Introspection and interrogation

IMPORTANT: As of 10/30/25 I have changed the ending of this chapter considerably, specifically the interrogation. I highly recommend you reread that section, as it changes how the story will progress moving forward.

As night rolled its dark curtain over the valley, Fenrir stood and stretched. He glanced down at the two around the fire, and could not suppress a soft chuckle.

"What is it, Chief?" Nelith asked, cocking her head slightly.

"Oh, I was just reminded of my trip to the capital. Same sort of situation, with me leaving camp at dusk to go scout."

Katari nodded. "I was reminded of it as well."

"Well, let's hope things go a bit more smoothly this time." Fenrir glanced up at the sky; the stars were twinkling brightly high above and he estimated that so long as he didn't hurry on the way there, he would reach the enemy camp at about the right time to put the next step of his plan into action.

"You can say that again," Nelith muttered. When Fenrir's ears twitched towards her and he grinned, she added, "Yeah, yeah, I know you came out of it alright and even made some valuable allies along the way, but you really were gone for way longer than I was comfortable with."

The great lupine sobered as he replied, "It wasn't all upsides. Safara paid a heavy price for my mistakes on that trip."

"You don't think you're going to be able to remove the null rune she's got?"

"I haven't given up hope on that front, but that was only a part of what I meant."

Nelith winced. "Oh. Right." Safara had bounced back from her experience with remarkable speed, but she did still sometimes have nightmares, and as she and Katari had taken to joining Fenrir and the succubi on one of the massive beds in the sex den, it was no surprise that all the succubi soon became acquainted with that particular aftereffect.

Fortunately, the rest of the succubi seemed to have decided to follow Kira and Chellise's lead in accepting the elf after they heard the full story of what had happened on the scouting trip, and Fenrir had noticed with satisfaction that Safara had really seemed to feel entirely at home in the castle by the time Lilli and Yumiko had given birth. As such, he wasn't too worried about leaving her at the castle while he went to make his diplomatic visits, though there were creeping doubts he could not entirely quash no matter how many times he tried.

"She is strong; she will overcome the scars left by her capture," Katari said, her voice quiet but assured.

"I hope so." Fenrir let out something that might have been a sigh if it were a little deeper. "I'd rather she didn't have those scars to overcome in the first place."

Katari gave him a quiet smile of understanding. "I suspect you know already that she would endure worse than she already has if it allowed her to preserve her life as it is now. She has you, she has friends with whom she can be fully herself, and she has a child by you, and the promise of more. One of her deepest dreams, and one she believed all but hopeless.

"You are one of those that shake the world; one about whom songs shall be written and whose deeds shall echo across centuries. Such a one as you makes enemies both large and small. We know there may be suffering in our future should we cast our lot with you. We know, and we accept it. For you are worth it all."

Fenrir found he had to swallow the lump that had risen in his throat. "Thank you, Katari," he said softly.

She smiled back up at him. "No, my lord, thank you." After a quiet moment, she went back to sharpening her sword, apparently satisfied with her contribution to the conversation.

"I dunno if I could have put it that eloquently, but I agree with Katari," Nelith spoke up. "You're going to go places, Chief. I admit I wasn't too sure about you for a while, but I'll tell you now that I'm willing to follow wherever you lead. You've more than proven yourself as far as I'm concerned."

Fenrir didn't say anything, but the look in his eyes must have conveyed his feelings well enough, because a pleased smile stole over Nelith's face as she went back to the book she was reading. For almost the space of a minute there was no sound in the clearing except for the crackling of the flames and the rhythmic rasp of Katari's whetstone as she drew it across her blade.

At last, however, Fenrir shook himself out of his reverie and turned away from the fire. Nelith offered a soft "Good luck," as he went, but none of them seemed to want to disturb the hush that had fallen on the camp.

As he made his way across the tiny meadow and began climbing the ravine wall, Fenrir thought over the conversation they had just had. He wasn't sure why it had hit him so hard, unless perhaps it was because Katari had essentially been saying that she and his other followers were willing to go through whatever pain they needed to for his sake.

