The sibilant hiss which echoed in Rillyn's ears told him what he already had suspected. He and his bonded were not friendly, strictly speaking. No, the pretense of civility between them only emerged when their goals lay along a tangential plane.

Today, Rillyn felt, would not be one of those days. Or nights, he observed wryly, pulling free the sword at his side from the scabbard which passed as protection. The clang of organic chitin against elven steel rung in his sensitive ears as he dropped down, something large and heavy flying over him. The knowledge Ninjouzata wasn't stupid enough to mortally wound him, hard as the task would be, didn't put Rillyn at ease.

Nor was he any more relaxed to realize his erstwhile bond had turned, claws clicking on the granite around them. Darkhunter.

"Alpha would be preferable."

The crimson length of Ninjouzata's tail swayed, showing his discontent. We do not always get what we want.

"You would know," Rillyn replied, resheathing his sword. Ninjouzata hissed, moving too quickly to track and snapping two sets of jaws in Rillyn's face. He didn't flinch, which both annoyed and pleased his bond.

This world is too small. The xenohathian king turned burning red eyes skyward, watching the blue of clouds and wishing for the darkness. Night was his element; even as the sun brought a richness and vibrancy to his colors and the golden shoulder spikes jutting over his back, the night became his encapsulated universe. There is no challenge; nothing to rule.

"You lie poorly, Ninjouzata." The Wolfen ran a hand through his hair, sighing. He itched for the change, and a decent shower. The last three months had been rough in the particularly rough and under-developed portion of the continent he had sequestered himself in. "Araris and Aheras would appreciate your departure."

Ninjouzata laughed, a menacing growl if you didn't hear the secondary voice in Rillyn's mind. Neither warrior is here. There are greater things for them to pursue.

Rillyn had started making his way down the mountain, swinging around his gear and frowning as the familiar rhythm of travel attempted to right itself in his mind. He had seventeen miles to go, before he would arrive where he wished. Perhaps flying would have been easier, but the Wolfen intensely disliked the sensation of losing contact with the ground. Ninjouzata took sharp pleasure in this reality, taking his bond on impromptu flights at a moments notice. That he often dislocated, or nearly dislocated, Rillyn's arms seemed to make little impression. After all, the Wolfen simply had to pop them back in. The pain wasn't intense enough to bother Ninjouzata himself...as long as he knew the specific source, and approved. In those cases, he always did.

I did not give you permission to leave. Ninjouzata stalked after him, moving with preternatural ease through the tight trees of the unnatural forest. Rillyn heard rumors of the forest's origins in the Ancient's times, though to the Wolfen the fact was largely unimportant. Between them, the Vulpine, and the Felidae, there was enough history to not need to absorb that of the hairless two-legs the very magik which frightened them had made the other races resemble. We need to go.

"I agree. Hence, I am walking." To the casual observer, Rillyn's words addressed to a seemingly invisible audience would be indicative of his insanity. The untrimmed beard and worn clothing, paired with the skinned animal pelts were not helping his case.

Not to whatever squalor you've taken an unnatural liking to--another outpost too small for me to properly hunt.

Rillyn smiled grimly. "Trying to make your life as hard as hell, Ninjouzata. No hard feelings."

The xenohathian's head whipped around, coming face to face with the Wolfen. Your death would be most pleasurable.

So you keep on telling me. Only, Ninjouzata, we both know without me, you'd have been slaughtered before you'd have left the sands at Cy.

Ninjouzata's eyes flashed. Like the worthless being who incubated Araris--

"Do not talk to me of what you do not know!" Rillyn growled, the burning feeling of fire running through his body as he forcibly staved off the aggressive reaction to change. The response wasn't rational--emotions rarely were. He twisted his mind, sharpening his focus so that it became a point, driving it home between Ninjouzata's eyes. The mental energy left the xenohathian screaming, unprepared for the sharpening mental attacks of his bond.

They were one big, happy, dysfunctional family.

You, said Ninjouzata, claws having nicked Rillyn's skin when he'd lashed out and pinned down his bond, Are getting more annoying.

"As are you. Get off, before I make you."

You couldn't if you tried. To a degree, this was true. Physically, it would take beneficial circumstances and Ninjouzata's distracted mind to allow Rillyn a physical defeat, and then in Wolfen form. Still, the xenohathian stepped off carefully to the side.

He wanted something which required Rillyn's cooperation, at least superficially. He hardly would have given up so easily. Rillyn sat up, cursing as his arms smarted. Now he wanted a shower and his medical supplies. Unfortunately, both were far away.

