This piece comes from the middle of a larger story I've been developing and may write sometime in the future. It's mainly just introducing the characters and setting and experimenting with story concepts. I think this story fragment is pretty lame in some places but I'm proud of myself for having the discipline to just post without having to get it "perfect" first, like usual. That may be a first for me. lol

Also you can find a picture of the Shin Tzu character who comes in at the end of this story fragment in my gallery here: http://www.furaffinity.net/view/1478664/ Drawn by the very talented Mr. Fox Kinsman.


Story Fragment: The Rose (Chapter ??)

From the Genesis Earth universe.

Mishael's fitful visions passed as he felt himself gradually regaining consciousness. He opened his eyes to find himself in a brush-filled clearing surrounded by lush, primal forest. He looked around at the thick hanging vines and moss-covered tree trunks. At first, he battled to find which way was up and then he glimpsed the dense canopy high above. He could barely see the moonlit sky through the leaves and overlapping branches. Mishael listened to the harsh calls of nighttime birds, and the loud whining of cicadas. In the distance, he heard the low rumbling vocalizations of marsh drakken. The giant reptiles foraged unseen in the night. Mishael tried to reach up and brush the sweat from his forehead and keep swarms of mosquitoes at bay, but he couldn't move his arms. He looked down and saw them secured to his sides by coils of thick rope. He struggled but he couldn't find any slack in them.

He heard unsteady breathing very close to his head. A craned his neck about and saw Camal tied there with him by the same coils, against a sturdy post driven into the ground. Mishael cursed. The lynx was silent with his head hung low, staring at the ground. He was smaller than the Mishael, the top of his head reaching not much higher than the human's chest. He wore dirty, loose-fitting pants and a tattered vest with no undershirt. The only movement from Camal that Mishael could see was an occasional twitch of his whiskers.

Mishael winced, suddenly aware of the smarting pain on the back of his head where the knockout blow had landed. He briefly checked the parts of his body that he could see. One of his white sleeves was torn wide open and he could see that his skin was scrapped and cut in a few places but not badly. He searched for his belongings and he was glad to discover that he still wore his chain mail shirt with his leather greaves and hand guards but his sword and scabbard were nowhere in site. He cursed again. The shepherd-prince looked to the center of the clearing where three figures sat gathered around a campfire, on an arrangement of fallen logs.

Two were human like himself. One was dressed in a purple robe with tassels and appeared unarmed, though Mishael knew all too well not to underestimate him. He had witnessed the mage's deadly power more than once. The other man was dark skinned, bald, and sported a goatee beard and sideburns. He wore a full suit of plate armor, carried a great round shield on his back, and kept a sheathed broadsword at his side. His eyes were unseen behind a pair of strange looking goggles.

The site of the third figure at once filled Mishael with anger and disgust. She was a rat, a low, skinny creature, three feet tall and sporting scraggly, dark brown fur. She wore a red headscarf along with a matching sash about her waist. Her twitching ears bore large, gold hoop earrings. Most notably though, she carried two wicked, curved daggers on a belt underneath the sash.

The three villains seemed to be speaking to one another of some grave matter but from his distance, Mishael could only hear the low murmur of their voices. The rat's black eyes shifted in Mishael's direction and she gave him a cold glare. Mishael glared back. He returned his attention to Camal and smiled. "How are we doing, buddy? No worse for the wear, I hope?"

"They took it," the lynx mumbled. "It was mine and they had no right to take it!" He looked crestfallen, as if every ounce of hope had been drained from his spirit.

"Camal?"

He looked at Mishael as if only just realizing that he was there. "Mishael—why did everything have to happen this way?"

"Van and his gang finally captured us, yes. Bet we'll escape, I promise you."

"Why even bother? Shin Tzu is gone, Andrew is gone, they'll probably kill you in the morning, and worst of all, they've taken it away from me. There's no point in going on!"

"Buck up, Camal. Shin Tzu isn't gone. She's coming for us, I'm sure of it."

"How can you say that?"

"I have faith that she's still alive. Andrew too."

"You and me both saw what happened! Kenan blasted them off the mountainside with his fire. They fell to their deaths!"

He looked away. "Shin Tzu is a kutsune. She wouldn't die that easily. Wherever she is, I'm sure that Andrew is right by her side. He's a young chap, but he is one of the most resilient and courageous men I have ever known. He wouldn't quit without a fight and neither will she.

