The middle of the store - Sweets aisle
"We've searched this store twice by now, still no sign of any prey Bantu!" Yazhn snapped at his brother, growing restless. "Are you sure they are in here?"
Bantu just rolled his eyes at his impatience, before peering up on his toes to get a better layout of the store, looking in all directions. His instincts weren't lying to him, he knew she was in here. Yazhn just didn't get it because he didn't have to chase this fox halfway across the city as he had.
His gut told him the fox was unprepared. She had come in here for refuge, not to evade him. She wasn't expecting them to find her again, so she likely made a mistake coming in here. In turn, a crafty creature like her probably would hide anywhere to get out of sight. So they would have to do more than just search some aisles.
His quick sweep revealed four general areas that would be great for vermin like her to hide: the pharmacy, the stockroom, the photo center, the restrooms. His cold yellow eyes narrowed on the pharmacy, a decent place to hide.
"Did you check the pharmacy?" He asked.
His teal-shaded brother nodded "I looked in there, saw nothing."
"Looked?" Bantu asked, his yellow eyes became slits as they studied his brother's body language, looking down and avoiding eye contact, he looked like he took half-measures again much to the melanistic varanid's chagrin. "Define looked ."
The turquoise lizard hesitated, knowing full well what was coming next. "I peered in from the window, didn't see anything." He said getting it out of the way.
His brother's eyes narrowed with annoyance as he raised his voice against him. "Why didn't you check inside yourself?!"
"The door was locked! No way they could get in."
"Why didn't you just break it down and check for yourself!" Bantu barked at him. "Not like this store is under our protection."
Yazhn just grumbled unintelligibly at his black brother. He was certain he hadn't seen anything, plus the lights were off back there. If Bantu was sure he should have gone back there himself, he reasoned to himself. "What are they supposed to be ghosts phasing through walls?" Yazhn reasoned. "The door was locked!"
Bantu's throat resonated angrily as he looked over the shelves once more and saw the pharmacy's plexiglass barriers. There were medium-sized circular holes at the bottom, the perfect size for a small breed animal to crawl through. Someone like her.
"They are much smaller than us! Think you rot-head! Did you even see those windows back there? She's not that big!"
Annoyed, the black dragon grabbed hold of his sibling and hurled him against a shelf filled with cereal and breakfast foods.
"Least you can do is take this seriously! This is exactly why you weren't picked for Gar's squad."
"Well you're the one giving them a chance by handicapping our sense of smell." The slimmer dragon coughed out. "You're the one not taking it seriously!"
The furious reptile growled at his brother, his scaly visage almost frightening his lighter-colored sibling. He'd always been the bigger of the two growing up, and as such he usually called the shots and it frustrated him when his brother took half-measures to things. Sometimes he just needed to be a bit more hands-on for him to get the message.
"Shut up, we are going to correct your mistake now." The melanistic reptile stated, starting to release his brother's throat.
"I swear I didn't see anything back there Bantu." His brother argued. "You can see for yourself." A nervous distorted chuckle escaped the respirator as his brother brushed past him.
Once back there, the first thing Bantu made did was make Yazhn peer more liberally into the glass, almost warping it further than before, nearly snapping it off the support brackets. Still, the teal dragon saw nothing.
Of course, there was nothing back here now, he thought.
Just then the large black dragon kicked the flimsy 3-inch wooden door down with one good kick. He slowly entered and gave the tiny storeroom an exhaustive sweep, however just as his brother reported nothing. The room was barren save for the prescriptions on the shelves. Their quarry was nowhere to be found.
"Seems your theory was wrong brother," Yazhnn commented as the onyx Dokugumi exited the office. "As before nothing, right?"
Bantu wasn't so sure, however. He pulled back his mask an inch as to poke his forked tongue out and taste the quality of the air, his receptive tongue was hit with an overwhelming response as the scent of prey was drenched in the small room. They had to have been back here, he thought, at least for a good while, and then it wanders back off into the store.
"They were back here, Yazhn. Recently, it's just they weren't stupid enough to tarry here for long. And...they are in this store. I'm certain of it."
"I thought you said no cheating?" His sibling hissed.
"I might have to, dealing with you." The larger reptile hissed. "Besides I purposely avoided spoiling myself before I got a real good taste," Bantu commented. "Search down by the snack foods. I'll check by the greeting cards."
Suddenly clatter was heard a few aisles down. The repeated thuds of plastic bottles spilling all over the floor. He looked up over the aisle he thought the sound originated and saw the hanging sign [Aisle 7: Beauty supplies/Hair care]. Most likely one of them bumped into something, giving their position away.
The onyx dragon looked to his brother and gave a sinister smile. "Well, looks like we're in luck." A cackle could be heard from his brother's respirator as he started heading that way. Then suddenly the lights began to shut off, section by section. Finally, the section they were under went dark with a loud click. Soon the only light was moonlight poking in from the frontend windows bathing the room in a pale blue tint.
"The lights just went out?" Yazhn observed.
"Indeed…" Bantu replied, he craned his head around. This was peculiar. He still heard the incessant muzak still playing over the speakers and the hum of the freezer power generators, the bright LED lights lining doors were still shining in the otherwise dark store. "Only the lights went out, the power is still on."
"Think this place has crappy wiring?"
"No, obviously someone turned them off. Deliberately."
"What about that noise? I doubt a fuse box would be over there."
"Obviously our prey isn't clumped together which means our chances of running into them increases. You check out that noise, I'll investigate the box."
Somewhere in the Store
The three girls were hugging the wall aisle when Matilda ran up ahead towards a bunch of electronic toy-looking objects.
"What are you doing?" Lùn asked as she saw the sheep bending down by the wall outlets. She wanted to keep the group moving as much as possible and didn't need any delays. She gripped the clerk's shoulder, peering over to see her fiddle with the flat disk-shaped device. "What is that?"
"Just an idea I had," The cotton ball said as she inspected the flashing green LED light on top. "Good, Riki remembered to charge them before he left."
"What?" Lùn asked her again.
"These are Auto Floor Vacuums or Zoombas," she properly explained. "They are self-propelled vacuums so you can just push them down the aisles and they will clean on their own. We use them to help clean the store while we're behind the register. Usually when we are shorthanded."
"Okay? How is that import… oh. " Lùn's eyes lit up as she figured it out. The sheep was craftier than she looked.
The sheep crouched down and placed the mini vacuum on the floor. "Yeah, they make noise and they bump into stuff all the time, just last week they knocked over a display of cans. The bad guys will probably hear these things and think it's us or they'll hear us and think it's them."
Kyuu looked over Lùn's shoulder and actually found herself cracking a smile at Matty's plan. Maybe the fox was right to bring her after all. Still, she stayed focused on keeping the perimeter. The last thing they needed was to be caught slipping patting each other on the back.
"Maybe we can get to my phone if we're lucky," Matilda said, feeling very chipper as she began tinkering with the next one. "We'll have the police down here, and they will handle these guys."
Lùn felt a bit hesitant at the mention of cops. She didn't want to explain everything to them, but the cops would just complicate things. Even if they got here in time, her being involved would raise too many questions. Her best bet would be to handle these guys now, or survive long enough for her sisters to arrive, she thought. Still, there was no point crushing the sheep's spirit; she could be useful for the time being.
By the time they had gotten five of the zoombas up and running, they started to see the sheep's gamble yield favorable results as they heard the larger footsteps begin to ignore them. Even to the point where they merely could wait out the reptile's patrols and start moving when they heard one of the little devices periodically bumped something further down in the store.
As they slinked down a vacant toy aisle, radio chatter squawked into Lùn's ear. She gave them all a signal to stop and cautiously pressed the receiver on.
