An hour after Kyuu and San left. Just outside Show Arena

Priscilla the Snow Fox exited the building as one of the girls pulled up with the car. As she waited, she took in the state of the market, which was in total disarray. Whatever happened outside the building had died down a while ago, however there were still signs of activity still going on further away. Sounds of chaos echoed off in the distance while some of the kiosks and stands were burning. Certain shops had ransacked or looted, would likely never open again. Priscilla sighed very forlorn at the turn of events, mostly because she would have to explain this later to the Boss. Hopefully the heist they had planned tonight would go off without a hitch, they could use the payout from the score to smooth things over with Ten.

Then it hit her, this looked too dangerous, she began to worry about those herbivores she had sent off into this nightmare. All she could do is hope that revolver she had given the boy would be enough. But this destruction, maybe...maybe not.

She waited for the others to exit behind her before stopping Lùn, who came out last still sporting that smug look on her face after her little confrontation. Priscilla looked at the pygmy and frowned.

Raira the Silver fox, whistled impressed at the sight of the destruction. "Glad we waited before coming out into this mess." She commented.

"They didn't lie." Loba added.

"Fa. Raira. Loba. Wait here. Ferro, just park the car for a minute, Lùn… follow me." Priscilla ordered.

Lùn's ears twitched frantically with unease, as she knew just from the tone that this was only more reprimanding. She was on the money as Priscilla swiftly struck Lùn's cheek as soon as she rounded the corner, knocking her down on the damp concrete. Priscilla's claws had scratched her skin. Lùn flinched and cringed, emitting a high pitch whine as her fingers touched the inflamed skin. She brushed the fur away from the wound, each follicle that fell into it caused a slight sting.

"Ow…" she groaned, rubbing it.

Priscilla stood over Lun with a look of disgust. "Don't whimper! Own up to the consequences!"

This was definitely about that. Lùn thought.

"Look if you're going to be in my crew you need to learn the most important lesson. We. Value. Profit. Over. Personal." Pris said. "I know that girl hurt you. I know what your pride is telling you. BUT TO HELL WITH YOUR PRIDE! Your pride doesn't make us money."

Lùn sighed. That's all she cares about. The pygmy thought as she droned on.

"I know all too well that half breeds have the tendencies to act out trying to prove to society that they belong, but that isn't an excuse to cause problems, not for our business! I want you to get it through your head; that rabbit is off limits."

Half Breeds, that's what they were. More specifically the crew that Priscilla ran, the Futekigō Clan were the black sheep of the Inarigumi. Translated the name Futekigō meant "The Misfits," though behind their backs, the less reputable name thrown around was "The Freaks". Each girl save for one had half Red fox heritage in their genetic makeup.

Priscilla or Pris, the Onēsan or Older Sister was the oldest at 25. Her mother, an Inarigumi member, was a white colored Red fox, but her father was an Arctic fox which is where she gained most of her white fur from.

Lùn the pygmy, obviously was a half breed as well, her father had been a Fennec Fox from which she inherited the large wedge shaped ears as well as the short stature, though thankfully she greatly exceeded the normal height of that species thanks to some of her mother's DNA, but still she was short enough to feel inadequate around the other foxes in the gang. Sometimes she wondered why her mother cursed her by falling in love with someone so small.

Priscilla's right hand or more accurately, protege, was Fa, coincidentally Lùn's best friend from childhood. She and Lùn were the youngest in the small clan at 21, Fa being a second generation half-breed. 1/4 Bat-eared fox coming from her father's side, both parents were actually red foxes, she still inherited the genetic callbacks of her father's heritage such as the large "bat" ears and a naturally occuring dark mark across her eyes, while keeping a rustic red fur pelt commonly associated with Red Foxes.

Ferro, who had just left to park the car, was born to a Tibetan Sand Fox father. The underdeveloped mimetic muscles made her amazing at gambling and she often was the one who negotiated deals as she could hide any deceit. She wasn't much of a talker, and usually kept to herself.

Raira, a silver or pearl fox, was the only pure Red fox in the crew. She was essentially Priscilla's bodyguard, though if she wanted the job she could have been her second in command as well. Also aged 25, she and Pris, much like Lùn and Fa grew up together, both being born in the B.A.M. and Raira having no qualms serving under her sister, in fact preferring it over being around, as she called them, a bunch of vapid whores who only cared about eloquence.

Loba, the biggest girl, was a real hybrid. While the others were at least all the way foxes, Loba was a Wox, an inter-species hybrid of two different genus, that being a Gray wolf and a Red fox. From a glance, one would think she was a sickly-looking wolf or abnormally tall fox. She worked as the enforcer, bringing the strength of her father to crush anyone who crossed the crew.

