Gods School Book One: Into the Forest

Wild Kits

As Elisha marched quietly through the forest, undisturbed by Royoko's endless ranting. Sine Royoko had finally stopped acting weird about the "saviors" they where much happpier. Suddenly she heard a noise from the bushes next to her. She whipped out her bow and strung an arrow. Royoko transformed. A small kit lept out of the underbrush. Elisha paused at the small creature fright. Mother always taught me to help. She thought. Maybe I could transform into a kit and help her. Pleased with this thinking, she turned and focused. She pictured a kit with glossy and brown fur. She pictured black spots and green eyes.

When she popped open her eyes, she was a kit and she saw the other kit looking over her. She was downwind and caught a scent of curiosity. She wasn't sure how she knew but she figured it was instinctual for a kit to know about that stuff.

"Who are you?" mewled the kit. "I am Softstep. I am a member of the Tabbyclan."

Elisha racked her brain quickly. Her mom had taught her this stuff. There were forty species of cats in the wild. Even if they had originally come from a different species, they had adapted to a certain type. They lived in clans with a strict society. If this kit was a Tabbyclan, then Elisha was an outside kit. A kit from a sort of clan that had no one type of cat, or the Wildclan.

"I am Elisha. My clan name is Echostorm. I am of the Greek Godclan."

Softstep gasped. "And your fox, Echostorm?"

"A kitsune. She is no danger lest you give her reason to be."

Softstep nodded. "Mosskinsgiver is waiting for a sign from The First Tabby-" Softstep must have noticed Royoko's confusion because she clarified. "The first leader of our clan. You may be the sign. By the way. How do you know so much about us? And by your scent, your only a goddessling. I thought they couldn't transform yet?"

"One of my best friends is Bella, daughter of Bastet. We met when we were two and Bastet gifted me with the power to transform into a cat. She taught me everything I need to know."

"But how do you know your clan name?"

"Bastet told us our clan names."

"Will anyone clarify what a clan name is?" inquired Royoko.

"If a kit is born outside of a clan or they are just transforming into a cat, they have an outside name or a one-word name like Elisha, and a clan name, like Echostorm," said Elisha.

"What is my clan name?"

"If a fox visits or stays with us, they get no clan name. We save those for our clan members. Instead, we take their first given name and add yintar. You are Royokoyintar."

"What do you mean by 'first given name'?"

"Well in real fox small clans, which is a group of foxes that live inside a 100-foot mile radius of the most powerful male fox, they have a first name and an attribute of nature, like leaf or fire. No living animals, no part of your body names," explained Softstep.

"Oh. Why did you say Mosskinsgiver?"

"Every clan leader has the first name and then the term kinsgiver because they give to all the clan, and all the clan is their kin," said Softstep briskly. "Okay, so I have led us to the edge of the clan nesting grove..." She looked at Royoko. "The camp, where we sleep, eat, etc. and we need to walk up. We are upwind so it will be easy as they'll smell your god blood."

As they approached, the cats slung out from the underbrush. But Elisha was quick and detransformed, pushing them away, before instantly slipping back. "I am Echostorm. My goddess name is Elisha. I am of the Greek Godclan. My good friend, Royokoyintar, and I request a meeting with Mosskinsgiver, as name was given away by Softstep."