As Kaede and Alaric were still killing mythic bears, yelling:
"I'm winning! Damn elf!" Kaede exclaimed.
"I just killed three! Damn feline!" Alaric replied.
Yalla, Caelan, Earendi, Lirael, and Arwin were sitting on the ground, eating roasted chicken.
Caelan asked, "The Heartwood is decaying?"
Earendil replied, "That's the talk of the capital right now, it hasn't gone out into the public though."
Arwin added, "It's..creepy…Moros…"
Yalla said, "Moros?! Moros is back?!"
Caelan asked, "Do they plan on telling the public and the rest of the towns and villages? According to my observations, informing them will allow them to be prepared for what's to come due to the rot and decay."
Earendil replied, "I meannn, I guess. But father says he wants to avoid panic. If Moros is back, that means this is bad."
Yalla asked, "Heyyyy wasn't he the one who betrayed the gods of the divine circle?"
Lirael nodded silently.
Earendil continued, "The Starlight Council thinks since he got banished from the divine circle, he's corrupting the Heartwood tree, knowing that tree is damaged, it could plunge the entire kingdom in darkness, technically destroying it but on a much greater scale, and it's not the darkness itself, but what's inside of it."
Caelan asked, "You came all the way out here to inform us of this? Even though, this is very important news-."
Earendil grabbed Caelan, and screamed, "WE GOT BORED!"
"B-Bored?"
"Me and Arwin chased you guys down…in hopes for some kind of action!"
"You never wanted to do this before."
"Duh, because you are boringggg. But now you have the CAT!"
Yalla smiled, "Dont even THINK about taking Mr Cuddly."
"You named IT??"
"He's not an IT."
"Sure sure. Anyway, the cat beat us badly, and then beat high commander Vettan! And with him being new and all, and with him being above Legendary rank-."
Yalla and Caelan exclaimed, "Above legendary rank?!"
Arwin answered, "He gets stronger..every time he dies….so…it's never been documented before…just imagine…how powerful the cat will be…on his last life…"
Yalla replied, "Well he's our trump card then! Green squad is now better than all the other dumb squads."
Earendil asked, "He's officially on your team?"
Lirael said, "…Yes."
Caelan added, "As much as I count on my predictions, having the cat apart of our squad is weird. But whatever the queen says, I shall respect it."
Yalla raised her hand, "I'm gonna be giving Mr Cuddly the tour of our squad house!"
Caelan thought, 'Perhaps…does the cat have anything to do with the Heartwood tree? Maybe, maybe not. And Moros…If its hime wanting revenge, then it's likely that In his exile, he spent centuries brooding, his rage and bitterness growing, wanting revenge on the divine circle. If it's him actually doing this, why target the Heartwood? And on top of that, is he connected to Eulonde or the nightshade crystal?'
Caelan asked, "Any news on Thalion?"
Earendil replied, "He came back, and was dipped in the Springs. He was wounded…again. And a bunch of dead elves were found where you guys had been for that mission."
"Again…the same thing has happened. This is the 4th time this has happened with Thalion. It'll be best if the Starlight council performed the communication ritual with the celestial gods."
Arwin responded, "That's the thing. The Heartwood was the main source for the ritual, it was like the bridge, while also being the heart of the kingdom. But now that's it corrupted, the ritual won't work right."
"Dammit."
Yalla asked, "Soooooo, are you guys going on the mission with us?"
Earendil and Arwin smiled, "Yes!"
Suddenly, Lirael created a portal with her scythe, and said, "No. Dangerous."
"Whyyy?"
Lirael grabbed the prince and princess by their shirts, and threw them through the portal that led to the capital of the kingdom.
Kaede and Alaric were finished killing mythic bears, both of them were covered in blood, and they were drinking water from a nearby stream.
Kaede said, "Yes. Refreshing water."
Alaric said, "I..killed more."
"Yeah right. Keep dreaming elf."
"Shut up."