While not looked upon fondly within the Inarigumi because of their mixed blood, her clan earned their place by getting results and making revenue. Something that Priscilla kept in mind by enforcing a no-nonsense policy when it came to business. Still she wasn't as harsh as other leaders in the Inarigumi. At best when she disciplined her people, she corrected them with a slap or a scar. Something that didn't seem to work with Lùn.

Lùn frowned as she continued to rub the still fresh cut. "You could have done that in front of the other girls. I'm not ashamed. Don't have to be so soft with me!"

Priscilla dropped down to Lùn's level to talk to her eye to eye. "Soft? Am I?"

She reached around Lùn, grabbing hold of her bushy tail and lifting her off the ground. The pygmy tried her hardest not to scream as she squirmed in Priscilla's grasp, but the torture of being hoisted up by your tail was a strain hardly any fox could bear.

"Other crews would have ripped your tail off for such insolence. So perhaps I am being too soft. But…" She said, mercifully releasing Lùn, allowing her to drop to the ground. "A fox without balance is useless to me and you don't seem to learn much from physical correction, so maybe something else is needed."

The little fox frantically massaged her aching tail, as Priscilla paced around her.

"I know." Pris said, raising a sharp clawed finger as inspiration struck. "As punishment, I am going to give you a task I know you are going to hate."

Lùn stared at the snow fox as all the possibilities flooded in. "Wha-"

"First off you are off the heist tonight."

Lùn became almost as pale as Priscilla.

"Wha- WHAT?!" She exclaimed. "Why? We've been planning that for months! I even practiced my skills! You know the lions are dangerous, you guys need all the help you can get-!" She screeched before being corrected by the snow fox.

"Help?" Priscilla interjected a bit insulted by the notion. "We were planning this before you joined, so the five of us will be enough. You on the other hand…" Priscilla seemed to savor the expression of disappointment on the little fox's face, just how she was crushed by being left out. She couldn't wait to see her reaction to what she was going to say next. "What I want from you is for you to guard those herbivores tonight as added protection."

Lùn's face went through the motion of twisted horror to exasperated rage in the matter of moments as she couldn't even believe Priscilla would even suggest something so ridiculous. She had to to protect that... pest!

"Wha-wha-whaaa! ARE YOU CRAZY?! I hate her guts, her and that goat bastard!" She screamed wringing her hands together, quivering with an impotent rage that almost consumed her, the fact that it was Priscilla, her superior, was the only reason she could stop herself.

"He's a llama I believe…" Priscilla corrected.

"Whatever! Pris look-" Lùn continued to fume, but Priscilla shut her down with silent but effective glare.

"I don't want a fuss little girl." Priscilla said, having humored her subordinate's outrage long enough.

"There is a grudge between you two, Lùn, I'm well aware of that; but I want you to learn from all of this is self-control. Discipline. Remember the Inarigumi comes first before personal rivalry. This is Inarigumi business, our assets are out there and they need protection. You will be that protection."

Discipline, Lùn thought. Right, like how you are so disciplined when you are really doing this because you are swooning over that herbivore. I certainly hope you don't think we didn't all pick that up in the office. She wanted to tell Priscilla off so bad, but knew it was best to hold her tongue.

"Fine! I'll do it." She declared. "But…"

Priscilla cut her off before she could add a stipulation. "No. No buts. This isn't a favor; this is an order. You will do it or... I'll rip your tail off for real. Simple as that!" The white vixen snarled savagely at the pygmy.

Lùn cringed as she held onto her throbbing tail, horrified. "Yes, big sister."

"Now you'd best get going. Gather your gear and try to catch them. As close you got in her face tonight, I'm certain you have the rabbit's scent. Now scoot." Pris ordered, waving off the dwarf fox.

An hour later.

"STAY BACK!"

They had almost made it to the tower. Almost. Just a few more damn blocks, the llama thought. Even though they had avoided most of the market by traveling through the main street, it was always going to be a given to head back in to reach the tower. It just didn't seem to be in the cards for them tonight. The only thing he had at his defense was the revolver Pris had given him, a lot good it did him now though.

He was winded, out breath as he pointed the pistol into the black abyss in front of him. They had ran into a few pockets of rioters, but the piece had warded off most of them, most. Now the weapon had lost its power and save for the few street lamps illuminating this section of the market, the surrounding areas were drenched in an inky black abyss. They were on their own here in the dark alleyways of a carnivore utopia, except they weren't alone. Though they were out of visible range, he could sense them.

There close enough to the light that he could barely make out rough outlines and the shapes of shadows on the ground edging out into the light betraying their hidden owners. Carnivores with nocturnal vision allowing them to see their prey as clear as day. His other senses knew they were there as well, he could hear them and smell them. The sound of their shoes clattering against the stone pavement, the chattering of their sharp teeth, the low growls some of them made. The myriad of sweat and body odor, an assault on his sensitive nose. They were there, he knew it.

