Hunting the Creator

Chapter 34 Pet

Chapter 34 Pet

"Run!" The panther ordered. "Back to your brother and hide!"

"There you are mama, I thought we lost you." A new captain stepped forward with a smile laced with a carefree attitude, as if he'd done this before thousands of times. "Let me go ahead and babysit for a bit."

The men cackled and began moving forward, but these were not like the men from before, they looked less refined like the royal knights he had seen before. Which gave a clue to Karim's mind, they were mercenaries. "Go for the cubs, I'll take care of the mother-"

Before the captain was able to finish his sentence his head rolled off, this time the men became startled. With a wild growl the mother pounced and killed the men but stopped herself before she could sink her teeth into the last mercenary, this mercenary was younger, more innocent, he looked like he was in his first day on the job. The way he trembled and soiled his pants made it obvious.

"Go to your panthers." The voice from before didn't faze the mama panther and left without hesitating.

The young man trembled in his armor as he saw a man float down to him. "Tell the King who hired you, that if you keep attacking this family of panthers, I'll come for the whole Kingdom, go!" Karim startled the young man where he had fainted and swiftly left towards his family's cave, just as he arrive his family arrived shortly afterwards.

"Mother were you unable to catch-" Karim began but was cut off.

"Let's get going, we need to find a new home." The mother sounded urgent and began to cover their scent, she wasn't sure how they would be able to track them down again.

"Mother, must we run all the time? Can't we simply confront them and ask them why they keep trying to hunt us down?" Nader wondered at his mother.

"No! They are not the ones who reason, they hunted our tribes down to the point where now we must all live separately. They are vile creatures who wish for everything they desire without asking for permission." The mother said as she ordered them to start moving and began their journey towards another home.

"Was it the humans again?" Karim whispered towards his older brother as they were going through the thick dark forest, the deeper they went the more dangerous the creatures were.

Nader responded with a nod to his head and kept close to their mother. During their current journey the panther family was almost consumed by a carnivorous plant, luckily their mother's talon like claws ripped through it like tofu.

"Mother, how long will it take us to find a new home-" Nader started, his voice was cut short as a flamed spear almost imbedded into his mother.

Both cubs hid themselves as their mother growled, her front leg bleeding from the spear. "What a shame, now my rug had a hole in it." A frustrated voice emerged through the thick forest, it was a group of men in white and gold robes that held an immense amount of magic.

Holy Mages.

Karim cursed as he was stuck under his brother, if he tried to move Nader would press down on him harder to cease his movements. "Stop moving, we'll get caught!" He whispered urgently.

"Look what we have here." The log in which they were hiding began to float up and turn upright, both fell out into an enchanted net which was impenetrable through normal means.

"NO!" Karim's mother shouted as she shifted into her half human form, it was not a full transformation, her figure now stood on hind legs and her head was still that of a panther. "Release them, I'll give you anything you want."

"What does a panther have that I need?" The head mage spoke up in deep thought, then suddenly as if it finally crossed his mind he said mockingly. "Then I'll take the cubs!"