A part of him hated that. In his previous life, that had seemed to define his relationships. No matter who it was, when it came to him the ones who loved him always had to sacrifice their time, their money, their enjoyment for his sake.

His dad, working eighty and sometimes even hundred hour weeks to try to keep up with his medical bills, and still trying to make time to be a father. His mother, sacrificing her health and eventually her life because of him. He had been too young to remember her, but from what he had picked up the picture was pretty clear. His girlfriend, those two wonderful yet horrible years they had been together. Eventually he had broken it off; as much as he had loved her and the time they had spent together, he knew she hadn't really been ready for a relationship with someone like him, and he didn't want to watch her love fade into resentment. He'd seen that happen before.

He shook his head. This wasn't like that. He wasn't an anchor here. Just the opposite, actually; he was giving his girls things they dearly wanted. He had heard the heartfelt emotion in Safara and Lilli's voice as they had thanked him for their respective babies. Aimi absolutely adored sex with him- well, all of them did, but Aimi in particular took such purehearted glee in what he could do to her that it was impossible to begrudge her her constant requests for more, even when they were inconvenient.

He was also a place of safety for all of them, several in a very personal sense and the rest more generally. He cast his mind back to his conversation with Marstolle when she had expressed her approbation of his handling of Elmeria. "She is happier now than she has ever been. ... through you she has begun to heal from the wounds placed upon her heart." Those hadn't been just words. They came from a goddess, and carried all the weight of her millennia of knowledge and experience.

Since he had come to this world, he had bled for his followers many times, sometimes literally. And in their happiness and gratitude he had had ample reward. A stray thought struck him, and he had to chuckle under his breath. 'My girls may have sworn to submit to me, but really I'm the one serving them as often as not.'

Well, there wasn't anything wrong with that. Relationships ought to be reciprocal, after all, and it was just more proof that here he was lifting up the ones he loved instead of dragging them down. And if they wanted to return the favor and help him even if it meant they might be hurt for it, he couldn't really tell them no without making himself a hypocrite. They didn't like to see him hurt either, after all.

'I still don't like the idea, even if I appreciate the thought behind it. But I guess all that means is that I need to ensure they don't come to harm for choosing to follow me.' Fenrir smirked to himself. 'All that, and I'm right back where I started.' But he knew it had been good to think it through, even if his conclusion had remained the same.

The great wolf paused at the lookout point, where Koreen kept vigil. She had only just begun her turn on watch after spending most of the day basking in the afterglow of being fucked so thoroughly, and now she glanced up at him, her cerulean cheeks lightening slightly in a blush.

"Anything happen since you started keeping watch?" Fenrir asked.

"No. Not as far as I can see, anyway." Koreen opened her mouth to continue, then stopped and closed it again, looking uncertain.

Fenrir lingered a moment, giving her time to put her thoughts in order, but when she didn't show any signs of saying more, he returned his attention to the camp below. Cooking fires blazed here and there, and he could make out the occasional dark shape moving between the tents. Conditions seemed ideal.

"Keep an eye out," he said, stepping to the edge of the bluff which faced the village and the enemy camp. "I should be back in a couple hours."

"Hey, wait!" Koreen blurted out, then bit her lip. "Can we, uh, can we talk once you get back?"

"Of course." Fenrir smiled back at her.

"Thanks." The word was more muttered than spoken, but Fenrir heard it, and with one last smile at the blue-skinned succubus he disappeared over the edge of the cliff face, swiftly working his way down to more level ground. As he did, his keen ears picked up Koreen saying to herself, "Fuck. Okay. ...What the hell am I even going to say to him?"

'This upcoming talk promises to be interesting,' Fenrir thought to himself. 'But for now, time to focus on the task ahead.'

The guard line was a bit thicker this time, but still not enough to hinder Fenrir. This boded well; if the oni thought the attack had come from the outside the guard would most likely have been doubled or even tripled. The fact that it was not was a good sign.