"I said stay back!" He warned again. "I'll use this thing!" He glanced down at his bruised cellmate, she stood by his leg holding her daggers at the ready. She looked determined, but she couldn't back that up. He stepped in front of her. "Just run...run when I say." He whispered. "I'll be right behind you." He knew that was a lie.

"You idiot! Don't give me that tired crap!" The brown faced bunny shouted, spurning his sacrificial drivel. "I'll get us out of this...somehow." He knew she was just blustering too, she knew how wounded she herself was.

San hated that she was so headstrong, she was in such bad condition and needed nursing, yet tried to shrug off her injuries. He knew that her foot hurt, her right eye was bruised, she had a few cuts on her arm. She needed rest and some of the instant ice packs they had back at the tower. These guys would be trouble even if she was fresh. Plus without her rope, her chimera probably wouldn't be very reliable. He cursed the situation and tried to check the barrel. The light was too dim for him to be sure. He had lost count how many times he had fired and now was on the last ring of bullets Pris had given him.

Most of them were gone from the earlier encounters. While he could aim, the revolver when fired bucked wildly from recoil. His shots, while close enough to the target, were almost all off. Out of all the shots he fired, the only one that landed was a lucky shot on a wolf's ear that he blew clean off. Sure, waving it around or just brandishing it scared off most of the rioters, but not these guys in front of them. These guys seemed wise to his situation, they didn't back off instead they came closer.

His ears twitched, they were getting closer, the footsteps getting louder. San could make out about five of them once they stepped into the light. The biggest was a stocky reptile with a long snout alongside two big cats that San guessed were leopards or something, a medium breed dog and a small breed that San thought was either mongoose or a weasel.

The one in charge appeared to be the reptile, a crocodile judging from the long snout and jaws with sharp teeth poking out, his savage look contrasted with the almost clean and neat business suit he wore. The other two soon followed behind him stepping into the light, what San recognized as a male cougar dressed in a blue denim outfit and a white undershirt. Next to him stood a lanky, meek looking bespeckled jaguar, who looked to be a salaryman. Then the smaller ones were a drooling weasel also dressed similar to the Jaguar and a wild looking dog with pointed ears in a windbreaker hoodie.

San held his ground as he pointed the gun at them. "I'm going to fire, I swear!"

"Right, give it a rest. If that was loaded, you would have fired by now. So save your empty threats, you aren't getting out of this." The crocodile spoke confidently, a very proper accent, likely a manager at a firm somewhere, the two salarymen likely being underlings.

"You see, we wasted a whole week's pay hoping to see that bunny get eaten, only for her to cheat death once again."

"I mean, what type of nonsense is that?" The weasel chimed it.

"Exactly." The dog growled in agreement. "It's all rigged I imagine."

"We had nothing to do with that!" San shouted out at them. "The cat's party gave up, she won fair!"

"So? It still doesn't make us feel better." The crocodile replied inching ever closer, his cold blooded gaze unsympathetic to their plight. "So you know what? We're going to take that prize money from you and then we're going to get our money's worth."

San cursed silently as he backed away. There was no reasoning with them, this was just some excuse to devour someone defenseless. "Stay back or I'll use this! I mean it!" San warned one last time. He didn't want to pull the trigger, not because he didn't want to defend himself, but because the unknown frightened him. He was too scared that it would be empty and then they all would just descend upon him. He didn't want the last thing he experienced to be failure. Failure not only of himself, but the fact that his trust may have been misplaced.

The crocodile moved in first. "Heh. I'm so scared of your empty gun." The reptilian mocked as he motioned for both the big cats to catch San's flank. Textbook strategy, so they could catch him from both angles, minimizing his chance for escape.

"Just stand still boy and I promise it will be over soon. I'll even have Lyca here rip your jugular. That should be mercy right? You will just go into shock, won't feel a thing."

The jaguar had initially approached, but stopped in his tracks. It was clear on his face that he had reservations about all this. For a predator feline, he oddly didn't seem the type who enjoyed carnage. His associates took notice and began lambasting him for chickening out.

"Lacumba-san, come on!" The reptile furiously called out. "Stop being such a pencil pusher for once."

The jaguar was sweating bullets and just shaking his head as he rejected all of this. "I-I-I thought- Rakan-sempai, I-I thought we just agreed to rough them up a bit, take the money and go!" He stuttered frantically, "You didn't say we were going to eat them."

"No way you're this naïve, Lacumba," The other cat shouted at his fellow feline with a look of disappointment. "What you really thought we'd pass on free meat? Don't get upset when we don't leave you any scraps."

"But...Lyca..." The Jaguar feebly attempted to protest.

The attack came swift. The cat and the crocodile rushed forward as the others went for Kyuu. The rabbit darted away as fast as she could limp while the two smaller carnivores gave chase. San tried to turn and follow her, but the cougar pounced at him.

