Beastars: A Steep Fall From Light

Chapter 56: Scents

Legoshi moved frantically in the crowd. As a carnivore he could see perfectly fine in the dim light, but herbivores still ran into him. He tried to smell over the smoke to find Louis, but he had completely vanished. Any scent he may have left had been burned away by the fire, or lifted by the smoke. He ran for the stage, as that would be where he was most likely to be. Jack would be there too. He ran through the crowd before he was tackled to the ground. The wolf twisted to throw his attacker off of him. He stood to his feet and ran, but his attacker caught up and tackled him again, jumping over and blocking his path.

"Where are you going in such a hurry?" they asked through a gas mask. Legoshi looked up to see Razor standing before him. He had seen the terrorist on screen many times in the news; on the videos he had sent out. The familiar scent wafted into his nose again, stronger than before. Why? Razor lunged, grabbing his throat and tackling him to the ground, throttling his head. the killer laid a fist into his stomach before quickly pulling out a karambit with his other hand. Legoshi grabbed his arm by the wrists and bent it back, making him drop the knife. The wolf curled his legs and kicked his opponent off. They jumped back, propelled by the kick landing and landing on their feet. 

"Been a while since I've had wolf meat," Razor laughed.

Razor rushed back swinging, unfazed. It was like he didn't need to stop and recover. He had infinite stamina. All Legoshi could do was block and defend. For some reason, his body was locked.

"Come on," Razor mocked. "Fight back."

Now Legoshi could swing. He swung his fists and Razor deflected every blow. The masked animal returned with a volley of swings of his own. He threw Legoshi spinning away. No sooner had he regained his footing than the hybrid was on him again, and Legoshi felt his jaw crack with the kick. Razor jumped back before pausing, taking a moment to collect his breathing.

"There's no risk, is there?" he asked, pulling off his gloves.

Why wasn't Legoshi's mind letting his body fight? Like really fight? Something was holding him back, what was it? The way he was fighting was more like sparing. There was no risk to his opponent and they were free to just wail on him. It was that scent, there was something in that smell that held him back. 

Razor sprinted forward again and lashed out with retractable claws. Legoshi dodged, and slid out of the way. He was tired while Razor was just as energetic as he was at the start. He was too slow for a second and he felt the claws tear into his side.

"Come on," Razor jeered, disappointment clear in his voice. "That's gotta get you riled up at least a little. Lay into me."

Legoshi felt the handicap lift again and he lunged forward.

"Stop," Razor said, testing something.

Legoshi body seized and he quit fighting. Upon further observation of his body, his entire attitude also seemed to change. He didn't want to kill him. But why not? He was a terrorist and a serial killer. Legoshi should pummel him in to the earth, so why couldn't he? His entire posture was, casual. What the hell was wrong with him? The wolf heard Razor giggling to himself.

"Wait, can you not hit me?" he asked.

Legoshi wanted to lash out, but his body refused to move against the animal.

Razor stood completely still and squared to the wolf. He stuck his hands in his pockets.

"Come at me," Razor said.

Legoshi was given control over his body and he rushed forward. He threw a punch but it landed softly on his shoulder. It wouldn't even bruise. He quickly reeled back for another puch.