While threading his way through the camp under cover of Shroud, he stopped to listen to several fireside conversations. The general theme seemed to be dissatisfaction that there had been no battle that day, and there were several arguments over why there had been an Issala-Bas dagger buried in the chest of a Kata lieutenant.

Several warriors seemed to think it suspicious that only one of the people in the tent had been killed and the other claimed to know nothing about the attack. Others thought it suspicious that the dagger had been left behind, a point which was countered at one campfire by pointing out the presence of the other officer in the tent. It was feasible that the murderer had been scared off by the stirring of the second occupant and thus had been **** to leave his dagger behind.

Certain of the oni, mostly clan Issala-Bas, remained unconvinced by this argument. After all, what idiot would kill an officer and leave his dagger sticking out of his chest? Even assuming that the other oni in the tent had begun to awake once the murderer struck, it wouldn't take that long to wrench the dagger free.

Fenrir grinned; several rather spirited arguments were raging regarding this point in particular, and he wasn't surprised to learn that over the course of the day more than one duel had been fought over it. The command echelons of both clans had been kept busy trying to maintain some semblance of order, and even the argument that the culprit might have been a member of or sympathetic to clan Aqun and this infighting was precisely the goal had only somewhat dampened the fires of dispute.

The problem with the clan Aqun theory was that there were multiple sentries posted to keep an eye on their village, and few would credit their enemy with the ability to infiltrate the camp so deeply undetected in the first place. Clan Kata in particular, who were more familiar with their enemy, were hesitant to believe Aqun would stoop so low even in the face of annihilation. Those of Issala-Bas seemed to take it as a matter of course that clan Aqun would do whatever it took to survive, which attitude promptly raised some more hackles among Kata due to what it implied about the ones who held it.

Overall, his little stunt the night before had had an even greater impact than Fenrir had dared hope. Without further interference the arguments would likely settle after a while and the focus of the camp would return to the fight against clan Aqun, but Fenrir had no intention of allowing that to happen. He hadn't started this fire just to sit back and watch it go out again.

Once he reached the command tent in which the leaders had discussed the incident that morning, Fenrir took a moment to listen in. The tent sounded deserted, but its only entrance was still guarded by a giant of an oni, nearly as tall as himself. Well, it was only a tent. Loosening one of the side walls at the base, Fenrir slipped beneath.

He found less than he would have liked inside. The oni weren't big on writing, so unlike what he could have expected to find in the command tent of a human army, there were no papers to give him information on the state of the oni, and more importantly, the reason the alliance existed in the first place.

Well, there was another option. This had the added benefit of sowing more discord among the enemy, though it also carried greater risk. Slipping out the way he had come and not forgetting to reattach the tent wall to the ground so no trace of his passing remained, Fenrir threaded his way between the tents until he came to the one he sought.

This one was occupied by an Issala-Bas officer, one fairly high in the hierarchy. Unlike clan Kata, Issala-Bas had private tents for each officer, something he intended to take full advantage of. Within the tent, he found his victim sound asleep in his bedroll. Reaching into his limited repertoire of spells, Fenrir reached out to touch the oni and cast Paralyze. The cost was substantial; likely the oni had some natural resistances, or perhaps the cost simply scaled exponentially with the relative size and weight of the target, but either way Fenrir's upgraded mana reserves were more than equal to the demand.

The next step was getting the now paralyzed oni, whose name God's Eye indicated to be Defram, out of the camp unnoticed. Fenrir was far from certain that Shroud's effects would extend to another being, even if he was carrying them, and getting himself spotted now would be ...less than ideal. He sighed; this was something he could have easily tested with his followers' help, and he really should have. He had simply failed to think of it.

The great lupine peeked out of the tent. The camp was mostly settling down to sleep, but there were still enough oni moving about that he thought it best to wait for a bit longer before attempting the trip through to the edge of camp. Well, he had time. Shroud wouldn't wear off for a while yet, and from earlier testing on the wildlife around the castle he knew that his Paralyze spell lasted around fifteen minutes before needing a refresh. He had easily enough mana to refresh it as many times as was likely to be necessary, so he didn't need to worry about wasting this iteration of paralysis.