*POW*

The loud echo of the gunshot rang out as the cougar was hit center mass. The gun wasn't out of ammunition. San's eyes were wide, both surprised and horrified; he shot the cat and he had actually hit him where he intended! He had lined up the shot and blasted the cougar right in the chest, sending him crumpling to the ground gasping for air. The cat wheezing heavily as each breath became harder to make. San didn't have much time to celebrate, the other threat was closing in.

The crocodile was right on him, jaws opened wide, ready to snap down shut on the herbivore. Startled, San slipped and fell flat on his ass just in time to see the horrifying sight of the yellowish peach toned palate of the reptile's maw leading to a dark abyss. He hastily raised the revolver just as the reptile tried to bite down on the herbivore's arm.

*POW*

The revolver went off one last time. The round flew clean through the roof of the leather-head's mouth, sending him and his brains straight to oblivion. The crocodilian skull punctured as the bullet whizzed out the top of his skull, taking with it blood and greymatter, spraying them all over the alleyway concrete like a geyser.

In a small way San was lucky. Rakan had perished before he could snap his trap shut, but unfortunately the dead reptile lurched over onto the herbivore nearly crushing him under the dead weight. The sharp teeth in the carnivore's mouth slammed down hard on San's arm, raking his flesh and leaving deep gashes in his arm. San hollered out in pain, but found he had another problem. He could barely hear now, everything was muffled. The thundering gunshot had left a loud ringing noise which was wreaking havoc on his sensitive ears. He scanned for the other cat, but he saw him cradling the dying cougar in his arms nervously trying to keep him awake.

"Breathe Lyca...Breathe!" The Jaguar cried out. "Come on...don't die. Mida-san w-w-will have a-a-a fit right-right? Come on! S-stay with me. I didn't mean to get you wrapped up in this! Please." The spotted cat was a sobbing mess as he sat there rocking the unresponsive cougar in his arms as he wept.

Meanwhile, Kyuu had landed in the round light of a street lamp not far from San and raised her blades defensively as she scanned around for her two attackers. The dingo entered first, ready to descend upon her, but before he could close in he heard the loud crack of the first gunshot. He turned around just in time to see San blow the crocodile's brains out. He turned to the stoat as if weighing the situation and then ordered him to kill the rabbit so he could double back to handle the llama himself.

The dog leaped at San, who freed his arm and desperately forced the corpse's flat leathery head up as a brief shield. San, remembering Priscilla's lesson, clocked the canine upside the head with the empty revolver, smashing the piece right behind the eye. It worked, he actually hurt the dog, knocking him senseless if only briefly. The cur was still reeling from the attack, giving San opportunity to shift the weapon to his stronger hand. Getting a better grip, San crawled up to the dingo and hit him again.

The bottom of the grip crashed into the canine's temple as hard as San could swing. He knew to hit the temple after seeing Kyuu do it to knock people out. San followed that blow with another, and then another, he knew he had to continue until he was down. The dingo was becoming dizzy and dazed from the abuse, but he still remained conscious enough to try and grapple with San, trying to wrench the gun out of his hand. San hit him once more before the dog knocked him on his back. The llama struck the dog again and managed to slip his legs in under and try to push the dog off. It took a while, but after another strike, he finally kicked him off. The bruised dingo growled viciously as he picked himself off the ground, punch drunk but still willing. He hurled himself back onto the weary llama, tackling him and knocking the gun out of his hand. This time he wrapped his paws around his long fluffy neck and began to squeeze, trying to strangle the fight out of the herbivore. The dog seemed to relish the utter terror on San's face and opened his mouth, ready to bite down into his neck.

San defeated, closed his eyes and began to think of the afterlife.

"HYYAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH!" A shrill shriek cried out into the night.

"URRGGKK! Aaagggcckhhhhh!"

San opened his eyes once more as wet droplets began to drop down on him. Did it rain in the afterlife? He thought. No...he wasn't dead. Above him he saw that a thick sharp blade had punctured the dingo's neck. The dingo's hands grew limp around his throat, as his body began to jerk violently before the dog tried to fruitlessly reach for his throat. The blade ejected back the way it came, freeing itself from the dog's neck. The dog collapsed on top of San, blood from the wound spilling down on his face, as he tried to close his mouth to avoid swallowing it. The canine tussled on top of him as he struggled to breathe, hopelessly clutching at his throat trying to stop the bleeding and seal his open airway.

Could it be Kyuu? San thought. It seemed like it, but he had never heard her scream like that before and the blade was a lot bigger than one of her daggers.

Suddenly San felt a lot of weight shift as the gasping dog was kicked off of him. San could barely see who his apparent savior was, the bright lights shining above made everything fuzzy as the spots started to fade. All he could make out were a few features, they were another type of canine of some kind with a cone shaped snout and tall ears. Then it hit him. No, not a canine.

