The Vulpine
Late during the night, as the sun was threatening to rise over the horizon in less than ten minutes, Edrick was descending a steep cliff face, moving silently as he reached the ground. He managed not to alert any of the ursine guards and slipped into the large cave opening without making a sound…
The inside was made up of a single tunnel that led to a wide, naturally formed room with a handful of clusters of dim mana crystal. There, a pile of branches, fur from various creatures, leaves, and the like had been arranged into an elevated bed... A throne, almost.
Peacefully slumbering upon it was the one Anoteros was looking for... The albino Laughing Fox…
Even in its sleep, the wicked creature had its maw contorted into a grin. Its dormant breathing sounded like a quiet giggle…
Indeed, the name had been wisely chosen for this beast.
Apart from the ability to express its joy and amusement, the sleeping being in front of the noble resembled in all traits a regular vulpine. It had a soft, well-groomed coat of perfectly snow-white fur, a tail so fluffy that the desire to stroke it was bewitching, and twitching ears that were simply inviting to be rubbed…
As twisted as Laughing Foxes may be regarded, it had to be said that they were just as cute as their non-laughing counterparts…
Due to being albino, this one’s nose and paw pads were a pale, pink colour–And although not visible, its eyes should also be a distinct colouration compared to usual members of its kind. Though Edrick expected red eyes, he knew that albinos could actually have more pinkish eyes, and sometimes even pale blue eyes.
The scion knew that this particular Laughing Fox was a rather smart one–Which was somewhat needed considering its albinism. It had a disadvantage compared to other members of its kind, after all.
Edrick wanted this vulpine for himself. It would make for a great third member to his canine companions…
As such, Edrick manifested Arm Of Depravity into the form of a bow, and then brought out an arrow from his quiver. He aimed for one of the fox’s hind legs, intending to cripple it enough to render it unable to move effectively before moving in to place it into submission.
He could tell that the creature was alert even in its snickering slumber, so getting closer did not seem like a good idea.
Once Anoteros released the arrow, the Laughing Fox’s eyes flickered wide open as though it had sensed the danger. It woke immediately, leaping out of the way and landing on the ground with a low growl.
Blood stained its white fur. The arrow had grazed it. Nothing too serious, but a liability in its movements nonetheless.
It laughed with its teeth showing, snarling at the human. Edrick almost expected it to start speaking with how much emotion was being expressed through that glare. It did not speak a single word, however.
It darted behind its throne, narrowly evading another arrow before reemerging with something stuck in between its maw.
‘Blood-Gorged Moss… With... Blood-Drunk Grass growing on top of it? Somehow, it feels like this is just one thing instead of two stuck together…’
The noble unleashed a hail of arrows toward the vulpine. But as he did, it swallowed the bloody chunk. Its body erupted with inner energies… It was so strong that it roused dust from the cavern, momentarily obscuring everything.
Edrick stopped himself from inhaling the dust, narrowing his eyes, only to spot something most unexpected.
‘Uh oh’
A paw nearly as wide as his chest slammed his arms as he raised his guard, leaving bloody cuts through his left forearm as he was brutally thrown back. He smashed against the cavern’s wall before rolling back into the first wide room of the cavern.
He had been a bit roughed up by being thrown around, but it was his arms that sent waves of pain rolling throughout his body. His bones were trembling, and his muscles were left momentarily spasming from taking the blow head-on.
In front of him, he saw the shadowy figure of the albino, now much larger than before... Still very much vulpid in appearance, but its face had grown a longer snout, and its facial expressions were now more human-like than ever.
Anoteros could read the dark glee even through the lack of lighting…
“Huh…”
The human laughed, causing the Laughing Fox’s face to scrunch up.
“A direct hit without being transformed, and you couldn’t even deal actual damage to me. This is nothing to gloat about”
Whether or not the beast actually understood his words did not matter. It definitely felt the provocation. Yet, it only laughed back in response, despite appearing quite aggrieved–Only to soon look even more annoyed for seemingly no reason.
It would seem that someone is mad that their little mind tricks are not having any effect…
‘Do I have to thank you for this?’
Me? Not at all. It’s not working on you because you are much more wicked than it is! Not to mention that a strong body entails a strong mind–Most of the time–But you do have a strong soul, mind, and whatever. Also, you sort of ate those of Zixuan Elt when you first got here, too
So… Yeah. This Laughing Fox has no chances of actually using its usual tricks to control or distract you
‘Mmh… I suppose that it also isn’t actually evolved right now, as well? So it must be a fair bit weaker than an evolved one’s mind attacks, right?’
There's that too, indeed. Though I doubt an evolved Laughing Fox would succeed either… But this one does appear to have triggered a temporary evolution to try and deal with you
Edrick now knew why this albino was using Blood-Gorged Moss and Blood-Drunk Grass on the local Flame-Maw Bears. It had actually been running tests to come up with something that it could use–And had seemingly been successful at that.
‘A real little genius. I really need to own it…’
“Are you a tod, or a vixen? Not that I mind since you are so cute. Even if you are the former, there will be no need for the handy liquid in my ring…”
The albino loudly laughed, causing the bears outside to all rise at the same time, as their mind-controlling overlord cackled… For a few seconds at least.
Before the infested Flame-Maws could actually act, a Greater Vulpine Hound and Great Jevodian Bearhound descended upon them.
The former–Wielding a giant greatsword imbued with dire amounts of bestial sword intent–Swooped in, tearing several bears apart with a single swing.
The latter, not yet possessing the means to deal damage in such a wide area, instead pounced on the back of a Flame-Maw, biting down upon the ursine’s nape–And with a sudden jerk of his head, the Terror-hound broke the bear’s neck before rapidly switching target.
It seemed like quality was going to win over quantity today.
Enraged, the albino leapt toward Edrick, only for the sound of tearing fabric to resound throughout the cave. A huge ape appeared in the noble’s place, slapping the Laughing Fox into the ground before grabbing the vulpid.
The sun was pouring its first rays outside, and this is where Edrick threw his opponents.
The albino was blinded by the harsh light. Its sensitive red eyes betrayed it, leaving their owner completely blind as Anoteros transformed back into a human, easily landing punches and kicks against the Laughing Fox that was unable to defend itself.
This beating continued until an uppercut connected, seemingly knocking the albino out of its temporary evolution, returning the beast to its original form–Whimpering, but still chuckling.
Anoteros placed his hand against the beast’s head, pinning it against the ground as he grabbed the base of its tail.
“...Vixen it is”