Chapter 1: Enter Kindred

The town was celebrating thanks to the efforts of Team Friendship. They dropped in and slayed the rampaging demon. There was music and dancing at the inn where Puss was drinking. Everything became quiet suddenly when a sheep wearing a wolf mask approached them.

"Excuse me, can you tell me why you're on your eighteenth life?" a sheep said. "Cats are only supposed to have nine."

"You are mistaken," Puss said.

"Want to rub my belly?" Perrito offered.

The sheep froze as if she saw a ghost. She turned into a gold statue. A few minutes passed without any movement from the sheep. Puss tapped the statue. It felt like gold – actual gold.

"You." Kitty Softpaws got up from her seat. She walked towards Puss. "Got your lives back somehow, didn't you? And kept it a secret from me!"

Puss blinked. "This is my last life. I swear to you, Kitty."

"Tell me how you did it." She drew her dagger, pointing it at Puss. "How did you lose another nine lives? What, playing the legend while we weren't looking?"

"I'm still on my ninth. We should be selling this statue. Help me move it."

"So, you can have more gold coins to play the hero? All those gold coins weren't enough for you?"

"You knew," Puss said in shock.

"Tell me." She moved her dagger in front of his throat.

"I – I..." Puss never finished as the sheep became flesh and blood again. Seizing the opportunity, he switched the topic. "See, you took too long. If you were faster, we could have sold it by now."

"How are you on your tenth life?" the sheep asked.

"Listen, you, I'm only on my fourth," Kitty Softpaws said.

"Liar with on her thirteenth life. Dogs always tell the truth. Explain."

Perrito said, "I only have one."

"Liars!" The sheep stormed off.

The rest of the bar's patrons were finally able to move again as if nothing happened.

"Okay, maybe she was mistaken," Kitty said. "What were you planning to say?"

"Nothing," Puss said.

She shot him a disbelieving glare. "Uh-huh."

"I was thinking of a convincing story on how I got my lives back," Puss said. "Never got that far."

"You were going to lie."

"Because you wouldn't accept the truth."

Kitty growled, "Because you lie too often."

"I do not!"

"Do I really need to list everything that you've said?"

"Please."

Every time he disappeared or rather needed privacy, he concocted a lie to be alone and Kitty kept track. Anything that he thought she might disapprove of.

"Sometimes I want to be alone."

"You went out partying and after you returned home, you said you got lost in a maze as if we were stupid enough to buy that."

"You didn't get lost in a maze?" Perrito said.

"Sometimes I miss my old life." Puss closed his eyes. "But I don't want what we have to change as … Team Friendship. So, I lied – sometimes. It seemed to be working?" He smiled nervously. "I've never got my lives back. I also have a drinking problem."

"And that's not for lack of trying!" Kitty yelled.

"Okay... I might have tried – once."

She stared at him.

"Twice."

Kitty wasn't buying that one either.

"Okay, maybe six times."

"Because those were the only times that came up."

"How did you know?"

"I didn't until now. No more secrets or this is over."

Puss didn't want to enrage Kitty further so he nodded even though he didn't exactly agree with her unreasonable demands.

A terrifying scream came from Perrito in the other room. This was all Kitty's fault. Of course, she wanted to sleep separately so Perrito got his own room for the first time ever.

Puss rushed out of his room towards the dog. Kitty was already on the scene, fighting a wolf. A wolf that wore the mask of a sheep. It seemed as if she fighting a shadow, her paws literally went through the wolf.

"Puss, help Perrito!" Kitty yelled.

After a flash of annoyance that Kitty got here first, he saw that Perrito was missing a leg and lost a lot of blood. The sheets were stained red.

"Will I walk again?" Perrito said.

Puss couldn't help but notice that Kitty seemed to be losing to the unarmed wolf. The wolf was scoring scratches here and there. Puss drew his sword to help her instead. Although an all-too-familiar whistle made him change what he was doing. Death was coming for Perrito.

He used his paws to stem the loss of blood for Perrito, trying to buy him more time. They needed to go to a screamed and he saw an arrow sticking out of her eye.

"Kitty!" Puss yelled.

There had to be another enemy around here since the wolf was unarmed. His eyes searched for the unknown assailant instead of focusing on Perrito.

"Save Perrito," Kitty yelled. She was still fighting the wolf despite only being able to see out of one eye.