-Vespa, this is Trace." The mouse squeaked through the radio. "We just saw one of the guys break into the stock room. The other scaley is by himself, he's moving away from you. You should have a window of opportunity to make for the front. Scale bag is near the cold drinks and the snack aisle. Over.-
"I copy. Over." Lùn said getting a smile on her face as she looked at the other girls. "Trace says one of them went into the stock room and the other is on the other side of the store. We can probably jump him together." She whispered as she led the group down to the snack aisle. Kyuu readied her knives, but Matilda started looking around the edge to see if the coast was clear as if she were looking for an opportunity. Lùn gawked at her curiously and asked what she was planning.
"I'm going to go for the front." The sheep said, determined.
"What?" Both the fox and the rabbit asked together in hushed voices, much to their annoyance. "What do you mean you're going up to the front?" They both asked.
"My phone and my keys are up there. You two can...um, do what you are going to do with the bad guy. I can call the police."
"Are you sure? Those mice might be wrong and that other lizard might come back." The rabbit reasoned.
"I'll- I'll be quick. Besides, I'll just get in the way of your plan. I'll come back when it's safe." The sheep said as she took off down the aisle.
"Don't take too long." The fox said, giving her blessing. Kyuu however, still felt it was too risky for the sheep.
"Matty don't-" Kyuu's started to say, but Lùn quickly covered the rabbit's mouth. Trying to shut her up. Kyuu furiously yanked the fox's hand off and scowled at her.
"What is with you?" She spouted at the fox. "You can't just-"
"Let her go up there." The fox said crouching down.
"By herself?!" Kyuu raised her voice, clenching her fists as she raised an eyebrow. The fox ignored her concern as she hugged the shelf, watching the sheep carefully make her way to the front of the store. Kyuu just had a nagging feeling she was playing the sheep along in some ploy and she was going to get to the bottom of this now. Kyuu furiously rushed upon the vixen and shoved her against the towering shelf.
"What are you doing?" Lùn barked at the lop, protesting yet another confrontation. "This isn't the-" However Kyuu continued to press up into her with her tanto blade, getting her scowling dark face right up into the fox's.
"Don't think I don't recognize what you're doing here, fox." The lagomorph growled, poking the fox in the chest. "You're trying to get her killed or use her as bait."
"Look this is just part of my plan." Lùn barked back at her, grabbing her neck and attempting to pull her off.
"Don't give a damn about your plan. That girl isn't bait for you to use." The rabbit growled at the vixen, not budging an inch, even as the carnivore's claws began pinching the skin under her fur. "I'm no saint, but that's low, even for your kind. "
"Don't interfere," Lùn growled back at her.
Their standoff continued for seconds before the fox turned her attention away from the rabbit, looking up and sniffing the area. Her senses seemed to be going wild. Kyuu clenched her fist in rage, wanting to deck the vixen regardless, but knew the fox's detection was vital for their survival. Lùn's head continued to tilt in an arc like a compass, her ears wiggling like radar, her nose sniffing as she picked up the reptile's distinctive scent. Then abruptly she looked back down to the rabbit, eyes alarmed.
" Close. Hide." Lùn subtly ordered with a low whisper as she dove towards one of the bottom shelves and started digging a hiding place in between a row of big chip bags. Kyuu quickly followed suit on the other side of the aisle, hiding behind boxes of crackers, the cramped space just fitting her small body. They stopped moving just in time to see the black dragon begin to stroll down the aisle.
*tap* *tap* *tap* *tap* *tap*
His presence was unsettling, there was a tapping noise every time he took a step. His shoes had openings in the front that allowed his sharp and curved nails to protrude and touch the ground. Likely he used them to kick and gore people. His respirator also amplified the hiss of his breathing as he methodically began checking every inch of the aisle for irregularities.
Lùn knew it was him, he had a slight limp on the leg where she struck with the frying pan. He seemed to have stopped in front of her spot. It was making Lùn a bit antsy, did he pick up her scent? Did he hear them and knew they were there or he was being very thorough, tearing this store apart? She began to feel the short hairs on her face raise as she heard him begin to mutter something she couldn't really understand. She heard him taking something off of the shelves on their aisle
"Ungrateful." He muttered more clearly. "Why'd he have to be my clutch mate, mother could have afforded to crack his egg by accident."
Front Counter
Matilda scrambled behind the counter and reached over to grab her phone. She pressed the on button hoping to be greeted with her bright splash page. Carefully angling the phone as to not give her position away. However, the phone didn't light up. She pressed the button again. Nothing. She held down the button, yet still, the phone's screen remained black. No matter how many times she pressed or held down the on button. The phone was dead.
"Oh no, no no no no…" She moaned and panicked. "You gotta be…"
She realized right then that she must have grabbed the bum charger from home, the one you had to wedge or angle the micro-USB port to maintain a connection, her phone was completely dead. She must have forgotten to turn it off once she stopped to help Kyuu, then once all this mayhem went down, it probably ran its battery out. She'd have to wait a few minutes before it would have enough charge to turn it back on.
Poking her head up, the sheep looked to make sure the coast was clear and felt around for the charging cable. She pulled once she found it, she jammed it into place until the fill-up bar screen animation started playing. She'd have to hold it in place for now.
"Figures," She dejectedly said as she rested her head against the counter's cabinet. "So much for being right back."
In the store
This was the second time Lùn had to hide in an uncomfortable spot tonight. At least earlier under the break room sink at the jewelry store, she had been crouched down, and only had to worry about bumping her head against the plumbing pipes. Here she was stretched out like a fallen branch. Imitating one too as she tried her damndest not to move, lest she cause the sheet metal shelf to warp noisily from her weight.
Some bags of Falbee brand potato chips were her only barrier keeping her from the bigger predator's view. His scaly knee came down as he squatted right in front of her to access one of the lower shelves just above her. One of her khukuri knives rested in her right hand held high above her, well if she were standing it would be held high. The thick sharp edge was pointing in the right direction. If she played this right, she could swing it out, and chop a big chunk out of him. She knew the thick part was excellent at chopping, it could easily sever his tendon if she swung out in the right spot.
It sounded like a good plan, she'd catch him by surprise at least. But there was a margin of error, what if she missed? All it would take is for her to miss and then she'd be easily dead soon after. Just one overcalculation is all it takes to screw up. Hell what if she didn't swing hard enough on the first swipe, this was a komodo, after all, one of the tougher beasts to contend with, not some dog or leopard. She'd probably need both hands to do the job properly. Her other hand was down by her leg, holding her other khukuri she'd make too much noise trying to bring it up. No, she thought. Don't risk it.
The noise upstairs suddenly stopped. Had he finished his search? She thought. The feet took a step back. Soon she heard the sound of a crinkly crunching noise, like paper or plastic being balled up. Then she heard a ripping sound, like a bag being pulled open. Then...noisy crunching. Crunching?
Her mind almost started playing tricks on her on just what the hell he was doing, when her eyes focused on the bags of chips she had hidden behind. Then it all became clear. He hadn't been hunting for them, he had been hunting for a damn snack! Her anger at something so trivial, almost made her audibly growl, but she wisely kept quiet or she'd be the real snack.
"Ugh, bitter, this tastes horrible" she heard him say before the bag dropped to the floor. "Who comes up with these new flavors? Stupid mammals...always got to make things unnecessarily complicated."
She saw his foot take a few steps forward again, then she saw his knee dip down. He was coming down to her level!
"Nacho Flavored." She heard him say as she saw the varanid's large scaly hand with his long sharp nails reaching towards her face. Her eyes drew on the make of the bags in front of her. Nacho Flavor.
"See, why can't they just stick to the classics?" He mused.