"Why do you hate me? Did I do something to you?"
"…You're a danger. You came out of nowhere. You could try and kill us all."
"Seems like you have trust issues."
"Not trust issues. I was too trusting before, stop prying into my business."
"Shaddup. I'm super strong, you know that, right?"
"One day, me and you are gonna fight to the death."
"I did that twice already since I got here, and I'm still alive. Shouldn't that tell you something?"
"Tch. Whatever. I'm better than you."
"Yeah yeah."
As Kaede kept licking the water, he felt a vibration from the other side of the water. He looked up, and he saw Lyra, the pink and white cat, the pet of Hana (Eulonde)
Kaede's heart pounded, and he blushed at the same time, saying, "WHOA! WHOOO ARE YOU?!"
Lyra looked up, startled, and she ran away.
When a male cat is attracted to a female cat, it's all about their natural instincts and biology. Male cats, like many other animals, have a strong drive to reproduce and pass on their genes.
When a female cat is in heat, she releases pheromones that signal to male cats that she's ready to mate. These pheromones can be quite potent and can travel long distances, attracting male cats from far and wide. When a male cat catches a whiff of these pheromones, it triggers a response in his brain, activating his mating instincts.
The male cat's behavior may change when he's attracted to a female cat. He may become more vocal, restless, and even aggressive towards other male cats competing for the female's attention.
When a male cat spots a female cat he's attracted to, he may start to chase her. This chase is part of the courtship ritual, as the male tries to get close to the female and show off his strength and agility. It's his way of demonstrating his fitness as a potential mate.
Kaede went after Lyra, dashing behind her, thinking, 'She's the most beautiful cat…I've ever seen….shit…my nature is taking over..'
Alaric exclaimed, "Hey! The hell are you going?! Dammit!" Alaric chased after them.
It got the attention of Lirael, Caelan, and Yalla.
Yalla exclaimed, "Mr Cuddly's running away!"
Caelan said, "According to my sights, he seems to be chasing after a female cat potentially in heat."
Lirael just started to travel through her portal, trying to keep up with them.
Kaede dashed right behind Lyra, and Lyra thought, 'Who the hell is this damn cat?! I gotta shake him in the rat infested village!'
Lyra yelled, "I'm not letting you touch me!"
Kaede yelled back, "I just wanna talk! I'm not some kind of wolf animal! Get to know me a little bit!"
"Get to know the rats, bum!"
They both were now in the village, where large shadow rats were dwelling, eating the carcasses of dead animals.
Kaede, intrigued by Lyra, shadow pounced to initiate the chase, disappearing into the darkness. He reappeared just in time to slice through a rat attempting to cross his path. Lyra, sensing his pursuit, sped up, her claws slashing through a rat as she turned a sharp corner. Kaede followed suit, his superior agility allowing him to maintain the chase effortlessly.
Kaede's black whisker divination alerted him of an impending rat swarm. He froze them in place with a potent Ruby Gaze, before darting past them to continue his pursuit. Lyra, agile and swift, leaped over a pile of debris, landing amidst a group of rats. With a swift, lethal sweep of her claws, she dispatched them, not breaking stride. Kaede, using his feline agility, climbed up a nearby wall to take a shortcut, simultaneously slashing through a rat that tried to interfere.
Lyra, noticing Kaede's shortcut, sped up, her claws leaving a trail of rat casualties in her wake. Kaede, spotting a larger rat, used his obsidian fur shield to deflect its attack before finishing it off with a swift swipe of his claws. Lyra slid under a low hanging obstacle, colliding with a rat. She quickly took care of it and continued her run. Kaede, staying close behind, pounced from the shadows to swiftly dispatch another rat that popped out from a garbage heap. Lyra, sensing a rat behind her, kicked backwards without missing a step, sending the rat flying into a wall. Kaede, utilizing his shadow pounce, bypassed a rat blockade, appearing on the other side unscathed and continuing the chase.