Well, while he waited he may as well get some more recon in. Releasing the still sleeping oni from the spell so as to negate the risk of him awakening and raising the alarm as soon as the paralysis wore off, Fenrir stepped out of the tent and made for the opposite end of the camp, where the food stores were located. What Katari had said regarding the likely state of clan Aqun's food supplies had not slipped his mind.

The food stores were located in two large tents, one for each clan, with one guard for each. Neither of the guards were actually awake, both having spread their bedrolls across the entrances of their respective tents. Fenrir supposed that so long as the camp had plenty of food, there would be little need to guard the stores and the guards that were there were really just a safety precaution.

Within the tent he found large sacks piled in neat rows, as well as several cuts of fresh meat dangling from the tent's support poles on hooks. Evidently the oni had not wanted to rely solely on the supplies they had brought with them and were doing some hunting as well. Peeking inside several of the sacks, he found both dried meat as well as a kind of coarse flour. This would do; the sacks were small enough to make them easy to carry, but still had enough food to make stealing them worthwhile.

He was undecided on whether he actually wanted to steal from them, though; clan Aqun was by far the most likely culprit for such a theft, and it might put an end to the disagreements which currently ran rife within the camp. That said, clan Aqun almost certainly needed food and this was the easiest way of procuring enough.

Well, he didn't need to decide now. Besides, it would likely take close to the full two hours of Shroud to move a sufficient amount of food beyond the borders of the camp, so for now Fenrir retraced his steps to the Issala-Bas lieutenant's tent, making a quick detour to grab a length of strong rope. It would come in handy when dealing with the oni.

Rather than hurry back to his target, he took the time to observe the general level of activity in the camp. The oni had mostly settled down to sleep by now, so when Fenrir got back to the tent he immediately set about recasting Paralyze on the still **** officer, hoisting him to his shoulders, and beginning the difficult task of making it out of camp without being spotted.

There were several close calls, but Fenrir's ears were sharp enough to pick out any footsteps from far enough away that he had usually had enough time to put a tent between himself and any oni that were still awake. The perimeter guard was a bit tougher, but by picking his moment carefully he was able to vanish into the cover of the surrounding forest undetected.

From there his course was simple. Like a shade, Fenrir slipped through the forest, seeking to put distance between himself and any possible interruptions. Eventually he stopped in a small clearing several miles up the valley. A large tree had fallen across it at some point, but the trunk had not yet rotted. It suited his purposes perfectly.

Lowering Defram to the ground, Fenrir lashed both his hands to the trunk. The stumps of broken branches still held the tree about two feet off the ground, and in combination with its girth this placed the oni's bound hands at a point where he could sit more or less comfortably.

With him now situated, Fenrir turned his attention to making a fire. Within moments, a flickering light was doing battle against the shadows of the night to dubious success. Fenrir plucked a burning brand from the small blaze and wedged it upright in the fallen tree so it could cast its light over both his own face and that of the oni.

Taking a seat across from his prisoner, the direwolf reached out and released the paralysis. Defram's eyes snapped open immediately; he had been awake since Fenrir had picked him up in his tent, but had been unable to so much as raise his eyelids due to the Paralysis spell.

Neither spoke for a long moment. The Issala-Bas lieutenant was taking in Fenrir and his surroundings while Fenrir was evaluating the oni and trying to work out from both his expressions and God's Eye which approach would get the most information out of him.

Finally, Defram let out a short laugh. "You have gone to much trouble to bring me here. Why so shy now?"

Fenrir smiled back. "It wasn't all that much trouble. You oni really ought to up your security. Even after the events of last night, it's still pretty shoddy."

"So that was you, then. If your intent was to sow discord among our numbers, I must applaud you. But for whom have you done it?"

Fenrir shrugged. "Take a guess."

The oni gave him a keen look, but said nothing.