Shit! She cursed to herself, as her heart rate jumped. The fox's other hand, down by her waist, reached and grabbed hold of her erratic brushtail, keeping it from unconsciously wagging from the stress. She was going to have to act now, for sure. She saw the fingers wrap around the bag just centimeters from her snout. She gripped the pommel of her blade tightly, preparing to swing. She was going to have to, chance or not.
A loud electronic musical jingle suddenly rang out from the front of the store. The fingers stopped. Suddenly she saw him back off and stand up, the dark feet turned away from her and turned down the aisle. He was investigating, she figured. He heard the noise too. His tail swung low, slapping some of the bags right in front of her face, much to her annoyance. Bastard.
His footsteps started to leave, he was heading the sheep's direction. Oh God, that must have been the sheep's phone he heard, she thought. She pulled the bag aside to see Kyuu doing the same peeking out of her hiding spot, both looking towards the front of the store, seeing the hulking monster slowly stalk down the aisle.
Front Counter
Matilda's eyes widened as she quickly picked up the noisy device and tried frantically to open the touch screen. The device barely had any charge and was unresponsive, on top of her sweaty fingers making it difficult to recognize her swiping motions. She rubbed her hands against her store apron and finally unlocked it in time to hear the voice message.
"Matilda-san, It's Nobita. Babe? It's like one o'clock, when are you gonna call me? I know I sounded mad because of the festival thing, but I'm not. Okay? Just call me back when you can alright. Alright, bye."
Damn it Nobita-san. It was just unfortunate circumstances that she never put her phone on vibrate or silent. She silently cursed as she scanned around, hoping no one heard that, but she had a gnawing feeling that someone did as she retreated down out of sight behind the counter. It was just her luck that he had called just now even though it was late and she hadn't called him back like she said she would.
tap tap tap tap tap
She heard the tapping of claws stepping on the floor again, this time it was getting louder, closer. The sheep peered over the counter, hoping to see nothing, but she saw him. She felt a large lump in her throat as she made out his silhouette. There he was, his dark hulking body revealed by the moon rays angled through the front-end windows. A living walking shadow closing in before being swallowed up by the pitch black, free from the moon's illumination. Now all she saw were eyes. Yellow reflective orbs with black beady pinprick pupils locking in on her.
Matilda felt as if her heart had been ripped from her chest as she stared down at him, her body petrified as if she had stared into the deadly eyes of the mythical basilisk. She couldn't move, her legs became numb as fear overtook her while the eyes were starting getting gradually larger and closer. He was coming.
The longwool's legs gave as she dropped down behind the counter, panicking, she was doomed. Her anxiety came back as she had no clue what she would do. Her mind said to run, but run where? Anywhere! Run. RUN! Her mind screamed as she willed her body to move. Move! Her legs wouldn't budge, however, as if there was no feeling in them. She just sat there, waiting for the inevitable.
Very soon, a large shadow enveloped her, a black gnarled looking hand reaching over the hard plastic, starting to descend upon her. She could hear the hiss of his breathing. The sharp talons poised to grasp and rip into her, just an inch away from the top of her wooly little head. Her mind screamed louder than before. Run. Run! Run! NOW! Like a delayed shock to her system, her legs started to work and she took off. Bolting from the small area as for dear life, screaming bloody murder, she ran as fast as her little legs could carry. There was a loud crash as his tail slammed into the counter knocking items loose as he propelled himself after her.
Her heart was pounding overtime as she kept going, she felt a sharp pain in her thigh as she, in her haste and the relative darkness, ran into a clear plastic battery display rack fixture in the middle of the floor. She lost her foot and fell face-first to the floor, her thigh inflamed. Struggling, her nails scraped against the hard floor as she kicked and scratched her way back to her feet. Incidentally, her kicks knocked the rack over completely, it falling right into the path of the pursuing reptile, slowing him only briefly but enough for her to gain at least a foot of distance.
She was up to the dry snacks aisle when she heard another loud crash behind her followed by what she imagined his loud but hoarse voice uttering some hissing profanity followed by the sound of something hard, but fragile shattering against the wall. She didn't dare stop to look as she ran to the freezer walk-in entrance. The door was a strong 4-inch thick metal door, he wouldn't be able to break through it she thought.
Bantu furiously searched around for his escaping prey. He furiously hurled the nuisance that had delayed him against the wall, smashing it to pieces. Stupid inane decadence he fumed as he started to think of where she had run off to. Then there above him in his peripheral, he saw her. The reptile's cold eyes narrowed in on the circular anti-theft mirror hanging around the store. There she was by the beverage coolers hastily trying to punch in a code on an electronic lock.
She turned, looking hopelessly into the dark. Had she just now detected him? Oh, this was rich, his mind thought. He raised his sharp talons, stretching his arms wide as he slowly began walking down the aisle. His head panning around as he scanned for the others, she must have thought to go off on her own he thought. Foolish. He was already thinking of how tasty she would be. She looked like she was more fluff than meat. But sheep were usually decent meals, regardless. Probably best that his brother was on the other end of the store, he wouldn't have to share.
The sheep seemed to double her efforts to open the door as he got closer, cursing as the combination she kept entering seemed to fail. "76214! No….76215 Damn it!" She heard the telltale hissing again, he was drawing near, she needed to open this now. "79214" What did Riki-san say it was...um...oh." She punched in the correct combination and the door made a confirmation beep as the large walk-in door slowly swung open.
"Oh thank Rex," she exclaimed as the door finally opened. However, she wasn't out of the fire just yet. The door was heavy, there was a lot of frost build-up, and the hinges weren't well lubricated. "Oh come on! Open damn it!" She cried out as she strained, fearfully looking over her shoulder. Usually, she'd let someone big like Riki, a large breed Ox, open it for her, but for someone of her stature, it was going to be difficult.
Bantu recognized this and immediately picked up speed, knowing he needed to catch her now before she could lock herself away. Endorphins fired within him as he broke into a dead sprint. The small sheep frantically tried harder to swing the heavy door open by herself, she'd never get it open in time, he thought. He wasn't taking any chances as he rushed into the next aisle. Then suddenly a yellow mop bucket was kicked over spilling dirty mop water everywhere into his path.
As soon as he made contact with the puddle, the running reptile's own footing was lost as he tripped himself on the slick and wet floor, landing belly first. Speeding down the aisle with the momentum of a rushing bobsled, his polished scales worked against him as they hardly made any friction with the saturated surface. No way of stopping himself, he was helpless as the terrified sheep held the door open for him to crash inside.
Realizing she could trap him with the auto locks, Matilda quickly tried shutting the door, but the Komodo, not so easily dealt with, stuck his hand in the door frame trying to prevent it from fully closing and locking. Even with just a hand, the dragon's strength outclassed her own. She frantically called out for help as she began pushing her entire body against the door trying to smash the lizard's fingers or make them recoil back inside. She called out again, this time her cries were answered, both the rabbit and fox hurled themselves against the door in a bid to close it or at best snap the dragon's fingers off in the process.
Even as the sole carnivore among them was making the most headway keeping the door closed, Kyuu realized that they were never going to get this door closed unless they made him pull his fingers back inside. So the next best thing came to mind: stab them. She brandished one of her tanto blades and began viciously jabbing at the dragon's hand, the tough lizard hollered in pain each time the blades broke the skin under his scales. Bantu hollered one last time as her blade buried itself into the roof of his index finger severing it just at the distal phalanx. Wanting no more abuse, Bantu recoiled his hand inside allowing the trio to shove the door close where the auto locks snapped into place. All three girls caught their breath as they rested against the door, while the trapped reptile wailed in agony.
Not willing to give up just yet, the irate dragon began hurling his strong body against the thick door, but the barrier held no matter how many times he rammed against it. The locks were three strong rods that shot into the wall, no way was he knocking that down. That didn't deter him from trying, banging against the door loudly, enough that probably could be heard throughout the store. Knowing that they needed to leave the scene, the trio barreled down the aisle to the edge of the store just in time to miss the teal reptile who had just finished searching the stock area. Confused as to what had happened, he investigated the slippery mess left behind and found his brother's amputated digit.
