Nal groaned as she opened her eyes. She had a horrible headache, and it felt like the world was spinning. She wanted to go back to sleep, but soon noticed that someone was trying to push her onto something.

She slowly opened her eyes. Everything was blurry at first, and she could see double of everything. As a wave of nausea washed over her, she let out a groan.

"Nal!" Syl's voice was full of relief, though there was a hint of something else her addled brain couldn't make out.

"Syl?" Nal looked towards where Syl's voice had come from and had to blink a few times before she came into focus.

"Nal! You're okay! You're okay! You hit your head so hard I worried you... How are you feeling?"

Nal tried to remember what had happened but couldn't collect her thoughts, "Everything is spinning and I see two of you, but it is getting better."

Syl hugged Nal, "Let me help you get on the horse and then I want you to rest while we ride back to the manor."

Nal nodded, she wanted to sleep for a while. At least until this headache went away. 

Something tugged at her mind, "Where is Iysinfyr?"

Syl looked to the horse and when Nal followed her gaze she saw that Iysinfyr was already sitting on the saddle. Nal found something odd about it, but seeing that Iysinfyr was safe, she merely smiled and then climbed on to the horse with Syl's help.

For some reason Syl kept straitening her head forward whenever she tried to look around. Something in the back of her mind was telling her something had happened here, but thinking too hard only made her headache worse. Besides, if she moved her head around too much, it only made her dizziness worse. Yes, that must have been why Syl kept straightening her head. It was so she didn't get too dizzy that she would fall off the horse. That made sense.

Nal felt her eyes becoming heavy. Sleep seemed fantastic right now. Maybe the headache and the spinning would go away by the time she woke up again. Yes... sleep. Sleep.

***

Deko could barely contain her rage. Her instincts told her to rush straight at the man. She was faster and stronger than him in her panther form. It would only take her mere seconds to cover the distance between them. The trouble was he kept looking behind him, to where the fight had taken place. If she attacked now, he would see her and could defend himself.

No, she would continue to use the terrain to keep herself hidden. The man was too busy looking ahead of him or behind him, so if she came from the side she could take him by surprise. She knew he was skilled enough that it would be nearly impossible to escape a fight without injuries, and that sword of his made her nervous. She needed to end the fight as soon as it began.

The rocky area around the larger rock outcroppings wasn't large, but she was confident she was fast enough to get into position before the cover of the rocks made way for open plain.

Deko lept onto the last large rock before the plains and in an instant noted that this would be her last opportunity. It wasn't as close as she would have liked, but it was still close enough that he would only have a few moments to react, if he saw her coming at all.

The moment the man looked forward and jumped over a large rock was when she struck.

Just as he turned to look behind him again, he caught sight of her and his head jerked towards her. 

Deko relished the look of surprise as his eyes widened, and he attempted to bring up his shield. But he had noticed her too late as she easily deflected the shield and slammed her weight into him, her claws tearing into his shield arm and her teeth tearing at the shoulder of his sword arm. She could hear a satisfying crunch as his head slammed into a nearby rock, knocking him out cold.

Deko immediately let his neck go, then listened for breathing, and once she confirmed that he was still alive began to drag him. She wanted him alive, though she didn’t need to ask him for answers, and she knew a nice secluded place where they wouldn't be bothered.

***

Nal woke up to Syl's voice.

She opened her eyes and nearly slide to the side from a sudden bout of dizziness, but Syl steadied her before anything came of it. 

They were back at the Tallhill estate and the stable hand had been approaching them, "I will go get Rahd immediately."

Nal wondered why he was going to get the head servant, Rahd, and turned slowly to Syl, “Why do we need Mr. Rahd?” She looked around and noticed that Deko and two of the horses were missing, “Where is Deko and your horse?”

Her memories were still fuzzy and her head hurt when she tried to remember what happened. She was sure she had fallen off of her horse. Something had spooked it? 