"Look at you. I ought to stomp your face in for last time !" She shouted.

The weasel almost had Kyuu. He had been a lot faster than expected. Combined with a lot of factors, her energy had faded, she was fatigued, and she just was under geared here. She was exhausted, maybe had this been her earlier she would have taken this guy easy. Now she was fighting a battle that her body was unwilling to fight.

Suddenly the world became a blur and her head hit the hard ground. Before she could process what had happened she found herself being held down spread-eagle. She must have tripped or lost enough speed for him to hit her. In any case she was at his mercy. Both of her knives were clenched within her hands, but he wisely gripped both arms, holding her down. Then the weasel began sniffing at her. He had a pervy smile on his face, as if trying to savor her smell.

"Hmmm, Making me work for it sure does make you seem even more appetizing." He creepily spoke, lightly nibbling on her dark ears, she could feel the hot warm drool forming in his mouth.

"They were right, you rabbits taste amazing when you are worked up!" He positioned himself over her neck ready to bite down. That's when Kyuu summoned enough energy to fling her head upward into his nose, bashing him right in the snout with a head-butt. She briefly gathered herself again and she slammed her skull into his face again, she wasn't going to give this bastard an easy meal. This time the blow left his nose crooked and bleeding.

He instinctively let go of one of her arms by accident, to massage his busted nose unwittingly giving the opportunity she needed to use her blade to slash into his chest. He clutched at the wound before reeling back to smash her in the face, then he stopped. His eyes shot open wide, becoming bloodshot as a sharp object rapidly drove itself into his torso. The white fabric of his button down shirt became drenched in darkish red blood that rained down as it gushed from the gaping wound in his chest. He had been stabbed through the back by a blade.

It couldn't be San , She thought. No way...

She angled herself on her elbows to get a better look. Just behind the weasel she noticed the ends of the blade, it was a weapon type she had never seen before. The blade looked to be curved and was attached to a rope. Suddenly the rope retracted, and the stoat was yanked off of the rabbit.

"You really thought I'd let someone else steal you from me?" Barked a familiar voice, one Kyuu wasn't really sure she should be relieved about.

It couldn't be. She thought.

It was.

It was the little pygmy fox from the Inarigumi.

"I'm not going to let some weasel steal the satisfaction of killing you myself!" The fox said as she slowly dragged the carnivore back to her. She kicked him over and pried her blade free from his back. The dying weasel tried to beg for mercy, reaching up to her thigh, feebly trying to get a grip to stand.

"Please...I.." He said, vomiting blood as fluid began filling his lungs.

The fox looked down on him disgusted. Disgust soon became anger. She had a determined look on her face as she contemplated what to do. If she couldn't kill the rabbit or the llama tonight, then he'd do the trick.

"Shut up!" She snarled.

She grabbed him from under his chin and slammed her thick blade, a kukri knife (kukhri), into his neck with a swift whack. The weasel quickly went limp, collapsing to the floor.

Kyuu was confused. If the fox were here to finish her off, why would she kill her own people? Kyuu's mind raced with questions as she tried to process the situation. Did she have enough energy to defend herself? San! Was San okay?! She scanned around for him only to see the panicked jaguar from before holding the young llama hostage.

"Stay back" he warned, an ironic echo of San's earlier warning. "Stay back!"

He was holding San like a bargaining chip, threatening to pull at his damaged arm, something he could easily rip off with enough strength. While Lùn was dealing with the weasel, the jaguar must have taken advantage of the wounded llama and overpowered him. It was clear he was scared out of his mind

"Look, I just want to leave. I don't want anything to do with this!" The big cat pleaded. "This was just supposed to be a guy's night out . We got drunk, saw a fight, and got mad I guess? Look I don't want to hurt him or any of you. I just want to go home. Just let me go or I'll rip his arm off!"

San winced from the pain of his arm being tugged, but he understood the situation he was in and factored the odds, so he remained calm and looked Kyuu in the face. After they both made eye contact, he subtly began making small kicks and silently mouthed the words:

Legs

Legs

Legs

Kyuu immediately knew what he meant. The jaguar's legs were noticeably pretty plain for a feline, likely not a person that worked out that much. A prime target.

Running on fumes, she sprinted towards the too, and before the Jaguar could even attempt to pull, she slid under his legs, slashing his calves with both daggers reverse gripped. The Jaguar shrieked in pain as he dropped to his knees and Kyuu came to a stop and scrambled, hurling one her daggers like a projectile, flying right into the back of the jaguar's shoulder. The big cat loosened his grip on San's arm, who then flung his head back into the Carnivore's face disorienting him and allowing the llama to wrestle free from his clutches.

