'Please wait?'
Those words hit me like a pile of bricks. It was a simple request for mercy.
'Mercy? Do I grant mercy? You don't!'
A tremble traveled down my arm while I stared at the Kick-Rat. Its whiskers drooped, and its body was beginning to fall limp. I was certain that I heard that distinctive 'Nibba' from the creature, but how did I understand it?
'It doesn't matter. Finish it!'
These thoughts... they were not my own. A chill enveloped my body, bringing more shivering to the forefront. My left eye began to pulsate once more, and I slammed my palm into it.
'How foolish!'
It was quite foolish indeed. One would assume that if you hit yourself in the face when you wear glasses, you might break them. That was not the case for me. My palm knocked them to the ground, and the world blurred in streaks of color. That pounding headache returned as my lungs fought for oxygen's return.
'Focus! Focus!'
I was focused, so there was no need for me to tell myself to do so. The world began to spin around me, mixing the various colors in a sickening blend. The green of the grass, the blonde of Claire's hair, and even the brown of the roots spilled together.
"Damn it," I hissed, weaving my way through that splintering headache.
"Finish them!"
The words were whispered in my ears rather than my mind, and my stomach began to churn. The voice was soft and tender, but the moment it hit my ears, my instincts began to stir.
"Finish them?" I shouted. "There is no need. They aren't a threat to me. A boot only quarrels with an ant if its owner acknowledges it."
My body tensed as a wave of anger washed over me. My tail swayed with agitation as my attention snapped to the Kick-Rat's blur. There it was ripe for extermination. I clenched my fist, preparing to leap over to it and finish the job, when the anger vanished. A familiar burning boiled my blood, and loosened that fist. The pressure was overwhelming, driving my instincts to react.
"Can you hear me? Can you understand?"
The voice was soft and feminine, but it brought an explosive power. The message of the individual was dragged, reminiscent more of a delayed whisper than a confident statement. Regardless, it struck me harder than a hammer.
My heart pounded, and pain dropped me to my knees immediately. Had I eaten anything prior, I would've spilled its contents onto the grass.
"Can you hear me?" the voice repeated, bringing dry heaves from my stomach.
'What is this? What is happening to me?!'
"Fawkes?!" I shouted, but there was no response. "Fawkes! Where are you?! What is going on?!"
There was no response again, and then I understood that something was wrong. Anger and tranquility began flooding my body in rapid flashes as if two different forces were attempting to dictate my mood.
'Wait...Dictate my mind?! My mind?!'
"Now finish them! Don't hesitate!" a voice snapped, sparking my wrath.
My body shot forward from the ground, and before I realized it, I was in the air. I would back and launch the Kick-Rat into the ground. The ground exploded into a crater, disrupting the once beautiful and serene environment. I landed with no grace, only power. I knew I had strength, but where was this when I needed it earlier?
The ground underneath my impact begins splintering into small fissures. The air around me became tangible, slamming into me like a truck. However, this time I did not budged. Something told me to root myself into the ground, and I used Vine Bind on myself to accomplish that.
My attention snapped to Claire, but I had trouble doing so right away. Her blur began to blend in with the other colors. The rage within began to overpower the sense of tranquility, and I found myself baring my teeth.
"I have generosity! I was going to allow each of you to live! To walk amongst-"
My instincts blared within my body, but I reacted too late. Something slammed into my blind spot, and I found myself tripping over my roots. I felt a pop and snap in my knee as the roots that bound me gave way. I landed hard against the ground on my shoulder, and for a brief moment, my wrath dispelled.
The throbbing cleared, and the tension in my chest loosened. I lay there, staring into the grass with an uncanny sense of clarity. My knee grew numb after my fall, and with it came a startling realization.
'Did I tear my ACL again?
It would be ridiculous for me to have managed to reaggravate an injury that I once had in my previous world. Yet, the feeling of imminent swelling was familiar. I think I did, or was inflicted with a similar injury. There was no pain, but stiffness that crippled my entire body.
I turned my head, hoping to catch a glimpse of the entity responsible for knocking me onto my ass. While I didn't have my glasses on, it would be difficult to see them. That meant I had to squint my eyes to focus, and I'm kind of regretting that I did.
Standing my right was a heistant creature smaller than the Kick-Rat, but this one was different. I raised my hand towards it, waiting to ensnare it with my next command of Enteranl Bind Root. However, my instincts called out to me to stay my hand.
"Can you understand me?" the powerful feminine voice appeared again, bouncing within my mind.
My gaze began to focus from my squinting, and I took in more of its features. This creature was a rat-wallaby fusion, but distinctly different in one major way. It was completely hairless, like a sphynx cat. Its tail was rat-like and wiggled side-to-side.