It wasn't until he heard his brother's muffled voice, that he realized what had happened. Immediately Yazhn tried placing some of his corrosive saliva on the door, attempting to eat through the stainless steel with its properties, but his young venom lacked the strength that older dragons possessed that could probably eat a lot deeper than a centimeter worth of strong steel. Next, he tried simply ripping the door out of the wall, but it was too heavy even for him, and without the lock combination the reinforced door wouldn't open.
"Get the sheep." His brother's muffled voice cried out behind the thick cooler glass.
"There's a sheep now?"
Yes, you dolt! Hurry up, get her, then get me out of this frigid box. Move it!" The teal reptile didn't need any further incentive to get going, lizard's were cold-blooded enough, it wouldn't take much for his brother's body to shut down from the frigid air conditioning.
"You're the dolt… got locked in a box." The slimmer dragon muttered mockingly as he snooped around looking for their prey.
Health care aisle near the pharmacy
The girls finally caught their breath if only for a moment. They knew they couldn't stand there for long. Still, the rabbit had unfinished business with the fox, and she was going to get to the bottom of it.
"-Vespa.-" A tiny voice crackled in the fox's ear. "-Vespa. It's Trace. Do you copy? I need to talk to the sheep. Over-"
"Make it quick." She whispered into the headset, inspecting their surroundings before giving the group the signal to stop.
"Just look above you." A soft tiny voice cried down.
Lùn turned her head upward and saw her diminutive partners standing near some jars of cough drops on the top shelf. She motioned for Matilda to come up and pointed to the fat mouse. "You got a request, cottonhead. Up there."
"Hi down there." The rodent yelled, friendly waving down at her, to which the clerk sheepishly waved back. "Ma'am, do you have any auto supplies in here?" The mouse called down. "Like preferably aerosols."
The sheep's eyes lit up as she started recounting more intimate knowledge. "Yes, auto supplies are on aisle 7 near homeware supplies, second row. Just look for the sign that has a large black seven next to the kanji."
The mouse clapped his hands together, excited. "That's great, sweetheart. Hopefully, we'll find what we're looking for down there."
"Wait. Um, do you need a name or store brand?" She added, still stuck in the role of a helpful YashiAid employee like it was second nature. "I can give you a recommended brand if you want."
"Huh?" The mouse, taken aback, just looked down at her confused. "Uh, sure. What do you have in mind?"
"There should be some ZD-50, that has good reviews, very strong stuff, and I think Gunk/Burnout right next to each other on the edge of the shelf. From what I hear it's great for cleaning the most rusted car parts. If you need Aerosols, we have some Gebreeze and other car air fresheners like Pinewood and Horizon Lake are on the aisle across from them." Both the mice and the other girls just stared, as the sheep continued to prattle on. "We also have spray paint, high gloss, and premium. Gold, Red-"
"That's more than enough ma'am," Trace nervously stated, cutting her off. He almost felt like she could go on forever. "Thanks a bunch. We're gonna get going now. Best of luck girls."
"Trace-san? Wait." The fox's ears flattened as she looked at the plump field mouse. "Why do you need car supplies?" She asked, perplexed.
"Look you foxes ain't the only ones that can scheme, just roll with me on this. Pick and I got a plan."
She cocked her head as her right ear flicked back up, she heard movement coming. "What's the plan?" She asked.
"Well since you locked the other scale head up in the freezer, we're thinking of a way to heat things up," he said trying to be coy.
Oh, by the way, have any of you girls got a lighter?
"Wait?! You aren't going to set my store on fire are you?!" The sheep exclaimed in shock.
"Quiet!" Lùn hissed as she covered the sheep's mouth.
The fox's ears twitched, the canine's heightened senses were coming into play once again. Suddenly it had gotten too quiet for her. The vixen's tall ears shifted and flicked. She couldn't discern the lizard's footsteps anymore over the auto-cleaner racket. That meant...he had stopped, for what she didn't know and didn't want to dwell on. It was best that they move on from this spot.
Lùn raised her hand and pointed in the direction they should go. She had a feeling the lizard was on to them and sneaking close by. That's what her instincts were telling her at least.
"No." The mouse said, finishing his earlier statement. "I'm not gonna burn your store down, ma'am. I just need a flame. My plan needs one and my brother's blowtorch is out of gas. So... like I was sayin'... any chimney stacks among your girls? Smokers? Y'know got a lighter?"
"I didn't bring mine. Sorry." Lùn said after thinking about it.
Kyuu rolled her eyes as she reached into her pocket and pulled out her new zippo lighter.
"I better get that back." She demanded, reluctantly parting with it.
"Sure thing, if this works as I hope at least." He said, hauling the heavy lighter up to his younger brother. The mouse stopped and turned back as if he forgot something.
"What?" The girls all asked.
"There's another part of my plan I need from ya."
A few minutes later
"Screw playing his little game and screw hunting the old ways...father isn't here," Yazhn grumbled. "It's why we're still in this place." The turquoise lizard loosened his mask under his chin and let his tongue whip around freely. As long as his brother was indisposed, he didn't need to play his games, not like he was going to know anyway once he got out.
As his forked tongue stabbed through the air he could already taste the air quality, cold temperature from the still running air conditioning, but still filled with life. The scent their fur possessed was all over the store, making it hard to lockdown, but he was sure he was close. It got stronger down the next two aisles.
The reptile slowly strolled towards the edge and jerked around the corner, as if to surprise them. Nothing. Nothing but a bunch of paper towels and toilet paper bundles stacked on top of each other. Still, he could sense they were close. Moving more confidently, he strolled further down the aisle.
He heard a loud clanking noise, like something metal hitting or dragging against the hard floor. It could be one of them he reckoned. He quickly turned around and peered his lanky frame over the aisles. Nothing. This prey wasn't cowards like they had originally assessed. Giving them a chance was a mistake. His tongue began vibrating his mouth, producing a purring-like noise, as he remained alert. He could hear those incessant floor vacuums roaming the store, he could hear that stupid synth music playing in the background, he could hear...footsteps.
Footsteps. He heard footsteps! He swung his head around looking for the source, checking the air quality for changes. Which direction? The footsteps were speeding up. Behind him!
The young reptile reacted swiftly and accordingly. He quickly swung around and caught his diminutive attacker up by the throat in a clotheslining motion. It wasn't the sheep he needed, but he was just as content to find a very short fox vixen in all-black tactical gear held firmly in his grasp. His brother hadn't been kidding when he said she was a peculiar-looking red fox with her large ears that looked like they belonged on the much smaller breed Fennec Fox. No matter, he'd finally solved one piece of the puzzle, now he just needed the sheep and her code for the walk-in for the other.
"Well if it isn't the fabled little short fox my brother was talking about." He said, swiftly grabbing her arms in one hand, dangling her helplessly in front of him. He made note of her sharp curved kukris gripped in her hands, taking great care to keep them pointed away lest she nicks him with them. "Strange little swords for a strange little fox," he humorously commented. "Where's your clever little sheep friend at?"
"I ain't telling you nothing scumbag." She barked, desperately trying to loosen her wrists free of his grip, but it only made him squeeze tighter.
"Oh right, you're Inarigumi huh?" He hissed a very amused filtered snicker through his respirator. "That's what Bantu said at least. What's a little girl like you doing playing with Yakuza types I wonder? You should leave all that honor code stuff to the grown-ups."
"I'm 21 years old, Mucus Breath! I'm just very short!" The pygmy screeched as she started kicking violently in his grasp.