Syl appeared to be trying to keep a look of calm on her face, but Nal had known her long enough to recognize the minor changes that appeared on her face, “A snake jumped out from some rocks bit my horse. My horse jumped back and landed on you, knocking you off your horse.”

Nal kind of remembered a horse hitting her horse and falling, but had there been a snake? Something about Syl’s facial expression told her she might not be telling the whole truth. Or it could be the blow to the head giving making her not see straight, so maybe she should trust Syl for now, “I remember your horse hitting me and falling but I must have been too busy talking to Iysinfyr to notice the snake.”

Syl nodded and Nal thought she saw tension go away from her face, “Everything happened so fast I’m not surprised. Deko stayed behind to take care of things while I brought you back.”

Nal felt the back of her head. She felt nothing. No wound. No bump. Though she could feel some drying blood in her hair. She hadn’t thought about checking it for now because she didn’t have any pain other than the headache, but she never expected that she wouldn’t even have an injury. Well, there was blood, but where had it come from? She must have hit her head hard to get knocked out like that.

Syl gave her a strange look, looked to Iysinfyr, then back to her, “I’m not sure what happened but Iysinfyr healed your wound.”

Nal’s eyes went wide, and she turned to look at Iysinfyr. The white-haired girl was sitting in front of her and wasn’t moving so she hadn’t thought to look at her, but when she leaned forward to get a better look at her Nal saw that Iysinfyr was staring at the door the stable hand had recently entered. Iysinfyr then met Nal’s eye’s before looking back towards the door.

Nal barely contained an excited squeal. This was the first time she had ever seen Iysinfyr look at anything. She usually had a blank stare and didn’t focus her eyes on anything, but now she was staring at the door and had even looked Nal in the eyes.

“What did she do?” Nal looked to Syl and hoped for an interesting story.

Syl looked to think for a moment, “Well, she didn’t seem injured after falling off the horse, but didn’t move until she saw the snake was going to attack again,” a dark expression went over her face, “and she killed it. Then she walked to you and healed you. I don’t know what she did, but it worked.”

Nal became confused, “I thought healing with magic was impossible.”

Syl nodded, “It is. But so is that inhuman strength and the healing abilities she has. Maybe whatever gives her that power allows her to use it on others.” Syl looked at Iysinfyr, “I have a feeling we might be able to ask her soon. It looks like seeing you get wounded like that opened her heart a little.”

Nal looked back to Iysinfyr and saw that Iysinfyr was now staring at her.

“Iysinfyr, thank you for helping me,” Nal wanted to touch Iysinfyr on the shoulder as a gesture of thanks, but hesitated under her stare.

“We better get off the horse now. I need to discuss what happened with Rahd and you and Iysinfyr should get back to your rooms for some rest.” Syl gave Nal a stern looked and then got off the horse.

After Syl helped Nal and Iysinfyr off the horse, Nal led Iysinfyr toward the nearest door. 

Just before Nal entered the estate, she saw Rahd, the stable hand, and a servant meet Syl as she was finishing putting the horse in its stable. She lingered just long enough to watch how Rahd would react. She was far enough away that it was difficult to see the minor details of their expressions or what they were saying, but with how obvious it was when the blood drained from Rahd’s face, she knew something serious had happened. Yes, a horse getting injured was a serious problem, but the way Rahd began giving orders to the stagehand and servant she knew that something more serious might have happened. 

***

Deko was just putting the man down in a small cave near the stream and watched the man as he awoke. The confusion that appeared on his face amused her, especially when he noticed she had used the very rope he had planned on using to tie up his master and Lady Nalulthyn to tie him up.

“What are you going to do to me? I take it you aren’t going to take me to the guards.” The man said after his confusion changed to a look of defiance.

Deko got up from her haunches and then moved to sit on the man’s chest, “Make an example out of you.”

The man gave her a smirk in defiance, “Nothing you do to me will get me to talk or scream out in pain. I’m not going to do anything to satisfy you.”

