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Small paws reaching towards her, eyes big and shining begging her to play with them.
She obliged, following as they tugged her along.
Her paw squelched in a patch of mud as she walked, her paw tightening around a small pearl.
The sky was a somber and sickly yellow-green.
Teal tugged at her paw, pointing ahead at the painted Rain-Deer skull.
Its face changed into a gaping maw with sharp shrapnel where its teeth should have been.
And seated at the center of the shrapnel teeth, was her enemy.
The Scavenger Chieftain.
She let out a guttural shriek of anger, her pups were now lifeless bodies, the pearl she once held was now a spear, and her eye was nothing more than a scar.
The Chieftain turned slowly, revealing a bloody, flesh-covered face. The flesh of her pups seemed to crawl out of his teeth, staring blankly at the wide eyes.
He slowly raised a long arm to point at her, a grin across his mandibles.
She hissed in her sleep, tossing and turning as the dream burned her mind.
GET OUT, GET OUT, GET OUT! She thought, hissing and clawing at whatever she could reach. Metal gears ground together as the shelter opened, revealing her exit.
Same dream, she thought, but now wasn’t the time to be puzzling over cryptic messages that seemed to all point at finding whoever this “Scavenger Chieftain” was.
She stretched as the tunnel edges clunked loudly into place, preparing her body for the day of carnage that would likely follow. Need to find a Scav stash, running too low on spears, recalling the mental map of this area she’d made, taking note of where she needed to go.
Stealth wasn’t her style, but Arti was glad she’d waited a little longer than she needed. That’s a lot more Scavs than usual, her eyes trailed across the group, all equipped with spears, bombs, and whatever rubbish they could find. Then her eyes caught the elite Scavs that were sent and did a double take.
Three of them,
A grin spread across her face as her body crackled with explosives wanting to blow.
This is gonna be fun.
Surveying the group for a few seconds, her body felt electric as she somersaulted down, setting off explosions that sent them flying. Wild adrenaline pumped through her body as she ambushed the group, she grinned with pleasure as they scattered, shrieking like a SmallHorns.
-RED DEATH, IT’S TRUE, IT IS REAL- A young Scav wailed as they sprinted away. Arti growled, leaping after the small Scav. her arms outstretched, she gripped the horns, pulling them to a violent stop. A delightfully sickening crunch stopped the wailing and screeching as the struggling mass of limbs and frills went limp underneath her claws.
She turned, a wicked smile on her face as she locked eyes with the three Elite Scavs. She cackled at the sight, her throat bubbled with explosive saliva as she shook. Small strands of sparking saliva dribbled down her chin and chest as she walked towards the trio, her cackling devolving into wild giggles as she somersaulted into the first Scav she could see.
Gripping the shoulders of the pale violet Scav beneath her and clamping her jaws down on its throat. She relished in the struggle they put up, but it didn’t last. One good yank and its throat ripped out, spitting the clump of flesh onto the ground, she felt blood cover the matted fur on her chest. Licking a blood-stained paw, she turned back to the Elite Scavs. A hate-filled snarl left her chest as she watched two of them run.
-COWARDS- She screamed after them, turning to the final Elite Scav. It was muscular and would have been intimidating had it not been shaking, they raised a spear, paws trembling as they half-heartedly threw it towards her.
Arti didn’t bother grabbing the spear, I only need my claws to fight, she thought with malice as the Scav skittered off, climbing the nearest pole to try and stay out of her reach. Her eyes glittered as she thought of all the ways she could take them out.
More saliva dribbled down her chin, looking down, it coated her bloody, matted fur. It made her disgustingly glitter in the sun, it was a warning of what she could do. The saliva sparked as it dripped off her fur, creating small patches of charred metal as she walked towards the pole the Elite Scav was holding.
Leaping, she slammed into the Scav, wrenching its arm hard. A loud pop resonated in her ears. Dislocated shoulder, she observed. She smiled as the Scavenger screamed in fear and pain as they hit the ground, Arti growling loudly while salivating.
She spat, the Elite’s fur sizzled and popped as it struggled, screeching in pain. Arti reared up, slamming her claws into the Scav’s eyes, then again into into chest.