"Oh… so you're fully grown ey? What kind of fox are you, I wonder? Don't look much like a normal red fox. One of those hybrids you hear about in the papers, hmm?" He snickered as unhooked his respirator revealing his sharp dagger-shaped teeth. The smell of his venom mixed with poor dental hygiene smelled even worse up close.
"Always wonder what a hybrid would taste like. Which side of you tastes more scrumptious." The dragon mused.
"I hope I give you indigestion you freak!" Lùn shrieked.
"Now, now I doubt you'll go down that bad. Hah hah. Though before I have a taste, I still have to wonder. Why would you attack me alone? Morsel like you definitely needed help to trap my brother, so...where are the rest of the appetizers I wonder?"
"Behind you." The fox said cracking a sinister grin.
"Huh?"
"AAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" A shrill desperate voice cried out as a row of paper towels exploded from the shelf behind him, a short fluffy assailant charged forth wielding a hardware wrench and blindly swung it at the dragon's shin.
However, the dragon was very quick for his size and sidestepped the screaming sheep's wild attack with ease. The reptile effortlessly snatched the sheep up by the wrists with his prehensile tail. "Really?" He asked, lifting Matilda high off the ground behind him, while simultaneously grinning smugly into the fox's face. He just wanted to soak in the embarrassment on her face. "That was your plan? Well, that was very amusing, but thanks for saving me the trouble of hunting down the sheep." He said reaching her in closer to his open mouth. "Now...time for a bite."
ting ting ting
The dragon paused, staying his meal once more, as he cautiously looked around, searching for the source. He looked back at the fox, annoyed by the implications of a third accomplice. "Let me guess...this is where the other one comes out of nowhere and hits me because I wasn't paying attention. Right?" He asked her.
"Not exactly." She said, grinning mischievously.
"Whatever… with you and this lamp chop in my grasp, I'll get my brother out and we'll find your little friend. Then we can leave this stupid place with both of our bellies full." He chuckled before opening his jaws wide, dripping acidic saliva on the floor as he brought her in for a big chomp.
Suddenly there was a metallic tapping and the sound of liquids swishing rapidly that demanded the reptile's attention. He quickly turned, he saw nothing but an empty aisle, but he still heard the peculiar tapping and swishing. It had to be her other accomplice, he thought. He looked over the aisles again, still. Nothing, both aisles were empty. What is going on? Am I hearing things? He thought as tried to stay alert.
Suddenly the air started to feel... moist. It felt like a small fog or mist had rolled into the store. The air smelled like chemicals...it was a strong odor almost enough to make him gag. It reminded him a lot of those mammals and their incessant hair care products. Wait, he thought. Hairspray?
The gears in Yazhn's head turned as he looked around again frantically for the source. Again he saw nothing, but soon in the corner of his eye, he saw a can of [Leontyne Mane] Aerosol hairspray moving on its own up upon the shelf above him. His reptilian eyes narrowed, and upon closer inspection, he saw two small mice as the carriers. Before he could even react, they sprayed the strong hairspray right into the dragon's eyes, blinding him!
"Aaaaaaggh! Son of a bitch!" The lizard cried out at the top of his lungs, making an anguish-filled yowl as he jerked away from the shelves, corneas inflamed from the haircare chemicals. The varanid felt as if someone had just jabbed needles into his eyes, thrashing about the lane trying futilely to scrape and massage his eyes, damn near blind. In doing so, he quickly dropped the pygmy fox, Lùn quickly shot behind the lizard in an attempt to stay out of his way and free the hapless clerk from the berserk reptile's clutches. With the girls largely out of the way, Trace instantly went to the second phase of their attack.
"Go for it!" Trace shouted up to his brother who slammed another brand of aerosol can behind him, but this one wasn't hairspray.
"You got it, bro!" The younger mouse gleefully chirped as he flipped down his welding mask and pushed the nozzle of the much larger metal can that said: [Carb Cleaner], as in carburetor cleaning fluid spray. Once the stream was on target, the elder mouse carefully held up Kyuu's zippo lighter and caused a continuous stream of fire to shoot forth down towards the flailing varanid.
There was a loud WHOOSH as the makeshift flamethrower engulfed the lizard's head in flames. The flammable hairspray particles soaked between his scales might as well have been sticky gasoline or napalm with how much it accelerated the fire's spread on top of his scalp. The fire soon spread across much of the dragon's upper torso as he flailed aimlessly around in a panic.
Evading the path of the freaked out varanid, Lùn eventually waltzed up and grabbed hold of the dragon's flailing tail and quickly chopped clean through the appendage with her thick kukri. Matilda dropped to the floor where she gawked in horror at the towering inferno staggering around the aisle, continuing to be torched by the mice brothers relentlessly with further volleys of fire. Lùn quickly scooped the sheep off the floor and ran her to safety.
"Auuuuuggh!" The reptile screamed as he became a walking fireball. The blue-green reptile's horrid wailing rang out through the store as the mice continued to catch him with the long torrent jet of hot burning gas. The flames did his venom no favors, the corrosive mixture began reaching a boiling and scalding temperature inside his mouth. And he could feel his flesh begin to melt away. The viscous mucous that lined his maw, protecting his kind from their own poison was disintegrating from the intense heat and as such, his own venom was eating away at him. He could feel himself melting from the inside! The reptile thrashed about aimlessly in horrific pain as he tried patting the flames out. Once the flames reached his eyes he was in true agony, as the fluid in his already irritated corneas began to cook.
Through the flames, he swore he saw in the darkness only what he could make out as a large blurry figure. A large ferocious beast leaping off from the top of the shelf holding what he could only imagine of all things was a giant yellow banana? He made one desperate swing at the large beast with his sharp claws but hit nothing. Instead, he was met with a loud and decisive 'WHACK!' as the wolf/bear creature brought what felt like a club down on top of his head.
Falling like a marionette whose strings had been cut, the dragon collapsed almost lifelessly to the floor. He still flailed in agony as the fire spread all over his body, his heart rate continued to climb while all the nerve endings in his flesh continued to burn away. His assailant, Kyuu holding a big and hard yellow wet floor cone, began to strike him hard against his head, again and again, viciously assaulting his skull with the safety marker as hard as she could muster. Eventually, his thrashing died down to simple muscle spasms as he continued to cook. He soon was reduced to a whimpering heap of charred flesh and leather on the floor as the rabbit finally had enough and tossed the cone away.
The store's fire sprinkler system finally detected the fire and began dousing the store with its cold and suppressive water, putting out the flames. But it was far too late for the dragon, the damage had been done. He couldn't even feel the water droplets falling like rain against what was left of his face. He was going to spend the last moments of his life in agony, gasping for air that his melted lungs couldn't breathe anymore. Practically immobilized, the twitching dragon barbeque was immobilized as the three dark figures stood over him like angels of death, inspecting their gruesome handiwork.
"Well, I got a good idea how you probably taste." Lùn morbidly quipped, echoing the lizard's voracious sentiments before driving one of her blades into the dragon's neck, ending his suffering. Falling back she lost her footing and found herself leaning against a shelf of paper towels for a brief respite. The significance of their feat sinking in. They had killed one of the bastards. Her plan had worked.
The sheep took it a different way. She took the hardest, as she did the sign of the Rex and looked away feeling distraught, the smell of his burning flesh being too much and almost causing her to retch on the floor.
The two wet Back Alley denizens however just looked on their works and took in the efficiency, both of them possessed a much-hardened stomach to witness such butchery. Kyuu looked to Lùn and silently nodded, a gesture of rare respect from the herbivore that surprised the vixen. Lùn returned it with a slight smile while retrieving her weapon and cleaning the blade against the corpse's clothing.
Eventually, the sprinklers systems shut off completely, likely because the fire had died down to just a smoking vapor. Then suddenly the trio heard noise coming from the nearby freezer section. They immediately ran over to investigate and saw to their horror the black dragon staring right at them as yanking down the cold drinks racks separating him from the outside.
