, but she refused to stay down and struggled back up—snarling at the man with an intense glare.

He dared fight her Great Master when he was injured?

She growled and pushed herself to her feet. A pulse of pain kept hammering her on the side, but she ignored it. She couldn’t let her Great Master down.

This time, she aimed for the man’s face, slashing at his eyes. However, he caught her paw again, and twisted it, causing her to yowl in agony. A brutal kick, and she was sent tumbling away once more. She landed on her feet this time, though, and calmed her mind.

Repeating mistakes.

She was repeating mistakes.

“Stop this nonsense, beast. Go.”

The man turned to her Great Master; he appeared rather fatigued.

Her vision blurred by pain and exhaustion, but… but she couldn’t let her Great Master down. She had to help him, no matter the cost.

She bared her teeth, hissing, and stopped—considering her approach with a calmer mind. She waited.

“Hmm, tired, are you, Ryujin?” he asked her master.

She waited.

“Still have enough to beat up a slithering.” Her master sneered.

“You and your insufferable face.”

“Heh. Funny, that. I thought—what an insufferable, oh-so-very punchable face—when I first saw you.”

The man grew red. “You—!”

Bis Ke saw her chance, and jumped, slashing right at his legs.

This time she didn’t make the mistake—and promptly coated it in the fuzzy feeling in her chest.

Her claws sliced through his flesh. He screamed.

“YOU PESKY BUG!”

He growled, sidestepping from her further attacks, and delivered a crushing blow to her side with the heel of his hand.

Pain exploded through her body, and she let out a screech of agony. Her side boiled and she felt herself being lifted off the ground, suspended in the air for a moment before she was unceremoniously thrown to the ground once more.

She lay there, battered and broken, eyes blurred. The man turned his attention back to her master. His eyes twitched wide, and her Master’s fist met his cheek.

The man didn’t move an inch, and glared down at her master. She could only watch as he raised his hand, and—

“You’ve got spirit, Ryujin. I’ll give you that much, at least.”

“Huh? And that’s supposed to mean anything, you fuck? Wow, I’m so honored. Eat shit, bastard. Can’t even have an ‘honorable’ fight.”

A crack formed on the man’s head. “That damned cat intervened.”

“Sure.”

“You saw it.”

“Sure.”

“I will beat you now.”

“Sure,” her master rolled his eyes. “I guess that’s all you can do, eh?”

The man grew silent, jaw tense.

“Alright, then. If this is how you want this to be.” He grinned. “Let us continue our duel.”

***

- Wu Ryujin -

I bit back my smirk. I’d managed somehow. I sneaked a glance and saw Biscuit trying to stand back up. This girl… she was strong, but weak. Not enough. I couldn’t let her fight. There wasn’t any other way, either. No one was here yet. What were they doing—

I stopped myself. No complaining. I’d complained enough. Gotten enough shit.

It was time to let go.

Before that, however, I had this mess to deal with—most importantly, survive.

Tian Mo was dangerous. Whatever he found in the mountain. I gritted my teeth. This fucking world and it’s fucking cliches. What was it? A ‘hidden treasure’ or some bullshit?

I growled, pouncing forward. Bastard dodged to the side, and my vision blurred as his knee slammed like an explosion. I coughed blood but didn’t stop. My eyes met that of Biscuit as she stood up, glaring, and something lit up inside my mind.

“BISCUIT!” I yelled. “USE…!”