"No? Then let us get down to business. I have several questions for you. Answer them honestly, and you may yet survive the night intact."

Defram laughed derisively. "If you wish to threaten me, I suggest you try again. I do not fear ****, whether at your hands or another's."

Fenrir smiled. "Who said anything about ****?" In one swift movement he extended his claws and sliced clean through the small finger on the oni's right hand.

Defram let out a roar of agony and jerked powerfully at the bonds which held him, trying instinctively to clutch at where his finger used to be. He found no success; Fenrir had bound his hands far enough apart that they could not touch one another. Calmly, Fenrir plucked the torch from where it had been placed and thrust it against the bloody stump, holding it there for several seconds while the oni screamed and writhed. Then, satisfied the wound had been sufficiently cauterized, he replaced the burning brand upright in its makeshift holder and waited for Defram to calm down.

It took several minutes, but eventually the oni subsided into muttered curses and heavy breaths. "You see, **** is sweet compared to what I can do to you," Fenrir said, his tone still level, almost pleasant. "Now, let us do this. Every time you refuse to answer or answer dishonestly, I will take another finger. If you cooperate, you may yet be able to hold a sword when we are done."

"Go to dust, vash-qasaba!" Defram spat.

Fenrir clicked his tongue. "That doesn't much sound like cooperation." Another lightning-swift movement and the oni was missing another finger. Fenrir cauterized the wound with the torch, as before, and sat back to await Defram's return to coherency.

Once the oni was more or less composed, Fenrir spoke again. "Let us start with the basics. You have traveled here to defeat clan Aqun. Clan Kata is doing this because they and Aqun have been enemies for some time, but Issala-Bas as a whole has no particular grudge against clan Aqun. Furthermore, there is little love lost between you and clan Kata, and your alliance seems to be held together by no more than a thread."

Fenrir paused, but when Defram did not appear inclined to speak, he continued. "Interestingly, until my interference last night, the rank and file seemed mostly fine with the alliance and it was largely those in command who couldn't stand each other. Rather an unusual state of circumstances, wouldn't you agree? So my question is this: How did this alliance come to be, and why do both commands hate each other so much?"

Defram was silent. Fenrir sighed and unsheathed his claws again, but at the movement, Defram cried, "Wait. Wait!"

Fenrir paused. "Well?"

The large oni spat out a mouthful of blood, grimacing. Apparently he had bitten his tongue at some point. "I am not strong enough to be included in the private councils of the clan-chief. He ordered an alliance with clan Kata, and we obeyed."

"You know more than that."

Defram eyed Fenrir's claws. "Only rumors. Suspicions."

"So tell them to me."

"There were whispers that the clan-chief was visited by a stranger in the days before he ordered the alliance. Several even claimed the stranger was a demon. The order was unlike him; he has no more love for clan Kata than any of us, so it is the belief of many that he made a deal with the demon and this was one of the conditions. The warriors accept it because it is a chance to fight, and there will be plunder and slaves when the victory is ours. But those of us in command wonder what the true purpose of this raid might be. It stinks of trickery and deceit."

"I can't imagine you're strangers to that."

Defram leveled an unimpressed stare at Fenrir. "We prefer to be the ones who benefit, not the ones used. Some think the clan-chief has lost his head, to order a raid such as this."

Fenrir ignored the glare. "So you agreed to the alliance because your clan-chief ordered it, possibly because he thinks it worth whatever he's getting in return from this mysterious possibly-a-demon. Presumably, Kata agreed to it because it was a chance to wipe out their long-time enemies. But that doesn't really explain why the command echelons despise each other when the grunts don't really care."

"The warriors care not for aught else as long as they have fighting and the promise of plunder," Defram scoffed. "It is the commanders who have the sight to see the clouds that gather upon the horizon."

"And which clouds might those be?"

"Clan Kata has been seeking to preserve their strength by spending ours against clan Aqun. They wish to weaken us such that when the victory is won, they can easily turn against us and take all the spoils for their own. But we are not such fools as to fall to their clumsy stratagems. We will spring the trap first, and it is us that shall be the last standing!"