She giggled manically as she desecrated its corpse until it was nothing but a pile of limbs and gore. Her fur was coated in guts and blood and saliva, making her smell like a rotting corpse.
She cackled happily, ripping up a large intestine and chewing through the tough organ.
Arti stared up at the King, saliva began dripping from her mouth as he spoke.
-You are Red Death, You’re [here] to kill me?- He clicked, pointing down at her.
-YES- She grinned, dried blood from her previous carnage made her fur stiff and itchy.
-[let] us fight!- he shouted, jumping off the tower he sat upon.
She soared towards him, flying by an explosive spear, crackling and fizzling as she grabbed for him. The King dodged, causing Arti to slam into a pole. Spinning she growled wildly, diving for something to grab.
Her teeth hit the hard shell of centipede armor, the pain in her mouth screamed for her to let go, but she held on, loud cracking sounds resonating through her skull as she bit through the armor. Shards of armor wedged into the roof of her mouth.
Spitting, she dodged a spear thrown at her. Blood and saliva poured from her mouth as she sprinted towards the King, going for his fleshy stomach. She barreled into him, claws finding purchase in his stomach. Bellowing, he clawed at Arti in an attempt to get her off.
She dug in before ripping her claws out of the King's stomach, Intestines spilled out of the gaping hole in his stomach. Blood spilled out of the wound, and she saw her prize. The Scavenger King's heart was on full display, beating rapidly as if to save him from this mess.
She reached forward, ripping the delicate organ out with force and anger. The scent of death choked the air as she turned to the surrounding Scavs who’d come to watch the battle.
Raising the heart, she bit into it, tearing it apart bit by bit, making sure to show every single one of them what they messed with all those cycles ago.
She screamed, Swallowing the rest of the heart, she tore the King’s mask off its dead owner's face, she leaped into the crowd.
Arti’s chest heaved up and down as she stumbled through the bloody mess of Metropolis. Smears of blood and Scavenger parts covered the ground, creating a slick mess she had to trudge through.
She was so tired, her heart beat loudly in her ears as adrenaline pumped through her veins. So… Tired… She leaned on a spear for balance, but her eyes threatened to close.
Her body ached as she came down off the violent high. She swayed drowsily, grip loosening on the spear. I’ll… Just… Take… A… Little… Nap… she slid down against a wall, breath softening as she slumped.
The soft and scared clicks of a Scav caught her attention. A small brown Scav with big blue eyes stared at her, tipping its head to the side.
-Do you [know] where my Mama is?- The small pup asked. Arti raised her spear threateningly, but sharp pain stopped her from sitting up. Instead, she shook her head.
-No- She snarled at the Scav pup, who stumbled back. Large, glossy tears streamed down the sobbing pup's face.
Arti’s growl sputtered out as she stared at the sobbing pup, memories of small cyan and pink paws reaching for her as they cried. She reached for the sobbing pup, guiding them so they cried into her blood-coated fur.
Her mind swirled with memories of her dead pups, everything about the Scav pup reminded her of the tender moments that she had pushed away and actively denied herself for cycles upon cycles.
Even though the pup was a descendant of her mortal enemy, she couldn't help the purr that gurgled through her pained body. Arti raised her bloodied paw, gently teasing out the knots in the cream and brown-colored pup’s fur.
The sky rumbled as clouds darkened over Metropolis. Her breath shuddered in and out as she continued to clean the pup, tears, saliva, and blood covered Arti as she pushed the pup off.
She hoped the look in her eyes could convey what she meant as she pushed them toward a shelter. The pup tugged on her fur, whimpering loudly as she laid her head down on the cold metal.
Arti painfully removed their paws from her slick fur, shaking her head wearily, words escaped her as her jaw went slack with an intense feeling of exhaustion.
The soft scampering told her that the pup had run off, but then she felt a heavy fabric cover her. Opening the eyes she hadn't realized were closed, rain deer fur was laid across her. She sighed deeply, a wounded smile crossed her face as she closed her eyes again.
Her pains and aches started receding as the rain caressed her dying body, blood pooling in a diluted mess around her. Her lungs shuddered once, twice, then stopped. The rain washed away evidence of the carnage she’d created.