FSE

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Neveah, a bakeneko, sits atop a tree looking out over a city filled with lights and sounds. She is the only one of her kind, a demon with a rare mutation that cost her place in the world. She was cast out of her own family due to her odd appearance and an inability to shapeshift. A tear runs down her cheek and falls to the soft earth below.

--

Every day and night, Neveah would sit atop the tree, watching the humans. She liked listening to the beautiful music that played in the streets. Demons were not allowed to enter the city, and were often forced out or locked up in a prison if they were caught. Humans and demons have always lived separated. It's no surprise--demons required human souls in order to survive. Neveah sometimes snuck into the city to steal food and generally cause trouble, so most of the locals feared and occasionally tried to capture her. There was one knight, however, that was determined to defeat her in battle. His name was Arsith, and he was well known by civilians and noblemen. On one particular day, he ventured outside the safety of the city's walls.

As soon as Arsith walked through the gate, Neveah leapt to the tree closest to him while still keeping a safe distance and a wicked smile on her face.

"Where are you off to?" The bakeneko said, with an obvious mocking tone.

"Why would I tell you? It's none of your business," The knight replied.

"Well, now it is," said Neveah, curious of Arsith's indifference towards her company. She climbed down from the tree and began to follow him, keeping her safe distance like before. The two walked in silence for about 15 minutes before the tension got to Arsith and he drew his sword with a clanging of his steel armor. The sword swung and Neveah jumped backwards and stared the wielder in the face with an odd passiveness. She put up her claws to block another attack but the knight sheathed his sword, noticing the demon's unwillingness to fight. Arsith was confused, as Neveah would often jump at any chance to injure him once he stepped foot outside the city's gate.

"Why are you following me?" he inquired.

"I want to see where you're going," Neveah replied.

"Do you honestly have nothing better to do than follow me around? You're a demon. Shouldn't you be out killing something?"

Neveah looked down, apparently hurt by the question. Arsith sighed. Even if she was just a demon, she still had emotions. He risked a step closer towards her.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to offend you," he said.

--

Arsith took a glance at the golden sky.

"It's getting late... we should make a camp."

Neveah hadn't realized how late it was, and she didn't know what to think or do. She finally made up her mind and scampered off to find firewood. Arsith opened the bag he had been carrying and pulled out a blanket. Neveah returned with a bundle of firewood, and plopped it onto the ground beside the blanket.

"Ok... so now what?" She asked.

Arsith stared at her tail.

"You don't honestly think my tail is on fire, right? You can't start a fire with it, moron."

"Well it gives off light, doesn't it?" Arsith said with a smile, almost laughing.

Neveah blushed.

"Oh... yeah..."

--

The pair sat on either side of Neveah's tail, listening to the sounds of the night. The demon was getting noticeably more tired. Arsith removed his uncomfortable armor, and the air had gotten colder. He stood up and walked quietly to Neveah's side, carefully avoiding waking her up. He took the blanket he had wrapped around himself and put it over her. As soon as he sat down, Neveah leaned over and laid her head down on his shoulder.

--

The next morning, Neveah awoke with the blanket still wrapped around her. Arsith seemed to be missing. Did he leave? She glanced around the "camp" and began to worry. She leapt up and searched the immediate area. He was nowhere to be seen. Something seemed wrong, so soon she was frantically leaping through trees to find her companion. After a few minutes of panicking, she finally gathered her nerves to sit and listen.

A hand reached up from behind her. The demon sensed it and whipped around, almost clawing her aggressor in the face. It was Arsith. He had a bag full of apples. The two stared at each other, completely stunned. They both laughed at the ordeal, and began to walk back to the camp.

Once back at the camp, Neveah grabbed as many apples as she could and devoured them like she hadn't eaten in days. Arsith watched, slightly disturbed, while he took small bites of one of his own red fruits.

--

Arsith strapped on his armor and got ready to leave. Neveah was assigned the task of packing up the bag and carrying it. They ventured outside of the forest; they traveled over rivers and through rock quarries, until they came upon an unusual landscape. There were tall trees with long vines and there were deep holes burrowed into the sides of them. The whole place seemed... dead.

There were no demons, no animals, and no humans. There was an eerie atmosphere, and the two travelers could feel it.

"Let's get out of here. This place doesn't feel right," Neveah said.

"Sure. I was just waiting for you to say that," Arsith replied. Just then, something moved in the shadows. It seemed to be a shadow, itself. Neveah jumped and assumed her battle stance. Arsith did the same, except before he could draw his sword something grazed the side of his face.

"Arsith!" the bakeneko shouted. She rushed to his side. "Are you okay?"

"I'm okay. Don't let your guard down."

Arsith drew his sword. Something huge rose out from behind the trees.

It was unidentifiable. Neveah couldn't sense anything from it.

It wasn't alive.

Dark tentacles flowed through the air, searching for the pair. Neveah jumped and maneuvered through the trees to find the source of the tentacles, all the while slashing at the bizarre enemy. Arsith defended her, extending his sword and clearing the path to his companion. An ungodly sound resonated from the shadows, stopping the demon in her tracks. At her one moment of weakness, one of the tentacles lashed out, avoiding Neveah completely. Instead, it went after Arsith and seeped through his armor. It seemed like an infection--it slowly found its way through the cracks and burned his skin. Blood was rushing out of him, now. He fell to the ground, clutching his side and screaming in intense pain. Neveah watched in horror, and finally gathered all of the courage she possessed to run to her friend's side. Suddenly filled with an extreme amount of adrenaline and anger, she cut and cleaved everything in her path. In her mind, she realized that Arsith was the only friend she ever had. She wasn't going to lose him. Not in a place like this. Her tail blazed blue and her eyes were lit up with a passionate, rage-filled fire. She stood over Arsith and battled the monster's onslaught. The tentacles never once touched her skin. The shadow finally retreated with another outburst that made Neveah's blood run cold.

Everything went silent, save for the blood rushing in Nev's ears.

She sat down beside Arsith, and laid his head down on her lap. He was in critical condition. The tentacle was gone now, but there was a puddle of blood where it once was.

"Neveah... do you want to know what I was looking for?"

"Please don't talk..." Neveah's voice began to quiver.

"I was looking for a demon... one that could help me stop this pointless feud between our two races. It was killing me to see you sitting up in that tree alone every day... "

Neveah broke down. Tears were streaming down her face now. This was the first time she had ever had a friend. The first time she wasn't alone.

She realized this, and wanted to let it be known. She opened her mouth to speak, but it was too late.

Arsith's body became limp and lifeless in her shaking hands.