Fenrir doubted this; both from what Katari had told him as well as what he had observed himself, clan Kata seemed notable even among oni for their contempt for backstabbing or other dishonorable actions. He thought it more likely that the leader or leaders of Kata's half of the raid preferred to use clan Aqun to 'cull' what they viewed as honorless oni. They were probably also concerned about Issala-Bas turning on them -a justified concern, to be fair- and wished to ensure that they preserved enough strength to be able to deal with such a betrayal.

He saw no point in telling Defram this, however, and instead asked, "So is that just hot air, or does Issala-Bas actually have a plan to set a trap for clan Kata?"

The oni's eyes narrowed. "Why is that any concern of yours?"

Fenrir shrugged. "I have no great love for Kata. If Issala-Bas does have a plan to wipe them out, I would not wish to inadvertently get in their way."

Defram was silent for several seconds, staring at Fenrir as though he meant to peer into the innermost depths of his soul. "Why are you here, wolf-thing?"

"If I told you, I'd have to kill you. I may still have to, but I'm hoping it won't be necessary."

"You are no friend of Kata, nor have I heard even a rumor of one such as you, and I have worn the colors of Issala-Bas for twenty-three years. Is it clan Aqun that is your ally?"

"You assume that I must be allied to one of the parties involved in this raid. You do not seem to consider what other causes could have brought me here."

This brought the oni pause. Fenrir gave him some time to think it over, then continued, "I cannot tell you why I am really here, but I will admit to some interest in this mysterious stranger that orchestrated the raid, and what sway they might have over your clan-chief that he was willing to order the raid in the first place."

There was another silence, then Defram said slowly, "I think we can help each other. I too wish to know more of the stranger that is the cause of all this, and what they plan for Issala-Bas. And I would also be glad to see an end of this alliance, but I cannot risk it being traced back to me. It seems we have common goals, and between my knowledge and your skills we have the tools to see our goals to success."

Fenrir took a moment to evaluate him. God's Eye indicated he was being mostly sincere, though it also indicated that the oni wouldn't hesitate to betray him if it meant saving his own skin. Not to mention that there was a seed of hate for the pain he had just put him through, which the direwolf expected would be carefully nursed and equally carefully hidden until Defram no longer had any use for him.

There was also the concern that he and the rest of Issala-Bas were still invested in defeating clan Aqun, and judging by his earlier mention of plunder and slaves, if they were allowed to carry their ends clan Aqun would effectively cease to exist. Even from a coldly practical perspective Fenrir didn't like the idea of this; clan Aqun made for a far more appealing ally than Issala-Bas based on everything he'd seen for himself and heard from Katari. And speaking of Katari, while she might accept his allying with clan Issala-Bas, she would be crushed at the sacrifice of her own clan and likely would have real difficulty ever fully trusting him again.

No, there was really no contest. The one factor which spoke in favor of allying with Issala-Bas was that it would get him closer to this mysterious third party, which his gut instincts insisted was dangerous and should be investigated more closely. But that didn't even come close to tipping the scales, so Fenrir decided that an alliance was simply not worth the risks.

He saw no reason to tell Defram this either, though, so instead he said, "Perhaps. But do you really have enough knowledge to make the risk of letting you walk free worthwhile? Gathering information is one of my specialties, after all."

A hint of apprehension came into the oni's eyes. "I have lived among clan Issala-Bas for over twenty years, and I have kept my eyes and ears open all the while. I know much about the clan, even some of its deeper secrets."

"What do I care about Issala-Bas secrets? So long as they stay out of my way I have no interest in them," Fenrir shrugged. "My interest lies primarily in this alliance and the ones responsible for it."

Defram was silent for a long moment. “Then I have one request. I will tell you what little I do know if you allow me to die fighting. I do not wish to be slaughtered like this, with hands bound and unable to even attempt to defend myself.”