Lyra, faced with an aggressive rat, quickly ended its charge with a swift, deadly swipe of her claws. Kaede, following Lyra's trail, used his superior agility to dodge a rat and counter with a lethal bite, his crimson fang drain sucking the life force out of it. Lyra, nimbly jumping across rooftops, took down a rat that had climbed up to challenge her. Kaede, using his shadow pounce, closed the distance between him and Lyra, leaving a trail of rat casualties in his wake. Lyra, refusing to be caught, sped up, her claws taking care of any rat that dared to cross her path. Kaede, sensing danger from his black whisker divination, quickly used his Ruby Gaze to freeze a group of rats in place, allowing him to continue his pursuit unhindered.
Lyra, agile and quick, weaved through a narrow alley, her deadly claws leaving no rat survivor in her path. Kaede, not far behind, used his feline agility to maneuver through the narrow alley, dispatching any remaining rats with deadly precision. Lyra, reaching a dead end, quickly climbed up a wall, taking down a couple of rats on her way up.
Kaede, following suit, climbed up the wall, his claws effortlessly slicing through any rats that got in his way. Lyra, jumping across rooftops, used her quick reflexes and sharp claws to dispatch any rats that dared to challenge her. Kaede, using his shadow pounce, appeared and disappeared across the rooftops, leaving a trail of rat casualties behind him.
Lyra, descending back to ground level, swiftly took out a group of rats that had been waiting to ambush her. Kaede, landing gracefully behind her, used his obsidian fur shield to deflect an attack from a rat before dispatching it with a swift claw strike. Lyra, darting through a narrow passage, effortlessly took down any rat that crossed her path. Kaede, using his superior agility, followed her through the passage, his claws leaving a trail of rat casualties behind him.
Lyra, reaching an open square, quickly dispatched a group of rats that had been waiting for her. Kaede, arriving at the square, used his Ruby Gaze to freeze a swarm of rats in place before quickly taking them out.
Finally catching up to Lyra, Kaede ended the chase with a swift leap over her, landing gracefully on the other side. He spun around, his crimson claws taking out a final rat that had been lurking behind her, concluding their chaotic chase through the rat-infested town.
They both were panting loudly, looking at each other. Not knowing they were in the Heartwood forest.
Lyra asked, "What do you want? Why do you keep chasing me?"
"You're like, the first talking cat I've met! I'm not gonna do anything weird to you! I just wanna know if you're in the same predicament as me, and if you have a mate-!"
"Leave me alone!"
Lyra smashed her paw in the ground, and bright pink gas blasted out of the ground, and Kaede went flying backwards, and he fell into a tree.
He rolled over and over in darkness, and he sat up, coughing, "Damn what's her problem?"
He looked up, and he saw Elysion looking down at him, saying, "How are you in here? A cat deity..? Only gods are allowed in this prison…?"
"WHAT THE-?!"
Lirael, Alaric, Caelan, and Yalla were now in the Heartwood as well, and Alaric said, "He tricked us! I told you the cat was no good!"
Yalla replied, "Don't say that! He's not a traitor!"
Lirael said, "…I can't use my portal."
Everyone looked at her, yelling, "What do you mean?!"
"Not letting me open a portal."
Alaric scoffed, "Oh that's just great! Now we're fucked!"
Caelan thought, 'The Heartwood is rotten…it's slowly spreading…'
They noticed rot was slowly forming on their skin, and Alaric said, "We gotta get out of here!"
Yalla replied, "Not without Mr Cuddly!"
"Damn that cat! He led us here!"
"Mr Cuddly?! Where are you?!"
"I said forget about him!"
A large sharp branch covered in shadows darted towards them, but in the blink of an eye, Lirael sliced it down and in half.
Everyone turned towards Lirael, and they saw Hana (Eulonde) approaching them, followed by an army of rotten shadow forest animals.
Hana smiled, "Hehe…now this is a treat!"
Alaric, Caelan, and Yalla exclaimed together, "Eolande!!!"