The racks?! Matilda thought in a panic. She had forgotten that the only thing separating the customer from simply walking into the backroom was a barrier of flimsy metal wire racks that the product sat upon. Something Bantu clearly had just figured out, would no problem to escape from. All he would need is to take the cold products off the shelf and clear himself a path. "Hide!" Kyuu shouted as she dragged a frightened Matty along with her with Lùn scrambling right behind them.
The lizard had finally cleared his way, however, the freezer door wouldn't budge when he pushed it. The door was meant to be opened from the outside and the suction was too great for a simple push to open it. Annoyed and frustrated, the freezing dragon summoned up what strength the cold temperature hadn't sapped yet and reared back to kick the door down. "RAAAAAGGGGGHHHH!" The reptile roared as he brought the full brunt of his might against the glass pane, ripping it off its hinges. Shards of glass went everywhere as the pane shattered on the hard floor. The shivering hulk of a lizard took deep and heavy breaths as he stretched and flexed his muscles trying to unstiffen his frost-covered scales. He began desperately patting himself down trying to get some warmth. He ripped his frozen face mask away and his razor-sharp teeth were bathed in his cold icy visible breath as he took one big exhale.
Bantu flicked his tongue out to investigate. He smelled something that made even his resilient stomach turn. He smelled the burning flesh of his hatchmate. Viewing Yazhn's darkened corpse only unsettled him more. His brother and he had had their differences in the past, hell even tonight, but his death weigh heavily on him. It was insulting. No one kills his own kind and lives. They'd taken his brother from him and that called for retribution of the highest order. The fury inside him opened the venom ducts in his mouth wide, acidic bile began to foam at his lips. One drop fell and began eating an inch-wide hole in the floor.
No more games, he thought furiously, No more playing fair! His forked tongue snaked through the air, tasting it. He could smell everything, he could smell... the vermin. There were more than three mammals in the store after all. He smelled another noxious odor. Hairspray.
He quickly turned around towards the source and immediately spotted the two mice who had assailed his brother, they had the lighter and aerosol at the ready. They intended to incapacitate him like they did his kin. His fierce sneer petrified the rodents who panicked, giving him enough time to shoot forward like a dark cannonball and duck under their flame jet. He swung his thick tail in an arc, slamming into the aisle with such force that it caused the shelf the mice had situated themselves on among others to collapse off of their supports. Gravity became the rodents' worst enemy as they plummeted along with the shelf's contents down to the floor in a pile of dust. Their tiny screams vanished within the noise of the loud clutter. With them out of the way and having avoided his brother's fate, Bantu flicked his tongue once more. The air quality revealed his true prey in moments. He detected her...the rabbit, along with the infernal sheep who locked him in the freezer. All their lives were forfeit now as far as he was concerned. He would make them suffer, for his suffering, for his brother's, and for their very defiance. They weren't even worth the fate of being his meal. They all deserved his poison.
Another flick of his tongue warned of an incoming target. He quickly reacted, twisting around, spotting what had to be a short droopy-eared lop rabbit charging at him through one of the moonlit lanes.
The hell?
Another one of their plans he surmised, no matter, he'd make short work of her. He began soaking his hand into his mouth; drenching it with venom. Like a pitcher, he lobbed the dangerous bile at her. He undershot it trying to make her lose her nerve, but the rabbit paid him no mind, ignoring it and merely hopping over the burning and smoking tiles, moving with a purpose. She merely grit her teeth and picked up speed, determined to close the gap.
"So a brave one," he mused. "Then you'll you'd really get a handful of my venom!" He declared as he got a gob's full in his palm. "Think! Fast!"
The rabbit reached over and pulled something flat and white from over her back and shielded herself from the deadly substance, all while still maintaining her speed. Bantu gawked at her surprised, before beginning to furiously hurl more of his natural acidic bile.
"YOU THINK YOU'RE CLEVER?!" He roared.
The spent shield began eating through, but she replaced it quickly with another she had strapped to her back with rope. She zipped out of the way of the incoming volley, then caught the next on her makeshift shield. Discarding it just as she did the first, she pulled another from her back. A closer inspection, Bantu realized they were merely Tupperware container lids. Who the hell is this rabbit, he thought. She sure as hell wasn't giving him an easy target he thought as she continued to leap from side to side avoiding or blocking whatever he threw at her.
He readied for her imminent arrival, preparing to slash her in half when he heard a squeaky noise, like metal grinding. Something rolling, he thought. Out of the aisle behind the rabbit appeared a wireframe shopping cart. It was the sheep from before, she was planning on charging him as well! He looked back down and saw the rabbit had thrown down one final lid and had used it to slide across the wet floor like a surfboard. She was right under him!
"The fuc-" He shouted as she sped under him. Immediately the dragon turned, trying to catch her with his clawed grasp, but soon met with the shopping cart ramming full speed into him with a surprise passenger, the fox, leaping out and lashing her tethered blades around his neck. She threw over another loop across his neck and began to pull with all her weight, constricting the braided rope tighter and tighter around his neck. Bantu tried to force the cart back, but his surprisingly drenched legs were becoming wobbly as he found standing difficult. He started to feel a wet and burning stinging sensation as he tried to put weight forward. He angled his head down at his legs, he was bleeding. Somehow they had cut him.
He tried to pull the cords loose, but the sheep began to frantically ram the shopping cart into his midsection more frequently, pinning him in place. The struggling reptile grunted as the cart slammed into him again and again like someone his size was hitting him with heavy blows. He was overwhelmed, being attacked from two different fronts. On one hand, he was being garroted by the pygmy fox and on the other, he was struggling to keep the annoying sheep's shopping cart from ramming into his abdomen. He desperately swiped out over the cart at the sheep, trying to ward her off but to no avail.
It only got worse as he excruciatingly felt the painful experience of the rabbit's knives stabbing themselves into his torso and then the flesh of his arm, Kyuu was using her knives like a mountain climber with ice axes, scaling the lizard's towering body with astonishing speed. Joining in with Lùn, the psycho rabbit began pulling at the rope alongside her canid counterpart, attempting to asphyxiate him with their combined weight. He didn't know if he was hallucinating, but Bantu could swear another larger mammalian beast was there as well! Large claws were wrapped around his throat.
Their combined strength made the rope just go a bit further into his neck to the point where he was starting to lose consciousness, he swore his bones were on the verge of snapping, his every breath becoming more difficult to inhale. He slowly turned his head trying desperately to snap at them, then he saw it, some fierce-looking canine-esqe beast snarling menacingly at him. Was that the fox?! His beady eyes widened with horror, as the savage monster violently jerked his neck back once more.
They almost had him, he was growing weaker and weaker, as they continued to pull, then the dragon started coughing violently. Soon they started to hear a sizzling noise. The specks of his saliva began smoldering and eating away at the floor wherever they landed, eventually some of them starting to eat through the shopping cart's thin metal making up the basket. A few more coughing spells and the venom spraying from his mouth had started dissolving the shopping cart as a whole, much to Matilda's horror.
The cart fell apart completely with one final push, which allowed the dragon one last chance to free himself that he wasn't going to pass up. He grabbed hold of the rope, sliding his sharp talons under, and began leveraging the snare away from his neck and yanked it forward with all his strength, easily flinging the two little assailants away screaming. Their screams were cut short as they both collided with the hard metal top shelf, sending the both of them bouncing over the edge. Barely conscious, the last things Lùn saw before the darkness came was a large black blur and an avalanche worth of store items crashing down on top of her.
