Pyrrhic trotted through the Orchard with his ears slicked back and a mildly alarmed look on his face. This place was insane. He'd been attacked by a horde of small cats. Tiny scratches and puncture wounds littered his body, but aside from those and a feeling of unease, he was alright. All he wanted to do was get the hell out of Dodge.

A rustling behind him caused Pyrrhic to groan and briefly close his eyes in exasperation. He knew he had little to fear from the cats. The biggest one still had to weigh less than one of his paws. They were tiny. That didn't stop them from trying, though, and it was their persistence that he found alarming because it begged the question: what was making them so bold? Were they ill? Now that he'd been bitten was rabies in his future? He couldn't think of a worse ending for an Abraxas. To die of illness of all things. While he knew it happened he couldn't help but feel it was a weak way to go.

There was a taptap, taptap of small paws on hard ground and then silence. Pyrrhic turned to face the direction the noise had come. His ears slicked back and he bared his teeth at the spot he thought the cat was hiding...and then yelled as teeth and claws sunk into the back of his right ankle. He kicked out hard and sent the little cat flying away trailing a shrill yowl. Then thud there was another one, this time on his back. Pyrrhic shook himself hard and the little cat tumbled down, its sharp claws slicing through his fur and leaving welts on his skin. He punted that one too and noted with no small amount of satisfaction the solid thud and squeak it made as it hit a nearby tree.

One burst out of the bushes and ran at him head on, and Pyrrhic lowered his head and barked at it. Faced with a mouth full of very big teeth the cat quickly lost its nerve, did a u-ie and disappeared back into the bushes with a puffy tail. Good. At least there was one little cat with some sens- "Motherfuck," he swore as the same little cat took a flying leap at him from the side. It scaled his ribs and then chomped down on one of his love handles like it was a leg of lamb. He snatched it off his side, crushed it and sent it limp little body flying into the weeds.

"Come on you little bastards!" he roared, his lips now stained with blood. Silence was the only response he got. The seconds ticked by as Pyrrhic stood there with straining ears. The silence reigned for a good long stretch and then like little heat seeking fur missiles a cloud of tiny cats leaped at him from all directions.

He bit and he kicked indiscriminately. When one cat was subdued another took its place. Looking around Pyrrhic expected to see mangled little bodies littering the ground, but aside from a few wounded ones actively dragging themselves into the bushes the ground was clear. The hell were they made of? No matter how hard he bit or stomped or kicked they seemed to be able to just walk it off while others gnawed at him and then dart right back in after catching their second wind.

Demons, he decided. Malicious spirits of some kind. He couldn't tell if they were possessed or otherworldly in origin, but that had to be it. They weren't natural and that explained a lot.

Alright, he had had enough. With a parting donkey kick that snatched one of the little bastards out of the air and rocketed it through the trees, Pyrrhic took off running. It was a losing battle against ethereal forces and he had no intention of standing there and slowly getting pecked to death. One little bite here and there was nothing, but dozens of them? If their stamina held out they were eventually going to whittle him down to a nub.

His legs were longer; surely he could outrun them pretty quickly. He would leave this forsaken land.

Iroh eventually caught up to Pyrrhic after much of the same ordeal. The tiny cats were an anomaly that even Sarabi had her issues with deciding what was wrong with them. She too warned about rabies as the dangers it posed to one who had been bitten and however hard the boy tried he was still bitten and scratched. At the beginning of the onslaught Iroh found himself having fun, he’d bat at a cat playfully and it would come back much more fierce than the first time. Eventually he had about four cats on his back and their claws dug deep into his flesh for how tiny they were. Iroh shook himself violently as Sarabi evaded them from the trees above.

His efforts removed them from him, but also left him with a hundred tiny cuts in his flesh as they clung to him and were flung away. Run, Iroh. Sarabi commanded as she led the way in the canopy above. Iroh didn’t hesitate to follow her advice and raced away while kicking out at any followers behind him. He felt himself make a couple connections as he lunged away. The she mandrill led him a little ways away from his own problems and to join with Pyrrhic’s own. Iroh’s blue and lavender gaze widened as he watched his cousin kick away one of the horrid beasts.

Iroh fell in line easily with the older boy. He didn’t lower his defenses as he raced through the trees. Hackles raised and tail waving behind him as he got the hell out of dodge. ”Pyrrhic, what’s up with these things?” He asked through hard breaths as he forced his stride to its maximum. Still he’d feel the attack as one launched itself at his face and body. He could avoid the heavy vegetation but it was hard with the barrage. He saw one charge out of the bushes and he aimed himself directly at it. Barreling over its tiny form wasn’t hard, but he was sure the things wouldn't be bothering anyone anymore.

The young Abraxas continued forward, eyes sharp for any advantage he might be able to take. Now that there were two of them here he wondered if they might be forced to stand their ground if the numbers swelled. If they all attacked at the same time instead of by ones and twos. Worriedly he chanced a glance at Pyrrhic’s huge frame.

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He was a bit too heavy to get without getting winded. It certainly didn't help that he was bleeding from countless tiny wounds. Pyrrhic had barely made it across the Orchard before he had to slow down to a trot. He could hear the cats in the trees and in the bushes, their tiny bean toes tapping audibly and forcefully as they tried to keep up with him.

Not realizing immediately who was there, Pyrrhic whirled on Iroh with a snarl. Upon seeing his cousin he calmed and grew grave. "They're possessed, Iroh. Demons sent to attack us because of who we are." Even as he spoke and looked to his young cousin, Pyrrhic's gaze continually scanned their surroundings for the little beasts. He felt as though they were gathering just beyond his sight and readying for an assault.

Pyrrhic licked his lips and felt a sting as countless tiny scratches protested. Here and there dots of blood marred his muzzle from where the little beasts had tried to find purchase. He ignored the tiny wounds; his body was littered with worse injuries. Thankfully the attackers were small otherwise he would have been in more imminent danger.

"We can't stay here," he said firmly. "We need to keep moving before the demons take on bigger hosts." His fear was that the demons were keeping them in one place while the others fetched a bear.

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TWC: 1,331

"Talk"

He didn't expect Pyrrhic's reaction to him, but he had surprised the wolf as well. He didn't flinch, but offered an apologetic look as his cousin was quick to address the young boy. Of course the Heir's words didn't do anything to calm the boy, these creatures were possessed and the pair of them were the intended target. Iroh's expression mirrored Pyrrhic's worried expression as he continued to look around them and waited for the next round. Iroh's defenses remained, not that they would do much against the tiny cats. At least he pulled his tail up close to his body to protect his more valuable appendages.

Iroh nursed similar injuries, but the boy would look to his older cousin for guidance. He was training to become a war general, but for now he was young and relied on the experience of Pyrrhic. The older boy was quick to tell him they needed to make their retreat. Battling the tiny cats was easy, but if they had bigger friends the two of them would be in trouble. Iroh nodded, he would happily make retreat back to Risen where they would have back up. Why were they attacking in the first place? What had he and his cousin done to deserve this?

He gladly followed his cousin, feet moving quickly as they bid their retreat.

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