Reborn as a Side Character in the Beastworld

Chapter One Hundred and Twenty-eight

They had almost reached the top when he sensed a wrongness in the air. The moment the wind changed, a blend of beast smells hit his nose with a force that made him instinctively pull back his lips into a snarl. But Kit was already too far ahead. Shuu picked up speed and his paws unhesitatingly smacked the rich riverside earth in an anxious flurry. Like a bolt of black lightning, he struck upwards to find his cub. He found him just as the source of the smells made themselves known. He turned the corner, following the trace orange color of Kit's tail, and just as the cub was snatched up from the ground by the claws of a yellow panther beastman, Shuu increased his speed further. With his head down, Shuu slammed into the male's stomach. Caught by surprise, the male was pushed ten feet and lost his grip on the fox cub before coming to his senses and shifting into his panther form.

Shuu didn't immediately follow through with his attack. Instead, he stood protectively over Kit who lay cowering on the damp ground. Shuu's hackles rose as, from behind the panther, a scarred lion and a hairless bear approached. The pressure rolling off the three beasts made him want to tuck his tail. Shuu's ears were pressed flat to his head, but he didn't need them to hear the other beasts revealing themselves from across the rushing water. They weren't trying to hide their presence. With their numbers, otherwise cautious beasts became confident. He didn't know where they had come from or why they were there, but none of their eyes held any light and it was clear they didn't come for a chat. As an omnivore, it wasn't often that Shuu felt like prey, but that was exactly the way those beasts were looking at him. And just like any predator, they made the first move.

The lion and the bear rushed them. If he wanted to keep Kit safe, Shuu had no choice but to run forward and intercept them. Staying low and using his speed to his advantage, he darted to the side of the bear and bit at the slower beast's back legs. The bear lost his balance on the loosely packed ground and slipped but as he fell, the lion jumped over his comrade and with his claws unsheathed, fell onto the wolf. Shuu tried to leap back but the lion's paw was faster, and Shuu took a sharp hit to his jaw, sending him reeling into the water with a splash. He tried to get his legs under him and his senses back before the next attack, but more splashes sounded as the beasts that had been watching the interaction decided to participate. A hyena bit and dragged Shuu's back leg trying to keep his head beneath the surface of the shallow water. Shuu twisted his body and bit at the hyena's neck. His attacker, surprised at Shuu's agility and unable to let go of his grip in time, had his carotid artery ripped apart by Shuu's teeth and in seconds the waters were stained with his lifeblood. Then Shuu heard a tiger roar.

With bloodshot eyes, Shuu looked to where the sound came from, expecting another group of attackers and being instantly relieved to see Patrick and Carl coming around the bend. Without question, the two seasoned soldiers flung themselves into the fray. But being surrounded by enemies, he didn't have the luxury of watching their fight. Just as Shuu avoided an attack from an albino Komodo Dragon beast, a female's surprised scream had all eyes aimed at the sky.

A peacock with an enchanting blue-haired female was circling above them. The female was pointing to the cowering fox cub and Shuu took the opportunity to let loose a demand for help. His opponents, brought back to their senses by Shuu's howl once again attacked. Like voracious piranhas, they swarmed and bit at the wolf, causing the water to splash and spray around them. Shuu was able to get out one more howl before he was overwhelmed, and it was all he could to do keep the other beasts from ripping open his own neck. Blood ran so copiously that not even the swift-moving river could rinse it away.

***

Muir ignored the stiffness and pain of his wing as he pushed himself upstream, searching for whatever had caused the water to run red beneath the forest canopy. After only a few minutes of being in the air, Muir spotted Alva. The flashy bird was moving swiftly and despite recognizing the eagle in his path, did not slow down. Muir focused as Alva streaked passed him and the momentary glimpse of the merfemale with an orange fox kit in her arms eased the tension in his neck. He let out a relieved breath but then steeled his heart and continued his hurried flight upriver. Shuu would never have let Kit out of his sight if he could help it. Which meant the wolf had no other choice but to rely on others. When the eagle finally saw the reason for such dependency, the tension in his neck returned.

A bloodbath between one wolf, two tigers, and tens of unfamiliar beasts awaited him. Knowing instinctively he would likely die here, Muir found himself grateful for the opportunity to defend the place he had grown to love and the beasts who had shown him warmth. This would be his chance to make up for the foolish things he'd done when blinded by his need to possess something that never belonged to him. Though he didn't think his death would clear all his debts, he hoped that a certain redheaded female would remember him fondly from time to time.

As Muir's claws dug into the side of a panther and he forced his screaming wing to climb high into the air before dropping the feline's head upon the rocks, Muir felt no fear of the overwhelming numbers. He dived down again and again, severing spinal cords and disemboweling beasts with his claws with each pass until he was finally snatched out of the air and buried beneath a pile of battle-frenzied males.

***

Oliver and Alva reached the village center close to the same time. Tristan and Winston were standing on the steps of the courthouse speaking with a golden-haired and blue-haired male. The peacock landed and Qin, with Kit still in her arms ran to her tetra-marked mate she'd not seen in years. Not bothering with a greeting and her expression pleading, she spoke. "Jin! You have to help them! They'll all die! There are still cubs up there!"

Perplexed, Jin placed his hands on Qin's trembling shoulders. He was elated to see her and wanted nothing more than to sequester her away back to her cave, but just like most males, he was unable to ignore her pleas. "Slow down. Tell me what's happened."

Qin never felt such concern for her own offspring, and would never have imagined that another female's cubs would elicit such unknown affection for the soft and cuddly within her. The past few days of watching an entire village nurture and care for the few offspring they had, made Qin's chest feel uncomfortable and the only thing that had eased that discomfort was holding one such fragile life in her arms. To imagine those small warm-blooded things in danger made her lose all sense of dignity or pride.

Oliver, still slightly out of breath, succinctly answered first. "Ambush." He huffed. "Twenty beasts. Up at River Falls. Hurry."

Winston didn't wait for more information before shifting and speeding away. He only had one thought on his mind and there was no room for any other. He had to get to his mate and cubs.

Kit squirmed out of the panicked female's arms and ran to his fox papa to tell him what had transpired.

Though Tristan equally wanted to dash away, he pulled Kit into his arms and asked the cub for more details. With each yip, Tristan's face grew paler. It wasn't enough for just Winston to go. They were not only outnumbered, but a number of their opponents had three stripes. While the cub was being protected, he had burned the image of his wolf papa's desperate fight into his memory. He had known there was nothing else he could do. His interference would only make things more difficult for Papa Shuu. So, he watched. And he memorized. And he relayed each detail to Papa Tristan.

And Tristan did what all good leaders do. With the strength of his marks, he summoned all fox beastsmen and asked for help.

*I need practice at writing fight scenes. Also thanks for being patient during this crazy busy week. I didn't mean to leave y'all hanging for so long.