Puss carried Perrito away from the scene as fast as he could. He ran into an all too familiar wolf as he entered the hallway. A trail of blood flowed from wherever he moved since his paws couldn't stem the loss of blood completely.

"What have you gotten yourself into this time, Gato?" Death said.

"Nothing! We were going to sleep. Don't take him away, please. A wolf bit off his leg."

"He still has a few hours."

"Kitty's fighting a wolf, and losing."

"Are you asking me for help?"

"Please?" Puss knew it was a long shot. The wolf was death. The wolf didn't reply, but headed that way without an answer, giving him hope. He still had to get Perrito to the hospital. Instead of playing the hero, Puss ran away from the fight, carrying Perrito in his arms.

The sooner he dropped Perrito off, the sooner he could return to help Kitty. He was in for an unwelcome surprise as the hospital was packed. There were tons of injured people waiting in a room. What was worse was that Perrito didn't receive immediate treatment. After the receptionist took note of Perrito's condition, they were waiting, waiting in a room full of injured people with varying degrees of severity.

"I don't have time for this," Puss said to the receptionist. "He's lost a leg and a lot of blood." He never had to wait in line before.

"And he's missing two legs, and he's a human." The receptionist pointed to a patient in the room. "And he's still waiting. The dog can wait. Do you know how many people the demon injured? They all came here."

"He's not just a dog. He's a hero. We stopped the demon. I demand that you help him."

"Well, hero, others might die if we do. Go ahead, I'll let you pick whom to turn away so he can receive treatment now. His injuries aren't that vital. He's got a few hours."

Who was he to argue?

A ring of hellfire enveloped Kitty Softpaws, much like a protective shield. It was the first time she saw this magic since the Wishing Star that she could see very well with many arrows in her body, including one in her eye.

"What are you doing? Get the dog." The wolf halted his attacks for now.

"It is not their time yet." Death approached the wolf with his sickles drawn.

"Their time is long overdue," the sheep said. "The dog should have been ours nine lives ago."

"You will not take what is mine, Lamb. Know your place. She is not yours to take either."

Kitty's breaths were shallow from the loss of blood, barely maintaining consciousness.

"Savor life's closing act," Lamb said. A gigantic blue circle appeared, encompassing a far greater area. "Explain yourself."

"It is not their time yet, Kindred," Death said. "I don't know what else to tell you."

Kitty felt like she should be dead, but her soul wouldn't leave her body. "Help."

"This cat is on her thirteenth life. Not as absurd as the dog on his tenth. He lied to me!" Lamb said. "Dogs never lie, and he's still out there." As the ring of hellfire faded, Lamb approached. Lamb lifted Kitty up from the ground. "Soon, you will be mine. Thirteen lives, what a joke." She spat in Kitty's face. "As soon as Death sees reason."

Her entire body was in pain and she wouldn't die.

"Restore the balance."

"The balance was never in peril," Death said. "I don't know what you want from me, but you will not be taking her."

"Let's go," the wolf said. "We will be watching, and we will claim them when it is their time even if you do not."

"Wolf, I won't fail in my duty. There is no need for you to intervene."

"Then you wouldn't be protecting them." The sheep and wolf took off while Death remained behind.

"How are you feeling?" Death asked.

"I have arrows in my body, and one in my eye. How do you think?"

"Are you in pain?"

"No." Kitty's eyes grew wide. "Who are they?"

"They're the same as me. Only Kindred took an axe and split himself in two out of loneliness. How a man becomes a wolf and a sheep I will never know. We need to get those arrows out of you." Death started pulling on the arrows lodged in Kitty's body.

"Still around," Wolf said from within her shadow. "You are death."

"Cleaning up your mess." He turned to Kitty. "Can you see out of this eye?" He pointed to the eye with an arrow in it.

"Are you joking?" Kitty said.

"Let me know if it comes back tomorrow." Death vanished after he pulled all the arrows out.

An exhausted Kitty was alone in the room. She had to find Perrito since Puss couldn't be trusted. She started stumbling her way out of the inn with only one eye that could see.

The wolf appeared inside her shadow. "That eager to join me?" He licked his lips.

"Go away."

"You'll belong to me soon enough."

The wolf wouldn't leave, what could she do but continue onwards? She could rest after she saw that Perrito was in good paws.