Fenrir considered him for a moment. “Very well,” he said. “But only if you are completely truthful. Attempt to lie, and…”

The oni simply nodded, and after taking a moment to put his thoughts in order, began. “I have already told you most of what I know, but there are still some details which may prove useful. The clan-chief of Issala-Bas is called Jak-Rahtaar. I do not know when he became clan-chief, only that it was some years before I came to the clan. Until this alliance, he has only ever shown contempt for all other clans, disdaining even to trade with them.

"In the last war he had Issala-Bas answer the call of the Demon King, and though that great one was ultimately defeated, our clan profited greatly from the war nonetheless. Thus, clan Issala-Bas is now among the strongest of the oni clans on the continent. We acknowledge no rival, answer to no one. This is why the commanders have such doubts about this alliance, and the report of a visitor having come to see the clan-chief is viewed with such unease."

"I see. And do you know anything more about this visitor?"

"I do not. It is likely only the clan-chief himself could tell you more."

"Hmm. And what about clan Kata?"

"I know little of them. Only that they bear a great hate for clan Aqun, and hold as little trust for us as we do for them."

Fenrir nodded. "Is that all?"

"All I know of the circumstances surrounding the alliance itself."

"Understood." Fenrir canvassed him with God's Eye one more time, then rose to his feet. "You have kept your word, now I shall keep mine. I will allow you to die fighting." Extending his claws, he cut through the bonds holding Defram fast.

The oni slowly got to his feet, rubbing his wrists. He examined the stumps of his fingers, an ugly snarl passing over his face as he did, but when he raised his eyes to fix them on Fenrir it was banished in favor of a cautious alertness. His eyes flickered to the forest surrounding them as though weighing his chances of escape, but a moment later the oni sighed and climbed over the log that separated them.

As Defram had no weapons, Fenrir decided to fight without his claws as well. He was confident in his superior strength and speed, though he remained keenly watchful for any tricks the oni might try to pull. He was a member of Issala-Bas, after all, and by his own admission did not mind employing underhanded tactics if it benefited him to do so. Despite the danger though, Fenrir had to admit to a keen anticipation of the coming fight; he was eager to test himself and his recent training in a serious battle.

Seeing that Defram appeared ready, he leaped forward. A short hard jab to the left side of the jaw made the oni's head rock back, but he replied with a low punch to the ribs that Fenrir could not quite avoid. They traded feints and punches for several seconds, feeling each other out, until Defram went for a grab, ducking under Fenrir's swing and coming up inside his guard. Fenrir moved to clinch, intending to throw the oni; he knew he still held the strength advantage even though without Sand in the Hourglass his speed wasn't significantly greater than his opponent's.

But even as his hands closed on the oni a burning pain manifested in his side. Fenrir twisted, hurling Defram away from him. The oni hit the ground hard but came up without missing a beat, his right hand now clutching a dagger, its blade dripping blood. Fenrir took an instant to check his wound and found it to be fairly shallow, nothing to be concerned about.

He refocused on Defram and the dagger he now held. A single glance assured him it wasn't one he had seen before, and he had to click his tongue as he realized what had happened. He ought to have expected this, being familiar with Katari's habit of carrying multiple hidden blades. Most likely Defram had one or two more tucked away somewhere in his clothing.

The direwolf drew his own dagger, causing a disconcerted look to cross Defram's face. "Am I so small a threat as that?" he muttered to himself, his brow darkening. Before Fenrir could respond he renewed the attack, closing the distance between them with a powerful rush. Fenrir met it midway, one hand reaching for the wrist of Defram's dagger hand while with his right shoulder he sought to knock Defram off balance.

The oni was too old a hand at fighting to allow this, however, and they simply bounced off each other, to meet again a split second later, straining against each other as both tried to bring their own daggers to bear while preventing their opponent from doing the same. Fenrir held the strength advantage, but Defram had more experience, and his greater skill told against the direwolf as he managed to redirect Fenrir's blade past his shoulder, then before the direwolf could recover passed his dagger to his other hand and buried it high in the direwolf's chest.

