Yugo was annoyed as he grumbled and made his way through the streets, he wore a large cloak to at least cover himself somewhat. But being forced to scuttle around like a rat pissed Yugo off. When would the two bastards he helped contact him again? He had been waiting for weeks, and yet nothing. The Demi-human turned suddenly and instead of continuing on the road out of town he headed to the nearest area of trees. He needed to make sure no one was following him so he zigzagged very hard to try to lose them through the woods. He found himself soon in a clearing.

He sat down on the stump there and waited. He wasnt used to being hunted like this. He could handle slavers but the mages were more dangerous. Yugo sighed and removed his cloak after he felt himself getting warm inside it. He cursed and swore to kill Gunter and that damn rock beast the next time he sees them. He wasnt going to give them even a chance. The other man however…. Yugo was cautious of him, he didnt trust the look in the mans eye. To yugo, he appeared to be already losing his mind, if not making his way there.

Gunter sent out a message to Yugo to meet him in the nearby woods outside town. Gunter approached the woods, not yet at the rendezvous point, but a good distance to it with a smile on his face. Though this new monster of a man may only be an acquaintance, Gunter sees him as a true friend. Or at least a weapon. Kratos looks at Gunter and says "I don't like this. The guy's fucking weak."

"No, no, he's not weak, it's just... most people are just weak in comparison to you."

"You aren't. Neither is that Tomoe fellow."

"Experience, my man. That's all we have. Maybe a bit of luck. And deep pockets. But anyways, this guy seems like a real warrior at heart. Or at least a crazy fucking maniac; and those are the people we need. You know me, I plan on making a guild."

"Yeah, I know. It'll be a zoo for delinquents and the downtrodden."

"I mean we saw Penumbral Guard. Met one member. For some super ultra powerful bounty hunting guild it seemed like a ghost town. We certainly made it one. But I dunno, if I make a guild we need a bunch of cunts. Snakes in the grass. People trying to backstab each other, knives at their throats, crazed murderers, and... Tomoe."

"Isn't Tomoe a cultist?"

"Tomoe's the type of crazy on a whole new level. But we need heroes like that. I wouldn't touch him with a twenty foot fucking pole though. That guy's psychotic."

With that, they continue walking down the forest trail towards the meeting area, down a dark path towards kind of like a hidden grove. An open field in the middle of the forest. Not a huge open field, but a circle of trees. In the center would be a huge oak tree with a few logs and a stump or two to sit down on. Gunter came across this little gem in his travels as he was trying to find his way around this godforsaken land known as Fiore. Apparently it was once an old bandit hideout.

As he gets close, he looks at Kratos and says "I'll be the one to do the talking. You and him don't really get along."

Kratos puts a poke towards Yugo, saying "It's not that we don't get along, I just don't associate with lesser beings. He's gotta prove his worth to me before I'll call him a friend."

With that, Gunter and Kratos step out into the clearing and see Yugo sitting on a stump, looking relatively pissed like always. The moment that Yugo's eyes would meet Gunter, he could tell that there was an ominous blood thirst in the air, as if Yugo wanted to storm over there and break their necks. Gunter would say to Yugo once in speaking range, "Howdy there, friend. What's going on in this neck of the woods?" while still being subtly on guard should Yugo try any funny business.

Gunter would have his sword sheathed and strapped to his left hip, as well as his earrings and his Eye of Kaom open. The rest of his equipment remained within his pocket dimension. As he greets Yugo, he leans against a tree with a relaxed hand resting on the end of the handle of his sword. Kratos would stand nearby with his arms crossed, looking at Yugo, ready to fight if need be with a casual glare staring Yugo down.

Alice was making her way towards Magnolia, Her Katana to her side. Wearing her usual Joyan Kimono as she resembled a samurai, her furry limbs were covered by her sleaves as she kept on walking, hoping that in this town that prejudice she faced previously was lessened. Knowing full well Nekomata werent traditionally liked, She might be one of the few who actually left Joya in order to travel.

Stepping past the trees, not making a sound as she stepped, being naturally soundless. She was shunned by most by having her limbs be more beast like. She soon spotted a few unknown individuals.

Her anger spiked seeing a human however tho she tried to stay level headed, The other one being a beastmen, She had no problem with them, just knowing they were more common then Nekomata.

She would soon walk up to the, her right arm resting on the hilt of her katana, her feline eyes fixated on them. her beastial limbs still hidden from view as they can see her feline ears and fluffy tail, A nekomata in traditional joya clothing as she soon spoke up

"Hello.....If I may ask what you two are doing here, and if you dont mind, let me stay as well. Whatever it is, seems interesting considering you two are both coated in a thick miasma like aura of Malice in one way or another. My name is Alice Duranndal.