Camal clinched his teeth. "Don't you understand that it's all over? They've taken it and now he's going to punish me for losing it. He's coming and when he gets here, we're all as good as dead. Even them." He indicated towards the group at the campfire.

"Who are you talking about, Camal? Who is 'he'? Camal, you have to be honest with me. What was that statue of yours that Van wanted so badly?"

"I can't tell you. You'd hate me if you knew." It looked as if his eyes were about to tear up. "Van...he doesn't know what he's done. It's all my fault, I—"

Mishael heard uproarious laughter from the three villains at the campfire. He looked to see the men laughing. Their diminutive female companion* looked between the two, grinning. She chuckled at something the mage said and then she looked to the prisoners. Camal immediately cowered from her gaze. Mishael remained stern faced and unmoved. The rat leaned in close to the men and she said something, pointing towards the prisoners with her chin. The men laughed again then she hopped off her log and stood up. She smiled craftily and began walking to towards Camal and Mishael.

Drawing close and looking up at them, she ignored the shepherd-prince and spoke directly to the lynx. "Well now, this brings back such memories, doesn't it, Camal?" Her tone was smooth and mocking. She slowly drew one dagger, spun it* in the air and caught it again.

Camal shied away from the blade. "Elo...I had to run, you know?" He laughed uneasily. "I mean I thought you guys were going to kill me, you know?"

—(Camal says some more stuff here. Weasely, cowering kind of stuff.)—

"Oh, Camal, we were once your comrades. All could have been forgiven. There was no need to run. Don't you remember all the good times? The bonding?"

"Good times?"

"How about when you tried to come on to me back in Ankim? That was fun."

"Oh...remind me when that was?"

"Come now, don't tell me you don't recall. It was two days after you joined us and Van sent me with you to help you close a deal with the East Vale Cartel."

—(Elo's dialogue in the paragraphs above is cheesy. Had I more time, I'd had her speaking in a more intelligent way.)—

"If I remember correctly, I laughed my head off and walked away. It was our first assignment together, though I think you would have liked to have seen us together in more ways than one." She snickered and grinned.

—(She was supposed to describe the incident in more detail.)—

Camal bit his bottom lip and looked down. Mishael saw his strained face etched with hurt and embarrassment. Elo looked pleased with the reaction.

"Hey. Leave him alone," Mishael said.

"I don't know why Van assigned me to baby-sit such a fool. You make a good informant, I'll give you that, Camal—but a terrible romancer."

—(Here, Elo makes fun of Camal some more and stuff, then Mishael speaks.)—

Mishael lunged at her against his ropes. "Hey you! I'm talking to you, rat!

She looked at Mishael as if regarding a troublesome insect. "As for you, you need to learn to stay out of things that are none of your business," she snapped. "It was Camal we wanted, not you! You, your servant, and that devil-fox were nothing but distractions."

"And it's such a pity that this 'distraction' has whipped your tail more than a few times. You need to learn when to give up when you're defeated."

She gripped the hilt of her dagger. "Don't test me, human. Van is willing to let you go...if you'll leave Camal to us and return to your kingdom. It's literally a once in a lifetime offer. I recommend you take it. Don't you miss your family? You want to see them again, right?"

"It's tempting, but no. I won't leave Camal."

"Why? Why do you insist on aiding this lying, spineless thief?"

"I aid him because he's my friend."

"Friend?" She spoke as if the word was unfamiliar too her. "Camal has no 'friends'." The smooth, mocking voice returned and she looked at the lynx. "Everyone abandons Camal whom he doesn't abandon first. Isn't that right, Camal?"

The lynx kept his eyes on the ground and didn't answer.

"Even his own family disowned him, his cousin stole his lover, and he's been banished from his country. He can never return home again. He is alone. Am I right?"

Camal suddenly stared at in horror. "Hey I—I told you those things in confidence! We were alone, hiding from the East Vale assassins, cornered with no way out! I thought we were going to die and I poured my heart out too you! Then you just—just throw it in my face like that? How—how could you?"

She only laughed, deriving great pleasure from his pain. "We could have been his friends. Oh yes, his lot was safe with the Blooddrakken Syndicate. He could have had anything he wanted. Power, wealth, women of course—the cream of the crop. That is until he robbed us all blind and fled with the money. You see, that's the way with him...he will betray you at the very first opportunity, when he's taken your guard down. I think you'd be surprised at what’s gone on behind your back.