Fenrir reversed his grip on his own dagger and slammed it down into Defram's back before the oni tore himself free and put some distance between them, both daggers remaining embedded in their respective targets.

The direwolf took advantage of the distance between them to examine the wound. The dagger hadn't penetrated very deeply due to the denseness of his fur dampening the energy of the strike, but it was still deep enough to potentially have punctured a lung. A cough attracted his attention to his opponent, and he watched as Defram spat out more blood before coughing again. It seemed his own strike definitely had.

He gently pulled the dagger out of his chest, attuning himself to the Serpent as he did so. A deep breath, while painful, didn't bring any urge to cough, so he concluded his enemy's strike had missed anything vital.

Defram was coughing harder now, but rather than address the wound in his back he pulled another dagger from his clothing and charged at Fenrir. His movement was significantly more clumsy now, and when Fenrir danced aside he was unable to follow quickly enough, allowing Fenrir to use the knife that had just been embedded in his own chest to slash the side of the oni's neck wide open.

Defram stumbled and went down, sliding several feet before coming to a halt on his side. He tried to raise his head as Fenrir approached, but the muscles which would have allowed it were all but severed, and all he could manage was another few hacking coughs.

"You fought well," Fenrir said softly, kneeling beside him. A quick slash, a few convulsive shudders, and Defram's body relaxed, lifeless.

Fenrir pulled his dagger from its back and then rose, looking down at the body. Aside from the oni in the tent the night before, this was the first life he had taken with a clear head, and the first time he had killed something fully sapient since he had wiped out the Vigil's soldiers upon his advent into Ruyanei. He was slightly unsettled by how calm he felt about both kills; it seemed as though it ought to have been harder, or at the least he ought to have had more of a reaction to it.

Remembering Marstolle's words on the subject, however, he had to smile a little. 'I guess I'm still not entirely used to being a Dark-race. This is one aspect that I'm going to need to be simultaneously grateful for and cautious of.'

The direwolf turned his attention back to Defram's body. 'What to do with you, though? It suits my plans that none of your comrades ever finds a trace of you, but I hardly have time to give you a proper burial.' After a moment's consideration, he decided to simply leave the body hidden in some out of the way spot in the forest. It was unlikely that it would be stumbled upon this far up the valley, and mother nature would in time take care of it in the same way she handled all her dead. The blood and other signs of battle in the clearing would fade as well given enough time, but Fenrir was careful to erase any signs that could indicate what exactly had happened there.

With this done he washed the blood from his fur and hands in a nearby stream and turned his steps back towards his own camp. As he moved down the valley, his mind lingered on the fight. 'I really should have lost that. It was only my high physical defense that saved me from a debilitating wound. Teaches me right for underestimating my enemy.'

This chapter was one of the most difficult I've had to write in quite awhile, for two reasons.
Firstly, I've deliberately kept Fenrir's background on Earth vague; until this chapter the most we knew was that his father had been present and involved in his life, he had been an invalid, and he had had some Scandinavian ancestry. I don't plan to ever dig too deeply into his past life as that isn't what this story is about, but it does inform how he acts now, so it can't (nor should it) be entirely ignored. Even so, I wrestled with whether or not I should just cut out the bit where he thinks back on his past life. In the end, I think it helps the story more than hurts it, but let me know your thoughts on the subject.
The second reason is the interrogation. I really wasn't sure what I wanted to do with it or where exactly I wanted to go with it. Thus, it took me longer to write than I'd have liked. Setting up an uneasy alliance with Defram does give me plenty of room for backstabbing and drama; now we just have to hope my writing is up to executing on it satisfactorily.
Update: I've decided to take a different approach to the oni arc. While I don't like changing things significantly after a chapter is already out, I feel that this way I can craft a better story, so it'll be worth it. I'll do my best to avoid making a habit of it though. Koreen's Story won't change much, only a paragraph or two at the very beginning, so probably no need to reread that one (unless you want to, of course).
Enjoy!