The big cat attempted to escape, backing up towards a closed shop's stock table while trying to dislodge the blade from his back.

Lùn took notice of some crates behind him and began to twirl her tethered blade in an arc before propelling it with a roundhouse kick. The blade plunged itself into a load bearing wooden crate and she yanked the blade free, destroying the integrity of the box. Suddenly all the crates began to shift just as the Jaguar turned around to see the wall of dried meat supplies collapse on top of him.

Suddenly everything went dark and he couldn't breathe as he felt a great weight pressing down on him. Panicking, he thought he had gone blind? Then seconds seconds later he realized it was just a piece of wooden debris obscuring his vision. Then the plank was ripped away and then he saw: her. The rabbit was right there crouched on his chest, dagger in hand, a look of vengeful determination on her bruised face.

He instinctively attempted to free himself, to escape, but it was all for naught. His strong body was pinned securely under the weight of the pile. He was helpless. He did what he could, snapping his jaws at her, but he couldn't reach any further. He then got the bottom of her knife handles crashing down onto his temple.

It sunk in hard that he was going to die in this predicament and all he could hope to do is beg, as pathetic as it was.

"W-wait…Wait..don't! I-I have a wife and-and a family to support!"

Kyuu tilted her head at the cat, she was unperturbed by his pleas for mercy.

"So what? I'm supposed to not kill you? She asked. "Because you produced offspring? Because you fulfilled your role as a male? Is that how it works?"

The jaguar seeming his pleas were falling on deaf ears, struggled again trying to least free his hand from the clutter.

"Please! P-please don't kill me! Please I didn't want to do any of this! They said we were just going to- well we were going to rough you up, but look.. please!"

A big carnivore begging for his life at the hands of an herbivore, it made Lùn almost sick to her stomach. A guy like that would have given even her some trouble, but look at him now. Buried under debris, held at knife point by an animal a third his size. Pathetic.

"Please, I promise I'll never come back."

Kyuu was having none of his pleas, she rammed the knife handle hard on his skull again to make his docile enough to cut his throat.

"You expect me to let you live, when you didn't listen to our pleas? I'll make sure you never come back alright!" She declared coldly staring into his frightened eyes.

She pressed the sharp edge of her blade to his spotted neck, ready to slide it across in one quick motion.

"KYUU!" A voice rang out.

She paused.

It was San.

"Kyuu … that's enough." He said. "He's beaten."

San stood behind her, clutching his bloodied arm. Kyuu paused, but did not take her eyes off of the Jaguar. Pinned or not he was still dangerous.

"Kyuu, don't do this-"

She cut him off.

"Don't do what? Kill him? You almost lost your arm due to their arrogance, didn't you? They wanted to eat us, only fair we kill them."

San had seen him during the encounter, he hadn't involved himself, in fact he seemed the most reluctant. He even felt some remorse, the cougar he had killed may have been a friend or at the very least someone important to him.

"Kyuu, look at him, he's pathetic. He likely was forced into coming down here by his friends. Hell, he probably really does have a family."

Kyuu was unfazed, San was just being too naive.

"So what? Should I just let him go because he says he has a family?"

"Yes!" He shouted. "Yes you should! Those other ones… they deserved that, but he doesn't."

"These other monsters likely had families and jobs too, San. You both killed two of them, why should I feel bad for just one?!"

"What would he think?! Huh?!" He shouted, speaking of the one who saved them years ago. "What would he think about all this? He didn't train us for this!"

"Don't you fucking mention his name!" The rabbit shouted, pressing the black down into the cat's neck. "Stop trying to defend this monster! He's not innocent! He's not worthy of mercy! All we are to them is just meat! All he is to me is just another kill!"

Lùn rolled her eyes at the mention of monsters.

"You're more a monster than me bitch." She said out loud. She couldn't help herself anymore. This was too much for her to let slide.

"What did you just say?" Kyuu asked as she locked eyes on the fox, keeping her blade pressed firmly into the cat's fur to hold him in place.

Lùn stepped over from the dingo's corpse holding her bloody blade, using it to point at the rabbit as she explained herself. "I said... you're more a monster than me."

"Think about it." The pygmy said, strolling around the pile as the Rabbit listened, unsure of what exactly she meant.

"Here you are some floppy-eared bunny, holding a large breed carnivore's life in your dainty little hands. So what's natural about that I wonder?" She growled at Kyuu. "Huh?!" She asked, expecting an answer.

"Survival of the fittest." Kyuu reasoned. "That's the law down here."

"Bullshit!" The fox exclaimed. "You should be worried about munching your next carrot, or fucking, or I guess praying that you won't get devoured like the vermin you are! Instead, you're seconds away from killing someone designed to hunt people like you! That's not fucking natural."

Kyuu didn't particularly care for the fox's tone, but her words did sink in.