Finally, his windpipe started allowing air to flow, Bantu looked around massaging his neck, giving a quick scan. The two murderous midgets had landed around her somewhere. He didn't see any other beast here, no sign or scent. Not that he could tell. He must have been seeing things. However, he did see a cowering sheep in front of him slowly backing away in fear. He coughed violently as the fluid build-up went down the wrong pipe, then he picked himself up, remembering the sea glass mantra: This is all just shine for your sea glass. This will heal. You will heal. Yes, he thought. And this scrap of meat in front of you will help that along, he humorously mused as he shambled towards the herbivore. Come here soft one, be my nourishment. I'm soooo hungry.
Lùn groaned as she started to regain consciousness, the back of her skull feeling like a cracked egg. She must have had a rough night, she thought as she pressed her face in between the pillows her head rested between. Maybe all this was a dream, maybe they hadn't left for the heist and that was all just some nightmare brought on by stress. Maybe she had fallen out of bed from a rough sleep.
Still, this didn't smell like the room that she and her sister Fa shared, in fact, she also felt it was hard for her to breathe as she felt like her nose was being smothered. Instead, her nostrils were picking up a strong scent of sweat and meat. Meat? Was she in the market, maybe in the car? It just made her think of how she hadn't eaten meat in a while, and then to top it off it smelled like a rabbit, a dish she hadn't had in a long time.
...Rabbit... wait!
She opened her eyes and soon realized that this wasn't a pillow she had her muzzle buried in. This was another animal. As she investigated all she saw was dark… brown fur. Oh God, She thought. Her fur almost turned white as she realized just what the pillow was, she almost screamed as she realized her snout was buried in the rabbit's sweaty cleavage and top!
By circumstance, the rabbit had broken her fall by landing on top of the vixen, and unfortunately, they landed in this position. Lùn felt a bit flush and light-headed as she tried to wipe the wet fur on her nose from the rabbit's sweat. The rabbit herself groaned as she began coming out of her own stupor as well. Then their eyes met, it only took seconds for the bunny to realize where she was. The rabbit's shirt almost came off getting caught on Lùn's nose, though the fox quickly pulled out from under it before it went any higher.
Kyuu actually seemed to blush for a moment as she stared down at Lùn, much to the fox's surprise. The canid's cheeks turned a rosy-tinted red as the two just looked on, gazing into each other's eyes, unsure how to proceed. The moment however was fleeting as thoughts of their rivalry flooded into both of their minds like a deluge. The two quickly replaced uncertainty with animosity. The only proper response for both now would be to separate immediately. No way they could work. Kyuu's brows furrowed as she furiously pushed the fox's snout away while Lùn went a step further and unceremoniously shoved the floppy-eared lapine off of her.
"What's the big idea?" They weakly shouted at one another in unison as if sharing the same train of thought. It only served to make them more irate as they both screamed for the other to, "Stop copying me!" Both animals angrily studied each other, growling harshly at each other's perceived antics.
None of that mattered much for long though because they both were reminded of the current situation when they heard Matilda's shrill screams crying out followed by the sound of loud clanging and clattering against the floor. Both girls crawled out from under the overturned shelf to see the sheep running through the lobby, the homicidal Komodo hot on her heels in pursuit.
"HELP ME DAMN IT!" She called out for them as she began grabbing at whatever she could get her hands on and hurling them at the hulking black dragon, trying to slow his creeping advance. "PLEASE SOMEONE FREAKING HELP ME!" She hopped over the second register counter and began playing a fierce game of keep-away with the lizard, grabbing hold of whatever she could to defend herself..
"GET! OUT! OF! MY! STORE!" Matilda cried as she hurled large items. Large cookie tins, flower pots, portable radios, anything heavy she could reasonably throw and hit him with. Finally, she ripped out the wireless store phone base and nailed the varanid upside the head. He was left listing heavily like an intoxicated wino stumbling about on the streets.
Lùn looked to Kyuu who looked right back, there was certainty in each other's eyes of one thing, the lizard was vulnerable and they needed to act now. Whatever that embarrassing moment was earlier, didn't matter right now, they needed to finish this. Both took deep breaths, ran out of the aisle, gathered their discarded weapons, both sprinting like crazy at the dazed and tipsy reptile. No need to communicate, they knew what they needed to dismantle him.
Kyuu went low, expertly lashing her rope around his legs, tangling his legs, while Lùn went high swinging out her tethered blades like a wild fishing cast. The razor-sharp kukri blade whistled before arriving at its destination with a decisive chunk sound, cutting a bloody path through the reptile's thick neck. Kyuu followed up by hurling both of her blades with deadly accuracy, impaling the dragon right in between his shoulder blades, locking his arms into place before he could even reach for the venom in his mouth. Both the fox and rabbit tackled the dragon, shoulder bashing him in the stomach with such force that the varanid fell like logged timber, crashing into a rack of fried snack cakes.
He was helpless as they went to town with their edged weapons. Kyuu climbed up the dragon and pulled one of her tanto blades free, and slashed right into the lizard's femoral, immobilizing and bleeding him out like San had advised her many times before with larger beasts.
Lùn on the other hand yanked her tether, recalling her kukri blades back into her paws, and hurled herself on the fallen lizard screaming like a madwoman, burying the weighted curved ends of her blades deep into the wretched lizard's flesh like two axes chopping into wood.
Aaaahhhhgggkk!" He screamed horribly as dark maroon frothy fluid began spilling from his mouth, blood and venom forming murky concoction reducing his growling to a weak gurgle. His eyes wide open with utter terror as he felt the horrific experience of being butchered by the smaller canid's sickle-like machetes. He couldn't feel his right arm down from the shoulder anymore, a cursory glance revealed to his horror the disembodied limb completely divorced from its owner. She'd managed to chop his arm clean off!
Kyuu had to admit a brief sense of admiration at her rival's proficiency, thinking she sure knew how to use those damn things. Months of arena experience had trained the little vixen well as she went to town, delivering more brutal chops to vital appendages intended to cripple the dragon further.
The two pint-sized killers swarmed all over the dragon, stabbing and cutting away at his weak and dying form like ants stinging and tearing apart a much larger insect. Kyuu drove her dagger deep into his abdomen with a two-handed thrust, stabbing into his liver, spleen, and piercing into his kidneys, driving the blade all the way down to the hilt.
The varanid was drifting off into shock, his remaining limbs wouldn't move. He was paralyzed, disoriented, wheezing. He couldn't even scream anymore as he felt the rabbit's blade rip through his leather jacket and flesh, piercing into his lungs. Dark blood gushed from the wound, spraying both of the small mammals in a crimson geyser of blood.
His final thoughts were ones about irony. It was ironic. He, a Komodo dragon, dispatched by animals meant to fear his kind. He had come here to terrorize and exert his dominance over these perceived weaklings, yet the only one feeling terror here was him. He was supposed to be an invincible monster to them, yet it was they who were the monsters. These little demons had killed him.
His suffering, however, would be over soon as one of the small mammals loomed over him one final time, blade in hand, poised to deliver the death blow. His vision was fading, but he almost gleefully welcomed the shadows closing on him. The imminent end to his anguish, he welcomed the blade plunging into his chest piercing his heart.
Both Kyuu and Lùn's were still hacking and stabbing as the dragon ceased spasming and his short ragged gasps for life became infrequent. Each girl had sat atop the lizard's chest as the high wore down for both. Their eyes met again as they had earlier, Lùn emerald greens with Kyuu's mahogany brown, no animosity, just respect. Well maybe not just respect, maybe something more.
Kyuu gazed back at the fox heavily panting in front of her, her body warming up inside the more she stared. Seeing the fox like that with blood caked into her fur like that, seeing her handle this dragon with her skill, just how similar they were to one another. All she could think of was: act. Why don't you join me? That's what she remembered the fox's shadow saying to her in the park. Why not?