Ninjouzata was grooming himself. There were no other words to describe the distinctly cat-like process he was going through--unless one had seen a well-bred (pampered) royal born examining their nails. Strange, how similar the two could be. I have a proposition....

"I'm not interested." Ninjouzata's barbed tail slammed down next to the Wolfen. He toyed with the thought of pinning it there with his sword, but as he reached for his sword, he faltered. Damn, Ninjouzata had done something.

Your opinion isn't necessary.

"Only my cooperation."

Ninjouzata didn't directly reply. There are no females worthwhile I have located--

Rillyn cut him off with a derisive laugh. "Females? Again, Ninjouzata? You've failed each time before--"

None, he interrupted, Have ever been worthy. At first, but under examination--

"Cut the bullshit. Who the hell are you running after this time?"

I'm not.

He waited for the punchline. None was forthcoming. Ninjouzata shifted, uncurling and facing his bond. We're going to Star City.

Rillyn was on his feet again, searching through his pack for something clean to bind his wounds for the interim. "Funny. No."

I wasn't asking. Ninjouzata reared, precariously balancing on his hind legs as his forelegs came to awkwardly pick up his rider. And we're late for our appointment.

Rillyn was protesting--until he was unconscious. The next thing the Wolfen was aware of was of a white-washed room and an annoying beeping in his ears. He'd never been in a hospital room before; the IV, when he found it, he tore out with a string of curse words. The nurse which rushed in found herself confronted with a disgruntled, barely controlled Wolfen draped in the flimsy hospital gown and asking insistently for the location of someone called Ninjouzata. He finally got through to her.

"Oh, you mean that delightful alien dragoniod? He's been playing with the children in one of the empty bays--"

Rillyn looked at her as if she were insane. "Which bay?"

She told him, asking him to return to his bed, but the request fell on deaf ears. Or no ears, rather, as Rillyn had taken off, pulling off the thin excuse for coverage and forcing the uncomfortable transformation to the stunned expressions of some of the younger workers on base. The older shrugged their shoulders and went on with their duties. After a moment, the younger ones, too, continued about their day.

Rillyn half knew where he was running, and half operated in sorting through the bold, abrasive scents of the ship and all that was familiar from his last stay. He made several false starts, but finally found the right place. His hackles were on end, and he was growling deep in his throat as he confronted his bond. Ninjouzata, what the hell are you doing?

The immense bulk of the xenoking was hunkered down on the floor, for all the world appearing as aggressive as an over-fed pup. His eyes were half closed as a child of about nine ducked behind his head crest, shrieking at Rillyn's appearance.

"Checkers, watch out! There's a rabid dog!"

A length of pipe flew at his head, and he saw it an instant too late to completely dodge. It cracked against his shoulder, making him stumble as Ninjouzata carefully raised his head and showered his bond with a feeling of amusement.

I'm cultivating favors. Ninjouzata would have smiled, if he were capable. Everyone likes a male good with the punitive young of a weaker species.

Puppies. Ninjouzata was doing the equivalent of a young wolf playing nursemaid to the pups in order to press his adaptability onto the others of the pack. The thought would have been appalling had Rillyn himself been human, but he could only appreciate the cunning of his bond. Especially considering how, as he allowed one small child to tap his nose and run their palm over the smooth surface of his cranium, Rillyn could calculate how quickly that child could be armless and screaming--if he came out of shock before Ninjouzata had crushed his skull.

You said there was no female. Rillyn had turned tail and left, maintaining the mental conversation as he crouched behind a convenient crate, settling down despite his intense irritation.

There is none. From the other room, squeals of protest and laughter preceded Ninjouzata's own exit. You'll do better in human form.

Rillyn would have disagreed, if it weren't a standard reality across worlds. When I feel the need, I will be. Is that a bow?

Ninjouzata twisted his neck in near impossible manner, snapping at the offending pink addition and shredding it to pieces. There is no bow. Move, before I tear through your neck just to watch you heal. I'm sure, in the meantime of my waiting, one of the children will become expendable. I'd love to be there when it happens.

On that certainty, Ninjouzata and Rillyn made their way through Star City, attracting attention and shocked stares as Ninjouzata maintained his facade of complacency. The sight of a crimson xeno herding a wolf through the corridors was enough to create a minor stir--if only Rillyn and Ninjouzata knew how thin the veil of restraint really was.

Ninjouzata wanted whatever this was something awful. And after Rillyn gleaned from his bond's mind what, superficially, he expected to occur, he had to wonder.

"Hello," he said, having changed back after "confiscating" something vaguely appropriate for wearing, standing on a small ship attached to the larger Star City. "Would you show me to Dr. Schroeder? I've come with an interesting proposition...."