"I can..." I responded verbally, and the creature flinched.
It sauntered closer, offering me something in a similar fashion to the previous introduction. I hesitated, but I quickly understood its intentions. This creature was gifting me my glasses back.
"Please remain calm, Great Fox," the voice said. "I come in peace."
"Peace? After you blew out my kneecaps?" I asked after taking my glasses back.
When I placed them back on, I was able to see that my first analysis was correct. This was an odd Kick-Rat. A female Kick-Rat, and likely responsible for the voice in my head.
She was an interesting creature to look at, but her appearance wasn't what mattered. What mattered was this heavy, magical aura that leaked from her existence. It was familiar, but then again, I had only come across one other being with a similar magical aura: Sine.
I sat up and began commanding the roots around my legs to remove themselves. The nose of the hairless Kick-Rat wiggled as she approached closer and sniffed me. It was an odd gesture, but I saw no reason to react. I completed freeing myself and attempted to stand, but collapsed immediately from the injury in my legs.
It was the stiffness and weakness in my knee that buckled my stance. The Kick-Rat flinched before sniffing me again.
"You were about to... never mind," the creature said with a tilt of its head. "There is a miasma surrounding you, Great Fox. It is thick in the air. Your actions are not your own. They are twisted."
"Is that right?" I asked, rubbing my injured knee.
The Kick-Rat stopped her sniffing and stared at me with her beady eyes. In those eyes was curiosity, and a bit of reverence. Her tail swayed with fondness, reminding me of a pet who hadn't seen its master in a long time. Upon being satisfied with her scent, the creature scurried off toward the crater I created.
It was then that it hit me; she must know the other Kick-Rat! It was obvious, considering her sudden appearance, but why did she say that my actions were not my own?
"Those actions were mine. I could take those actions, but the intentions were skewed. But why?" I asked, mainly to myself.
I watched as she scurried around the crater and looked inside. Her hands were scratching at the dirt around the hole. There was a fog residing within my mind, and I felt that call for violence once again. However, unlike before, it wasn't in my head, but in my ear.
"The elf... finish her," the voice said.
The voice wanted me to finish Claire, but she was helplessly dangling from my roots. Not to mention that both she and Mikangleo were suddenly unconscious. I didn't understand how that happened, but I did understand one thing. Something was amiss in this situation.
I racked my brain around this situation, and thought back on my actions. I had just brutalized my allies. These were the people who put their faith in me to lead them in a bad situation. I wanted to kill them, slowly and painfully, but thinking back, it was so sudden. It was as if a switch was flicked on in my brain.
My gaze remained on the dangling Claire as her blood dripped from her face to the grass. Sure, I didn't know her all that well, but I imagined we were getting along well. I said I would assist her, but I failed. Not only did I fail at protecting her, but I was the one who helped leave her in this state.
Outrage began bubbling in my chest, and disappointment followed soon after. I shifted my gaze to Mikangleo and took in his brutalized appearance. He was a person that I wanted to bring onto my side, but yet, I called these guys worthless and nearly exterminated them for it.
'Why?'
A breeze carried through the plains, shaking the fur on my ears and tail. It was peaceful, and honestly, more than I deserve at the moment.
"The miasma? Telepathy... The fuckin' great equalizer; magic!" I snapped, and in that word it was obvious.
'My actions aren't my own, because I was influenced by magic!'
"Fawkes!" I barked, and received no response.
My attention snapped immediately to the forest, from which we had arrived. The leaves in the trees shook from the breeze, and with it, nothing was out of place. Within the small hill that I damaged when I punted my Kick-Rat ally, there was no trace of anything amiss.
I called Fawkes' name again, but I once again received no response. This was a clear sign that something was off. That damned fox wouldn't stop running his mouth when I fought the Ravager, so I know he hasn't learned manners in a few hours.
"You were reckless, honey. You could've been killed."
That voice caused my ears to twitch like satellite dishes. I turned to find the source, and my eyes widened when I did. The female Kick-Rat had found her friend and was helping him out of the crater.
"The Great Fox is calm, and you can't take much more."
I was surprised that he was still alive after that last hit, considering I wasn't holding back. He hobbled once he climbed out of the crater, and the sight chilled my blood. The friendly beast was covered in blood and dirt. His claws were snapped in half, and a large gash was revealed once he sat on his haunches with the assistance of his friend.
His tail was slashed at its tip, and his whiskers were damaged. My breath had hitched in my throat, and nausea hit me harder than any sense of wrath. I attempted to stand and made progress, but my body couldn't handle it. I tumbled under my weight, and the ground quickly approached. Yet, it never came. This time, I had been caught, something, no someone had managed to prevent me from eating the grass.