"You are prey and he's a predator. If anyone's the monster here, it's you, freak! Say what you will about us, but at least we know what we're supposed to be! And he didn't even want to be here."

The fox crawled up the pile, getting right up in Kyuu's face. "You think we're terrifying cuz of our sharp teeth and strength, huh?" She snarled at the rabbit, grabbing hold of her windbreaker almost ripping it with her sharp claws, wrenching Kyuu up close to her muzzle, her sharp canines visible as she continued to berate the bunny. The fox's snout wrinkled as she stared into Kyuu's eyes, who no matter how much she tried to hide it, was terrified being this close.

"You're afraid right now. I can smell it." Lùn said. "So I just want to ask you this; How do you think he feels? Your blades at his throat, you the very thing his mind probably registers as just some small lump of meat! Something weak like you having him at their mercy? How are you any better, freak? How is he more a monster than you? Huh?"

"Go ahead monster, kill him! Stoop to our level! Kill someone who didn't even want to harm you. Isn't that what monsters do right? Kill the defenseless?" The fox said, backing off.

Kyuu looked down to the jaguar as Lùn's words weighed on her mind. The beast, a terrified and distraught mess, tears rolling down the side of his muzzle. She pressed down into his neck, before stopping, easing back, and reflected more on the fox's words.

"Shit...damn it."

She silently cursed to herself, before leaning down and spoke into the cat's ear. "I've made up my mind. You can go free. But ... if I ever see you again, I'm going to make sure. I'm going to make real sure that you never see me or anything else again. Understood?"

The jaguar frantically nodded, and blustered out an almost unintelligible apology. He even vowed to never eat rabbit again, not even from the market. Kyuu stepped off of him and allowed Lùn to begin kicking the debris and crates off of him.

"Remember, your friends got jumped by some thugs down here and you were the only one to get away with your life." The fox told him as she removed the last bit of wreckage. It was a cover story to keep him from snitching. Murder was still a serious crime, even if it rarely got investigated in the market, but it was still a precaution.

Lacumba hastily agreed as he tried to stand up. Pain instantly shot up into him as he applied weight to his legs. He collapsed in seconds. He was crippled, he couldn't walk out of here.

"Please...help me." He begged. "Please."

Though Lùn pitied him as a fellow carnivore, she wasn't in a good position to help the cat out of this predicament. Not only did she still have a mission to uphold, but as far as she knew he had brought this upon himself by being in this position to begin with. Still she decided to offer him some directions and advice.

"You should be able to find the main street if you head that way." She said pointing north. "If you are lucky someone else might find you and help you. I hear there's a watchman in these parts, maybe you'll run into him. If not... well you have a very nice spotted coat. She said very ominously.

"Now crawl Polka-dots . Crawl if you want to live!"

The cat heeded his instructions and hastily crawled away on all fours an emotional wreck.

Once the cat was gone from sight, San spoke up. He was curious as to why Lùn of all people was here to help them.

"So how did you find us? Did Priscilla-sama send you?" San asked very flushed, nursing his busted arm, trying to apply the needed pressure to stop the bleeding. "I thought she couldn't spare anyone?"

Lùn held her hands up behind her head reaching into her loose sleeves. She pulled something free from them and began to explain.

"Yeah, well turns out after doing some math , she figured you two rated an escort. Gotta protect our assets after all." She said mockingly. "Finding you was no problem at all, her scent is easy for me to pick up." She pointed to her nose.

"Trust me, I didn't save you because I want to. Though I do have to admit, I'd be pretty pissed if these creeps actually killed you." She stated, walking over to the brooding lop rabbit who was cathartically kicking the corpse of the perverted weasel. "I'd hate for filth like this to rob me of what's mine." She said toying with one of Kyuu's ears, causing the rabbit to swat away her hand, almost throwing a punch right after. Kyuu was too tired to fight now, but she still would flatten this pipsqueak if she needed to.

She looked back at the llama trying to see just what Priscilla saw and shook her head. After some thought, she decided to let the cat out of the bag.

"You want the real reason I'm here though? It's because you, Fluffy." She said pointing at him. "The Ice Queen's got a crush on you and she sent me to protect her little goat boy." Her tone was all cutesy, as she mocked her leader.

"Wait…" San thought back, he had suspected the white fox had been flirting with him, but why him? "Oh…um…oh r-really?" He stammered, flustered at the very thought, his ears beginning to perk up. He barely felt his wounds as he heartbeat elevated. This had to be the first time someone thought he was attractive. Then the idea and ramifications sank in. A carnivore like him. "Well…still that's ridiculous." He said. "I mean…um..." He trailed off.

It felt weird that a carnivore liked him... did that mean she wanted to eat him? She was pretty aggressive back in the office. Maybe that was all for show?