Yugo growled and looked at the two figures approching. Gunter and Kratos. He was more then just annoyed, but he bit his tongue and held back his anger and simply stood up and attempt to speak. But as he did, he was cut short by the sudden appearance of a small animal girl. Yugo recognized her as a Nekomata, a special breed of Demi human who were more cat like then demi humans would normally be able to achieve. He held no special place in his heart for them, they were treated just like everyone else was by Yugo. But he did notice she was more animal then even more nekomata he had seen before as well. 


Regardless hed yell at the girl. "Get the fuck away girl, you have no place here." He pointed at the big asshole known as kratos. "That ugly pile of shit for brains is a child eater. So you'd better leave before he eats you."



Yugo then turned to Gunter. "Do you have any idea how long you made me fucking wait? I spent weeks unable to fight, unable to get drunk. You said there would be other work!" Yugo clenched his fists and growled.

Being that Gunter was currently looking at Yugo, his big ol' teddy bear of a friend, he would turn his neck enough to look behind him at the Nekomata that introduced herself as Alice Duranndal. By doing so, Alice would then see the eye in the center of Gunter's forehead, staring at her, giving off an almost sinister gaze. Gunter would then say to her "Next time you give me a death stare like that, I'll take your fucking head off. And even though you're quiet, you gotta be more stealthy. I saw you from fifty feet back." due to his Eye of Kaom's ability to see everything 15 meters in all directions passively, which would roughly translate to fifty feet. He would then also have seen Alice's death stare as she approached, and knew that she was approaching the entire time.

After that, Gunter would say "You're welcome to stay if you want. But my friend is right. Kratos does eat children. However, luckily for you, he's already eaten. We stopped off at a farmhouse on the way here."

Gunter then looks back at Yugo and says "Sorry it took so long. Kind of busy dealing with some stuff. But that's also why you're here. You know, I finished up my shenanigans, and I apologize that it took me about two weeks or so. From this point onward, we need you to get fucking stronger. Honestly, I gotta do the same. So I was thinking that from this point on, we start working together, taking jobs, and for all intents and purposes, we go hunting for fun." At this point, Gunter would stop leaning on the tree and he would wander over to a nearby log, where he would sit down and listen for Yugo's response.

As this is happening, Kratos is making direct eye contact with Alice. He'd look her up and down, trying to gauge whether this unexpected guest is stronger or weaker than Yugo. There's no doubt in his mind that this girl is definitely weaker than Kratos himself, but he's quite perplexed thinking about who would win in a fight: the big demi-human, or the tiny cat. Kratos would then look at Gunter and say "I'm gonna go head into town. I'm fuckin' thirsty and I want a drink. I'll leave you guys to deal with this shit." Kratos gives a little goodbye salute to Gunter and walks down the path, passing Alice as he heads into town for drinks.

Gunter would look back at Alice and then say "I'm assuming by your attire and choice of... broken, rusty weapon... that you're Joyan?"

Gunter would then lift up his sword and say "Yeah, I got a Joyan weapon myself. Apparently this thing is some be-all, end-all sacred treasure of a hero or some shit. Apparently it was wielded by some famous Joyan warrior called Miyamoto Musashi. Either way, he's dead now and I got it."

She scuffed at them, being treated like a child is not something she liked. soon she spoke up.

"I am not a child, I am the Nekomata Cheiftain in training. Don't you dare think of treating me like some child, I am a Samurai from Joya. And Judging the fact that both of you are clearly having ill intent to others, I want in. I wish to Kill all Humans on Fiore, with some exceptions. I have had enough with the ignorant assholes that treat me like something akin to a beast. I am a Proud Nekomata" She says with such determination as she spoke of humans with such malice. Clearly hating them with such a deep seeded passion that she would go to the ends of the earth just to eradicate them.

She pulled her sleaves up, they can see her hands weren't human and bigger then a male's hands even, having sharp claws like a monster. Sleek white fur as it would seem from the size she has trouble holding basic materials. Clenching her fists as she was clearly different from other nekomata and ready to kill if needed. Her eyes were sharp, fixated on them to not let them out of her sight

The young male demi-human listened to the response from both Gunter and the female Nekomata. He would kill Gunter one day, he had decided that when they first met. But as he listened to the man's swords he couldn't help but... change his mind. If this man was willing to speak so openly about these things, he would surely have enough strength to back it up. If the plans this man had worked out... Yugo could very well see the world war he was looking for very much sooner then be thought.
But that brought up the notion that they both needed to get stronger. That was true. He hated to admit it but he needed to get stronger.

As the female Nekomata made her case, and asked to join them to fulfill her hatred of humanity Yugo couldn't help but smile. She called her self a chieftain in training, but that was an empty title. He knew chieftains from his time in icebergia, they had all EARNED their titles, not by training, but by surviving and becoming truely strong and dependable.

"No one cares about your hatred of humans girl." He smiled like a demon. His teeth bared like a wild animal as he spoke. "Words dont mean anything if you cant make then become actions."

