"Where did she go?"

This stretch of Menthla woodland known as the Revenant Wilds was an inspired choice!

Tall, swaying red reeds surrounded me in all directions, like a haunted bamboo grove densely packed in unending shadows.

I kept the visor and vents open on my helmet to track Lost Coyote's scent while scanning the terrain for her claw marks on the reed husks and in the white moss below.

A gentle creaking to the south put my fangs on edge.

I had to be mindful not to give chase too quickly, otherwise I risked getting stuck where the reeds grew too tightly. It was already difficult to avoid making contact with excess flora while stalking through the forest.

A branch cracked, and I couldn't ignore it.

I leaped from my roost in the reeds and bounded pole to pole toward the movement ahead.

Suddenly, the red pole reeds behind me gave way, severed at the base.

"How did she...?"

I had to move or risk being crushed!

I spun and pivoted left, only to find my face confronted by a wall of sharpened spikes. There was only time to duck my head and let my weight fall to the ground.

Shit!

My leg landed on one of those little foot-tall patches of sharp blue crystals protruding from the white moss.

The gash was minor, and I had to commend Lost Coyote for drawing first blood, but there were still five more hours remaining until dawn.

A ghastly howl emanated from all around. The razkur was moving fast on the peripheral and undoubtedly preparing her next attack.

My chest thrummed in exhilaration. Razkur tactics were always wily, and this particular one was remarkably resourceful.

I've been eagerly awaiting the day when Lost Coyote would claim her place as my Adjutant and I had every intention of making sure she earned it!

The reeds above me trembled, and a shadow darted across the canopy.

Move now!

I hopped to my feet and climbed halfway up a large pole. There were several blotches of unidentifiable heat wavering in the distance, but my primary concern was the cold spot lurking nearby.

Razkurs could naturally cool their skin while hunting and Lost Coyote had trained in wielding the skill on command. They could only maintain the reduced temperature in short bursts, but if timed correctly, the maneuver was more than enough to evade the heat sensing pits under my lower lip.

I aimed for the black phantom zipping through the reeds, but pursued the ambiguous shape with caution.

Female razkurs were far more slender than Zhaguai and Lost Coyote was slightly shorter than average. Her form slipped easily between the reeds, while I could only mitigate incoming bruises.

As predicted, she led me into a benign thicket.

I rammed my horns into the foundation of a few reeds and toppled them forward to block her path.

In a blink, Lost Coyote shot up and over my head.

I twisted to block her kick, then slashed to throw her off balance.

Lost Coyote managed a few sharp strikes with her fists to my gut, then she dipped behind a wide red reed trunk.

I hacked through with my dagger and charged, but the razkur was gone.

Next thing I knew, her legs were around my neck and flipping me backward.

Brilliant!

I landed on all fours and shot straight at her, but Lost Coyote took off into a snarl of reeds I couldn't fit through.

A bit to the right sat an untrampled trail. I knew better and chose to climb up and trail her from above.

Strange... those heat spots are still there.

I would need to investigate before she could make use of them later.

Ow!

I growled at an unexpected sting.

A fresh cut opened across my leg. Then another, and another!

I paused and discovered a nest of near-transparent strings tethered between the reeds.

She'd split a section of reed open and used the slender but highly tensile fibers to slow me down.

I rolled the string between my fingers. "What other purposes will she find for these materials?"

All at once, the network of fibers constricted.

I jumped toward the canopy, but the branches narrowed and bowed under my weight.

"There she is!" I spotted Lost Coyote's silhouette below me.

She was pulling the string fibers from a central intersection.

I circumvented the web and belayed down the reeds. Then, out of nowhere, my claws got stuck. She'd lodged chunks of those blue crystals into the trunk, creating little unbreakable wedges that I couldn't pry my toes free.

She wanted me to go this way!

I hacked the reed section out and vaulted down.

SHLUMP!

The white moss below gave way and all of a sudden I was falling into a soggy pit!

I threw out a dagger to stop my descent.

Sometimes the sensitivity of razkur ears was maddening. Undoubtedly, she heard the hollow soft spots below the surface where the reed roots had rotted out.

But I welcomed those inborn traits when it came to ensuring our two people's prosperous future.

I scaled the dirt wall and climbed out the hole only to have Lost Coyote pounce down and use my helmet's faceplate as a springboard.

I roared and snagged her ankle with my fingers but she was out of my grasp in a fraction of a second.

Something crackled within the dirt wall. The soil gave way and out slid a line of small, sharpened pikes.

I released the wall and hopped into the pit, and was surprised to discover the floor was bouncy in all but a patch of dirt in the center.

She wastes no time!

I crouched and made the full leap up and out of the pit, then roared, daring her to try harder. The nearest reed tumbled down around me. I chopped and kicked a path to freedom, then in a blink, everything around me turned bright red.

Flames engulfed the forest in all directions!

How did she ignite the fire? Those crystals, perhaps?

Never underestimate a razkur's determination.

I activated the visor and vents on my mask to block out the smoke.

If Lost Coyote was near, I couldn't see or smell her. All of my senses and scanners were beyond overwhelmed.

Those little heat patches... she was constructing a prison of fire!

A fist struck my chin from below, and I countered on instinct.

I could feel her limbs and half make out her form, but the shadows and temperature variants were smeared and cluttered.

All the tactical knowledge I had accumulated of Lost Coyote's fighting style was virtually useless.

We brawled mere feet away from the blaze until something sharp stabbed my side and I realized she was wielding a makeshift spear.

One decisive slash would negate the polearm, but that required hitting my target.

I was done responding on the defensive.

See me, Adjutant! Stop me if you can!

I charged and let my full fury cleave through whatever solid object crossed my path.

Lost Coyote's blows sped up, but I was driving her back toward the flames of her making.

At last! I took hold of her spear and snapped it in two.

There was nowhere to run. She would have to duel me into submission.

I let a feral roar rise into the night, then went silent with the moss between my toes ripped apart and revealed another sinkhole.

The cool earth filtered the light when I landed on my back, and my surroundings came into focus.

A haze of radiance hovered above.

Was this intentional or lucky?

A flaming spear sailed down and landed in front of me when I stood up.

"Relentless," I chittered to myself.

A dozen more prepared buried spears flew down, blocking me from climbing the walls.

There were two options. Get burned and continue or throw down my dagger and yield.

I flexed my claw and chose what direction to jump.

Another flaming spear landed at my feet.

"One day you'll have to explain to me why so many of your rituals are drawn out," Lost Coyote shouted overhead. She was out of breath and keeping her body hidden in the heat of the wildfire. "This trip's kinda short and we're already behind schedule. Hope you don't mind. I decided to bring the light of dawn to us rather than sit around waiting."

I chittered at her pragmatism.

I knew I made the right choice.

As much as I desired to continue this contest, my Adjutant was right. We had more important work to attend to.

Lost Coyote stomped and loosened a stream of soil to extinguish several of the spears in front of me. Then she tossed a braided rope of reed fibers and helped me return to ground level.

"Now that this is over," Lost Coyote had her helmet on as she examined the raging fire all around us. "Suppose I should come clean. You scare the shit out of me, and my strategy may have been a tad excessive. I don't have a plan for how the hell we're going to walk out of here."

"We are Vu'ax D'kiaxi," I patted her shoulder with a proud chuckle. "We will solve this dilemma together."

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TRANSLATIONS:

Vu'ax D'kiaxi = One Blood  

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