Scavenger's Nightmare

Dusk had fallen over the North, washing everything in soft pink light and adding shadows to the small patch of woods Lurid lay in. Between her paws lay a doe, a tiny little thing, only a yearling. It was the only sign of life in the area, and Lurid had snuffed it out faster than could be imagined. Hunger gnawed at her, having met several wolves she would have sooner eaten than converse with, the demonic woman found herself a snack. Hovering over the small deer, Lurid busied herself skinning the doe for crafting later. Once she had the hide removed, the bloody Empress emulated her name.

A branch cracked behind her, close but not truly close enough for her to be bothered with. Besides, it was probably just a rabbit or another deer, except she hadn't seen anything other than the one between her paws. Holographic eyes searched the area but saw nothing out of place. Snap! Another stick broke, drawing a soft growl from the pale monster. Just who would dare interrupt her meal? A growl to her left answered her and she turned her scarred face to confront the poor brave soul. What met her lavender-white gaze made her gasp in surprise. They stood in a small group, growling hungrily and eyeing the pallid goddess for her meal. Ribs showed on their sides, brown pelts messy and dirty, and teeth yellowed in their malnourished skulls. Lurid snarled back in her dual tones, making the more scared of the group balk a little, though their hunger made them stupid. The coyotes spread out then, circling the golden devil, and she stood to rise to the challenge.

Her size was imposing enough, but the fact she was willing to defend her meal was worse. It seemed, however, they were not only interested in her food. Lurid knew the predatory gaze they gave her, one small doe would not be enough, they wanted her as well. She gnashed her teeth with an audible clicking, challenging the small pack to attack her. The leader was the first to attack, launching in from the left of her only to be met with a fierce bite to the face as he came for the side of her neck. Yelping, he fell back, his friends all launching in one by one to surround and attack her. With each bite Lurid gave, her teeth found bony bodies with hardly any meat to latch onto. A couple of the coyotes found their marks on her shoulders, but the massive monster shrugged them off. Her vision began to go red at the edges as she fought for her life, having only been in this predicament as a six-month-old puppy. Grabbing one coyote by the throat, she shook until its snapping form became lifeless. His body was thrown at the others, who descended en masse on the demonic woman. Lurid laughed hysterically as their bites pierced her hide, though they didn't quite have what it took to bring her down. Bucking like a horse, Lurid kicked out her hind legs and caught one in the jaw, the powerful blow breaking the coyote's jaw. Growling, she snapped at another, pinching the skin and ripping it away from the enemy as soon as her paws touched the ground again. The coyote yelped and ripped itself from her jaws only to come back at her in desperate fashion, hungry jaws trying to snap at her throat. The pale demon simply batted out a paw and smacked it to the ground, but that was all she got the chance to do as another rushed her from the right. This one managed to knock her off balance as another came to help its partner and use numbers to topple the gold and silver beast.

She was not so easily knocked down however and used the body of one of the coyotes to balance herself, bringing a yelp from the little canid. She snapped her jaws at the ones who bit and tried to pull her to the ground, breaking one's leg and blinding another. Five remained in the group, but that didn't stop them from coming. The fool animals pulled back to regroup, looking between one another and then at their leader. Finally, Lurid knew which one to target, but she didn't get the chance to attack first. They came in from all sides, aiming to overwhelm the devil as she attempted to defend herself. Clasping one between her jaws by its stomach as it ran passed, Lurid shook to open the stomach cavity, the injury she delivered much worse than any bite they delivered to her. One brave, desperate coyote came in for her throat, managing to pinch her skin and bring blood before finding itself beneath the heinous heathen. The remaining three stood back, carefully considering their chances. Lurid took stock of herself, finding multiple bite wounds and scratches, but nothing too serious. She wasn't sure if they would attack again, seeing five skinny bodies on the ground, but Lurid wasn't taking any chances. With a glare she stared at the remaining coyotes, who then fled in terror.