Next thing the fox knew the dark shaded rabbit was pressing her lips against hers as she leaned in, grabbing the pygmy by the shoulders. The kiss was such a shock that Lùn's mind didn't even process it until they had fully embraced and were rolling off of the body. She parted from the rabbit briefly, surprised but soon found herself drawn back to her like a magnet. Her muzzle smashed into her small nostrils.
She knew she hated her, but all she felt in this moment was desire. She desired her, she'd never felt this way before about anyone. Soon she found herself putting her hands around the rabbit's waist and started caressing her long flopping ears, while Kyuu's hands played with the back of her dagger-shaped ones. Lùn's brush wagged like crazy, her long canine fingers found themselves pushing the rabbit's tank further up her torso, the feel of her soft fur at her fingertips, the soft curvature of her breasts. This desire was controlling her every move. Was this heat, was she in her cycle? She didn't entirely know. The fox could feel the rabbit's pulse beat alongside her own as their bodies continued to brush up against one another. Why is this happening? She thought. Why am I aroused by this?
"Uh, girls...um." Matilda nervously tried to interject as she stood over them. She still was a bit more taken back by the horrid carnage that had happened not minutes ago than the two expressing such affection, but still, she felt they shouldn't be doing that here. "That's very um…" The sheep straightened up as she spoke proper. "Physical contact like that is very inappropriate inside the store. We at YashiAid do not discriminate, but m-maybe take it outside?" The fluffy clerk just sighed as rubbed her wool. "Oh, who am I kidding? No one's listening to me."
The sheep herself wasn't one to judge who people were attracted to, but this really felt very taboo and weird. The two had just slain someone and now they were in the middle of making out for crying out loud. The least they could do was check into a love hotel or something. This night couldn't get any weirder, she thought. "If this is who she's seeing, I wonder who that alpaca boy is dating?" She mused out loud.
Kyuu started to unfasten the buckles on Lùn's tactical harness. Lùn could feel her black turtleneck sliding over her torso, feeling the rabbit's fingers on her fur underneath. The fox answered the rabbit's friskiness by licking her neck. Her rough tongue actually caused the rabbit to shudder, which amused the vixen as she planted her lips against the rabbit's one more. She felt the rabbit's small fingers reach her areolas, her fuzzy fingertips caressing and sliding over her nipples, filling the fox with a sensation of bliss. But the high was short-lived as her mind was starting to think again. She could hear voices. Raira's voice. The conversation from earlier started playing vividly in Lùn's mind.
"Stop worrying about your little girl crush."
"She's not my crush!"
"Suuure and I'm going to be the next Beastar."
No, Lùn thought. No. This isn't right.
Deep down this felt so right, but she couldn't fathom why? Why did she even feel this way and with her of all beasts? Every time she thought about this bitch this whole year, it had been to defeat her. Violently mostly. Why was she aroused? She wasn't smitten with her, she couldn't be. Raira was wrong, she's not my crush. She felt fingers venturing down her pants, down into her… This was going too fast. She had to stop this!
"Get your paws off me!" Lùn screamed as she pushed the rabbit away. Shame hung over her as she stared the confused rabbit down. There was still a string of saliva linking the two, and Lùn hastily severed the link, disgusted.
"What?" The rabbit asked as she looked at her confused, breathing heavily, her fingers still dripping. "Come on, isn't this what you wanted? Or did I...?"
"What?! Did you what?" Lùn furiously barked, slowly retreating away from her.
Kyuu frowned as she looked away from the fox, a bit embarrassed. "I thought we had… a thing going."
"Even if I did like you, big fucking If by the way, no one just kisses me out of the blue like that. And definitely, no one just fingerbangs me like I'm some fast and easy slut, especially not you, ya dumb floppy-eared bimbo!"
The rabbit's bushy brows furrowed at the fox. "Given how obsessed you are with me all the damn time! Sorry I had the wrong idea of what you were really after!" The rabbit shouted. "That or maybe you're just playing some long game to devour me or something."
The fox was taken aback by the rabbit's words. "No. That's not it. You're..."
"Oh, then what is it?" The rabbit asked impatiently, presenting herself as an easy target, her arms stretched wide. "Come on. Admit it. Do you want to screw me or eat me? Fess up. Am I some meal you're playing with or do you secretly like me or something?" Kyuu shouted, pointing her finger accusingly. "Isn't that why you were blushing a few minutes ago when we were on top of each other. That's why you didn't turn away when we kissed back there. You liked what we were doing just then."
"I w-was blushing?" The fox's tail dropped limply with embarrassment as a bead of sweat rolled down her face. Immediately her pulse skyrocketed as she panicked. So she had noticed, she thought. What is going on with me?
"No," The mini vixen readily denied. "You're just making that up! You just surprised me is all. Besides, the only thing I think about dealing with you is how senseless I'm gonna render you when I finally move up the ranks at the arena!" She shouted with such bluster. "Don't forget you still owe me for these lines you carved into my face! You know damn well that's why I'm so obsessed!"
"So what? You calling me a liar?" The rabbit said, stepping up to Lùn, fists clenched, looking her dead in the eye, standing muzzle to muzzle with her. "You saying I just made up you trying to touch my breasts or you nibbling at my neck?"
"You're a fucking liar!" The fox affirmed loudly, her fur bristling with anger as she crashed her head into Kyuu's. Both girls growled at each other as their tempers flared.
The sheep watching all of this from the sidelines nervously approached the two slowly trying to introduce law and order between them. This really wasn't the place for this, besides she really wanted to go home.
"Girls...you don't need to yell. I'm sure if we all just calm down-" Suddenly there was a loud groan as the apparently dead dismembered dragon suddenly jerked back up like a reanimated corpse, lurching forth with a blood-curdling howl as he made one final attempt to devour the fox and the rabbit right where they stood.
"Diiiiiiieeeeeaaaagh-" He growled, blood and venom foaming in his mouth when the sound of glass shattering echoed and he stopped dead in his tracks. The lizard's eyes sucked themselves back into his skull as his lifeless body fell back over, landing with a loud thud in a debris field of broken glass. His mouth ajar as he ceased movement for good.
Behind him stood the sheep who stared at the two, her heart pounding through her chest like a piston. Matilda had grabbed the closest thing she could find on impulse, a heavy glass goodwill change jar, and just smashed it over his head. Matilda's hands shook over what she had done.
"H-he came back…" She stammered. "I-I-" The Lincoln longwool covered her mouth as she peered down at the bloodied corpse, his lifeless forked tongue hanging out of his mouth. "Oh...Rex."
Kyuu and Lùn were both speechless, their previous conversation completely irrelevant as they stared at both the dying lizard and the hapless sheep in shock.
The sheep's already pale skin turned even whiter as the gravity of what she had done sank in. A combination of the corpse's mutilation along with the smell of varanid's blood and foul poison was enough to make her feel lightheaded. Her knees were beginning to buckle as she backed away, her stomach began to turn. She made herself look away, but in doing so saw the smoke still coming off of the other deceased dragon's burning in the distant aisle. Thoughts of his grisly demise made the lump in her throat grow only bigger.
She wanted to fall down to her knees and pray. Pray for their souls, no matter how evil they had been, but just pray their spirits would not haunt her for the rest of her life. "Rex, I'm I'm...," she moaned, unconsciously pulling at her ponytail, sniffling as tears started to slide down her cheeks. She slumped with her head down and tried taking deep breaths before looking towards the door.
"I think I need some fresh air." She said dispiritedly, mostly to herself, as she unlocked the door with her reach pole. "I'mma go sit outside."
She found the cold night air relaxing as she sat on one of the concrete parking blocks, just letting the night city life soothe her mind. Still, her hands were shaking from the experience, no matter how much she tried to think of other things. She'd survived, her life could go forward again, but this was still too much to take in.