Kyuu rolled her eyes, feeling a sense of embarrassment.

"Stop being weak in front of the carnivore, San. That's how they get you." She said annoyed that her cellmate would let his guard down so easily in front of the Inarigumi fox, who she still wasn't certain could be trusted.

Lùn herself studied the curious llama as she slid a cigarette out of a pack and lit it with a cheap lighter. She got a good burn going and sighed at the confused herbivore.

"Yup, she could do a lot better. But then again, she does this all time whenever she meets a cute guy. It's pretty sickening sometimes." She said, taking a few puffs. "I'm only telling you now, just out of spite. She'd probably hate that I told you, serves her right, giving me this crappy job. Don't let it go to your head."

She noticed Kyuu staring up at her like a child longing for a piece of candy. A grin broke out on the fox's face. "You want one of these, huh?"

Kyuu slowly nodded with a cute look that made Lùn's stomach turn. Lùn simply snorted smoke at her. "Well tough luck bitch. Hehehehe!" The small vixen giggled.

"You owe me a smoke from last time." Kyuu insisted, referring to the incident where they first met.

"I owe you a lot more than that actually, just you wait." She said, touching the scars Kyuu gave her. "We are good now, but once I get my chance... once you and me come to blows again, I'm gonna rip you apart."

"We can settle this right now if you want." Kyuu offered, still disregarding her injuries.

San chimed in to ease up the tension between the two girls. "Look, I know it's not easy being this close to each other, but you know if the both of you smoke, maybe the tobacco smell could mask our scent and the blood, you know ... make it less obvious."

Lùn knew he had a point, and begrudgingly relented. "Alright smart guy, fine."

She reached in her sleeve for another stick and promptly lit it with the tip of her own smoke, handing it down to the rabbit who graciously stuck the cigarette in her small mouth.

"Happy?" Lùn sourly asked.

The rabbit took to the stick like a pro and exhaled the nicotine in the air. She coughed for a bit as she got used to the brand.

"It ain't Paruboro, but it'll do." Kyuu said with a smirk blowing a few puffs.

"Whatever. Don't expect another one."

Kyuu glanced back over Lùn again, curious about the weapons the fox possessed. There were two large and thick curved knives on her waist tethered by a long cord. The way she had used them tonight interested Kyuu. It was very similar to her own style with her rope and daggers.

"What now?" The fox asked pretty peeved at her gawking.

"So, I noticed, are you copying me now?" The rabbit asserted very smugly.

This…fucking- The fox's snout wrinkled as she growled at the rabbit, being filled with a burning desire to slaughter her right where she stood.

"Self-Control." She heard the words of Priscilla very vividly. "Discipline."

It would be quick. She thought. Just one bite to the throat. You probably could get her on the ground before the llama could do anything. Do it!

But, would it really be worth it? Was this worth your tail? Was it worth your standing? Would it be fair? Fair? What?!

The rabbit was weakened, an easy kill, what would you prove by killing her now? What does it matter? She's right here. Right in front of you. Kill her! No! No?! No. She isn't worth it. There will be another time.

Lùn growled menacingly at the rabbit, then took a deep breath and exhaled. She wouldn't do it...not tonight at least. "Shut up." She merely said.

Was this the discipline Pris was talking about? She thought to herself. Discipline sucks. She swallowed her pride and decided to leave the rabbit alone... for now.

"What?" The rabbit asked. A smug grin spread on the rabbits face as she teased. "They're nice weapons."

"Just...shut up." Lùn croaked annoyed, trying to avoid the whole conversation.

"It's a nice style. It suits you. All I'm saying."

"I don't want to hear anything from you, got that?!" She shouted at the rabbit.

"I'm just trying to compliment you, ya dumb dog!" The rabbit fired back.

"I don't need your approval, rodent!" She growled, insulted by the dog slur.

"I'm a rabbit!" Kyuu shouted back insulted.

"And I'm a fox! Maybe get my species right then I'll get yours right!" Lùn fired back, grabbing hold of her by the shoulders. The dark murderous thoughts were coming back to the vixen as she reconsidered.

"It was just a phrase! You tense-"

"SHUT UP!" San shouted having had enough of this, stepping in to break up the two.

"Will the both of you stop?! I honestly can't take this ringing in my ears AND listen to you two bickering back and forth. So just SHUT UP! PLEASE!" He groaned as he grabbed at his ears trying to sooth the pain. "Cripes! Kyuu could you just stop messing with her? Okay? Loon is it? Kyuu will leave you alone alright?"

"Fine!" They both said in unison, much to both their displeasure.

But San parted the two and walked past the both of them with annoyed scowl upon his face, getting the message across for them to calm down, however they still continued to glare at each other. The llama just rolled his eyes and sighed disapprovingly as they marched the rest of the way. They couldn't get to the Tower quick enough.