He walked toward her, but it was clear from his movements that if she ran hed only chase after without finishing his point. He made his way toward her, his body was built like a damn mountain. Muscle ontop of muscle, but the way he spoke betrayed that he was smarter then he appeared.

"Do you know why they treat you like a beast girl? Because just like me you ARE a beast. But dont take that as an insult. They refuse to accept what they really are, so they blame others. But in truth.... humanity is nothing but a tamed and domesticated beast." He pet her head softly, despite it appearing like he would hurt her.

"Stop denying your self to seem better. Embrace that beastly title, I did." He turned and went to speak to Gunter. However, he saw the glint before the thunderous noise of the rifle filled the clearing. Yugos head snapped back as if he had been hit by the bullet.

The farmer, poor poor farmer, who shot the bullet stood shaking as he began to reload his old musket style rifle. Yugo leaned forward again and laughed. The round musket ball was caught between his teeth. He spat it out and caught it in his hand like a coin ready to be flipped.
He flicked the round ball back at the farmer, who died instantly as the bullet hit him square in the forehead.

"See? Only beasts would attack sneakily." He smiled at her and then walked back toward town. "You know where to find me Gunter, I'll be waiting for the signal." He waved off at the two and headed to the nearest bar.

Exit

Gunter would listen patiently to Yugo's whole speech about beasthood and savagery, and as the big man would head to the nearest bar, Gunter would say "You know what, I'll join you, but save me a seat. I'll meet up in a bit."

Gunter would then slowly turn his head towards Alice. Being that he's listened to what the small, cat-like child said, and he responds "To be honest, I don't know what a Nekomata is, but I'm assuming that's your race. To be honest, you're the first I've seen, so that's something. However, you are not the first 'samurai from Joya' that I've met. It seems that your general outlook on humanity and the slaughtering of such is relatively similar, so you know what? I'll give you a good thumbs up for that one. Tell you what: You seem like a fine, well-respected chieftain-in-training. But the big man did have a point. You can call yourself whatever you want, actions speak louder than words. So you are more than welcome to follow me on my journeys and give me death stares from fifty feet back, but one thing I'd recommend in general is getting stronger, because as you are right now, my pet could kill you. And if you plan on taking out the entirety of humanity, you'd need to hone your skills in order to kill me."

Gunter would wait on the Nekomata's response, while still waiting on guard should any shenanigans pop up, being that if this Nekomata decided to get a little aggressive. He'd remain on guard while pacing back and forth, listening to what the girl would say in response. As he does so, he thinks back to the first time he met Tomoe on the bridge, talking about butchering people and drowning any individuals that would harm his dear Aegis' dream. Gunter thinks to himself "Wow things sure have changed since then". As he thinks about that, he thinks about how Tomoe with his current goals and this small Nekomata chieftain in front of him, and how their goals somewhat align. At least the bloodshed aspect.

After the Nekomata would say what she wanted to, Gunter would let out a small chuckle and before she would respond to his chuckle, he would say "I'm sorry, I was just thinking about how I've met so many colorful characters in a small period of time." He says that as he thinks about Yugo and Tomoe.

Gunter finishes saying what he needed to say, and he's been standing in these woods for multiple days, waiting for a response or any sign of life, this catgirl staring at him emotionlessly with eyes glossed over, flies crawling all over her as she's stagnant with a vacant expression. So much time had passed that he'd had time to make an entire campsite, roasting weenies and marshmallows by the fire, gone out hunting multiple days, went to Magnolia and back to buy a tent and set it up, and slept multiple days. He'd turned this conversation into a camping trip, with this girl not responding at all for days on end to literally anything at all. Gunter stands there, waving his hand in the front of this girl's vision to test if she's still alive. Then he says "Alright, I dunno if you've had a stroke or a seizure but I'm gonna go now. So uh, yeah."

With that Gunter goes over a tree, grabs some twigs and leaves, and turns it into a little leaf crown and sticks it on the Nekomata's head. He then says "I pronounce you Autismo, Queen of Vacant Stares."

Gunter leaves the small, catlike child that may or may not be having either a stroke or a seizure, and lets her stay there to starve alone in the woods. With that, Gunter makes his way down the path, walking backwards, looking at this small Nekomata chieftain to see if there was any form of life left in her at all, any movement, anything at all, saying "Did her heart just stop or something?" to no one in particular, because there's no way she'd hear him with how dead she is. Gunter looks at her for another five minutes, her with no movement whatsoever, and says "Alright, fuck it, she's dead!"

Gunter walks away for good, leaving the potentially mentally damaged child to starve in the woods. But it's okay, she'll live on in the next life as "that Nekomata chieftain that did nothing" getting eaten by wolves or something in the woods. She came here to kill humans, but time was her greatest adversary, and probably a malfunctioning brain.

---

Exit