Deko put her face close to his, “I care not for your suffering or who hired you. I can smell them on you. I can smell all the women and even a child on you, the smell of rape. I can smell the fear of your victims. Did you murder the women after you raped them?”

The man frowned, “So what if I raped and killed them. They were weak and deserve what they got.”

Deko pulled her face away from his and showed him one of her claws, “I got this idea from my master, no she wasn’t cruel enough to do it herself, but I think it is perfectly suitable given your crimes.”

The man looked at the claw but waited to see what she would do next.

Deko put her claw to his forehead and began carving words into his skin. The man grimaced as she wrote the word ‘rapist,’ then ‘murderer,’ and finally ‘kidnapper.’

“Is that it?” The man hissed at her through his gritted teeth, “Going to mark me so everyone knows what I’ve done? Then you’ll take me to the guards?”

Deko purred, “Who said I finished?” Deko bit into his shoulder and when she began tearing at the flesh, cauterizing it with magical fire to prevent him bleeding to death. It was now he finally screamed. 

In moments she had torn his left arm and then his right arm off, “These arms that held the magic and weapons you used to murder,” she turned to his legs, “these legs you used to trample on those weaker than you,”  and finally she tore off his groin, “this phallus you used to rape.”

Deko spit the blood out of her mouth and washed her face off in the nearby stream, “Lucky you my people dislike the taste of human flesh.”

The man no longer looked at Deko and wildly moved about.

Deko watch the man. She was impressed he hadn’t passed out from the pain. In her previous master’s service she had seen many pass out from less.

“Already done?” The man said after a few minutes with a weak smile full of defiance.

“Almost, the next part should only take a few moments,” Deko purred as she sat next to the man’s side and then turned to human form.

The man looked over her body in a way that disgusted Deko, “When my friends hear what you did to me, I hope they rape you until you they break you.”

Deko laughed, “Do not worry, your friends will join you soon.” Deko picked up a small knife she had found in the man’s belongings and used her off-hand to force his jaw open and use a rock to keep him from closing it, breaking some teeth, “Remember the words you said. They will be your last.”

The man’s eyes shot open in realization just before Deko began cutting his tongue out and cauterizing the stump.

The man looked at her with pure hate after she finished and made gurgling sounds that Deko was sure were more threats.

“Two more things and we’re done,” Deko smiled at him and then slid the tip of the blade behind one of his eyes, “Can’t have you lusting after women with these eyes.”

Pop!

Pop!

***

Syl collapsed into her bed. She was physically and emotionally exhausted and welcomed the chance to sleep. She had failed to protect Nal and Iysinfyr. If only her anger hadn’t blinded her, that noble would never have gotten past her.  If it weren’t for Iysinfyr, the men would have finished what they had started and she would probably have a slave collar on to be sold as a sex slave if the noble didn’t keep her for himself.

Iysinfyr… She wasn’t sure if any training would have prepared her to witness that. It wasn’t that Iysinfyr had frightened her, but more of a shock from how powerful she was. How her injuries healed so fast. To shatter a crystal forged shield like that!

Oh! The memories of Iysinfyr defeating their enemies through such sheer strength and the fear she had given them. Oh! It was glorious! She had even healed Nal at the end of it all! A feat that shouldn’t be possible. To think such a remarkable girl was in her care! Syl was truly blessed and she couldn’t wait to see what the future had in store. Though, she hoped violence wouldn’t be a part of it anymore.

Syl’s heart also warmed at the fact that Iysinfyr seemed to care about them. The one thing that finally got her to react was to save them. Maybe all the picnics Nal took them on had made an impression? 

The next few weeks would be interesting. Iysinfyr now reacted to things. Her shell was breaking, and it Syl felt it wouldn’t be long before they saw the real Iysinfyr.

Syl hugged her pillow and fell asleep with a grin on her face as she imagined all the fun things she would get to do with Nal and Iysinfyr.