The lynx was looking at Elo, his mouth agape. His lips were moving as if he was struggling to say something but no words came out. He looked at Mishael and the shepherd prince saw what looked like terror in his eyes.

"Tell him, Camal," Elo said. "Why don't you tell your 'friend' how you skimmed off* every payment we received from our assignments. Tell him you cheated us out of every last gold piece we had with a stacked deck. Van caught you at it and you ran like a coward. We would have forgiven you if you had only returned to us what was ours. You used this human's misguided heroics and naivety to hide from us and now your foolishness has doomed you both. Yes, tell him everything. Let him see what kind of 'friend' you are—"

"I don't care." Mishael cut her off.

Elo and Camal both stared at him.

Elo cocked her head. "What?"

Camal stammered. "You mean—you mean you don't hate me? Even after everything she told you?"

"On my honor, I have chosen to throw in my lot with this man. His fate is now tied to mine. Wherever he goes, I go. Even to the darkest depths of hell I will never leave him, I will never abandon him. Whatever his past, as far as I'm concerned his slate is wiped clean. More than my friend, I consider him my brother. No. By the most high God, Lord of Lords, Creator of the world and everything in it—swear I will always stay by his side."

Seething with fury, Elo clinched her teeth. "Fine. If you like him so much then I'll leave you two to rot on this post together. I'm done trifling with you. Once we get back to Nephilan City, we'll dispose of you, human, and then Camal's idol will fetch us a fortune in gold. Van has a special punishment planned for you, Camal." She narrowed her eyes. "And you can believe that I won't miss one minute of it for all the kingdoms of the earth." She turned back to Mishael. "Your part in this adventure is coming to a close, prince. If I were you, I'd start begging your God for deliverance right now because no one else is going to save you." She turned about and began walking away.

"Why don't you come and finish me off yourself, you mangy, half-pint, worm-infested thug?"

Camal sucked in air. "Mishael!"

Elo stopped. She turned half way back and her voice sunk low. "What did you say?"

"I said come get me, you arrogant, —(a word here I can't think of)— , coward! Personally, I don't think you have the stomach for it."

Elo began walking back to them.

Camal looked frantic. "Mishael, she'll kill you! Are you insane?” He turned from Michael and yelled to the rat. “He—he didn’t mean that, Elo! Don’t mind him!”

“Yes I did! You talk a lot, rat. It's easy to bully someone of weak constitution, unable to strike back, and who is obviously terrified of you. But I'll tell you right now, Mishael ben Seth doesn't fear you. You're nothing but a petty criminal. Lower than an animal and not worth my concern!"

Camal laughed dismissively. "He didn’t mean that either, Elo! I’m so sorry—he’s always babbling! Please forgive him!” He leaned over to Mishael and spoke through clenched teeth. “Mishael! Shhhh! Shhhh!"

Elo stopped in front of the prisoners. "No, Camal..." she said. She crossed her arms over her chest. "Let him speak. Sounds like he's got a lot on his mind.*"

"Syndicate scum! How do live with yourself? What made you this way?”

Camal kept his eyes tightly closed, whimpering and mumbling.

—(Mishael goes on talking about how it's sad that she lives this life—etc, etc, etc, more insults, I’ll figure out exactly what later.)—

Elo smiled at Camal. "Your human here has some spunk. Maybe it's good that you're with him." She grabbed his face by the cheeks and squeezed hard. "He may yet make a man out of you. Before the end." Camal cried out in pain and she let go. She wiggled her fingers in front of his nose. "Bye now." She gave Mishael a dangerous look and then left the prisoners.

Camal stared. "I—I don't believe it...why didn't she kill you?"

Mishael closed his eyes. "Shin Tzu, please come quickly."

Returning to her log, Elo drew one dagger again. She stabbed a link of sausage sizzling in a pan over the campfire and took a bite of it. She kept a wary eye on Mishael as she chewed. Kenan the mage sat across from her, smoking a pipe. "Is something bothering you, Elo," he said.

"I don't like this..."

"What, the food? I’m sorry. I try my best.”

"No, not the food! Just sitting around, out in the open like this! Van's been gone with that idol far too long."

Seated next to Elo, Japheth the armor clad man grunted his agreement.

"He hasn't been himself ever since he took the thing from Camal," Elo continued. "Haven't you noticed?"

The mage nodded.

"We should be on our way to Nephilan right now, not waiting around for..." She looked at Kenan. "You sense them, right?"

"Yes...with my foresight I have tracked their movements. They live still."

There was rustling in the undergrowth at the edge of the clearing. Three shadows emerged from it and into the open. Elo, Kenan, and the Japheth leapt to their feet. Elo gave a yell and unsheathed both daggers. Kenan readied a spell, and Japheth brandished his broadsword. The firelight fell upon the foremost figure, revealing him as another rat. He was about a head taller than Elo, broad shouldered, and hard faced*. His ears were notched and bitten. He wore a scimitar at his side along with two flintlock pistols. The three at the campfire relaxed.

"Van...you're back," Elo said.

Immediately behind Van, an enormous ogre with tusks protruding from both his upper and lower jaws walked up next to him and hefted a solid stone club onto one shoulder. He wore only a pair of short pants secured with an iron-studded belt. Broken chains hung from iron shackles about his thick wrists.

Elo marched up to her boss. "Van, what took you so damn long? Orders or not, I refuse to wait around here one minute longer, do you hear me? We're sitting ducks here." She expected to hear a snarling, spite-filled reply as usual, but the male rat didn't respond. "Van—?" she stopped and stared at him. He clutched Camal's idol tightly in his claws. His eyes looked bloodshot. Another rat approached carrying a quiver of green shafted arrows on his back and a longbow in his hand. He was clad in a brigandine hauberk, leather breeches and leather gauntlets. He was clearly keeping a healthy distance from the big rat next to the ogre.

Van slowly turned his head to look at Elo. He clenched his teeth and his face seemed suddenly filled with a look of malice and hatred. It was as if he didn't recognize her. Elo took a step back. "Sir?"

The wild look in his eyes faded and he scowled. "What are you looking at, worm?" he growled. He turned away from her. "Kenan! Report!"

"We've held our position, prisoners are secure, no hostile encounters," the mage said.

Van's gaze shifted between Mishael, Camal, and then his subordinates. "Break camp," he said. "We're moving out in ten minutes! Make haste, worms!"

Elo looked questioningly at her brother with the bow and arrows, to Van, and then back to him.

Her brother glanced at Van and then met her look with one of dread.

Elo bit her bottom lip.

* * * *

Through hanging vines, and over fallen logs, a pure white fox bounded. Her four tails flowed out behind her like —(something)— Her pupil-less eyes shown blue, as bright as the rays of the full moon coming down through the treetops. Holy light seemed to radiate from her very presence. A man ran next to her, matching her stride. He was dressed in black pants and a white shirt. He carried a long, smoothbore musket in his hands. It would have been impossible for him to keep the frenetic pace had his feet not moved imbued with the fox's arcane magic.

The pair neared the edge of a steep bluff. The fox began to rapidly change shape, assuming her true humanoid form, a warrior clad in white, armor of overlapping plates of lacquered steel held together by strips of leather. The borders were etched with floral designs. Her cuirass was etched most brilliantly of all with symmetrical lilies. Her feet were wrapped and she wore wooden sandals. She stopped at the top of the bluff, which had become instead the edge of a deep chasm. She bent down. "Andrew, climb onto my back," she said

Without hesitation, her companion straddled her back and put his arms around her neck. "Hold on tightly," she said. She backed up a few paces and then sprinted forward, leaping off the edge of the chasm. She spread her arms out and her fingers began to elongate. A membrane of skin grew between them. It stretched down her sides and between her legs. Her tails merged into one and shortened to little more than a stub. Her ears grew large and cavernous, her muzzle shortened and broadened, and an erect, leaf-like skin flap developed on the end of her nose. She had become an enormous white bat. She glided across the chasm and alighted on her feet at the other side. Andrew dismounted, the kitsune returned to her, four-legged form and they resumed the chase.

"Shin Tzu?" Andrew said.

She looked at him. "Yes, Andrew?"

"My lord Mishael and Camal are going to be alright, aren't they?"

She looked ahead again and didn't answer.

"Shin Tzu?"

"I sense a great darkness descending upon all of them. It moves swiftly. We don't have much time."

Andrew began to mutter a prayer.