Author's Note:
"Toofy was taught at the temple. She didn't do very good with the languages. Only speaks human, neko, a bit of demonic and high elf. Never learned the undertongues, like goblin or orc. Got her in lots of trouble... Learned to curse in rattan. That's fun."
Rattan as a language is mentioned once in 'Toofy', but there are no ratgirls in either "Drachne" or "Toofy".
Clearly, we need to fix this!
So, in the spirit of "Dragon's Kitty", here's another standalone story from the same world.
(Some few may find this eerily familiar. That's because Maly/Inny Kiel was my first character from this world, but starred in an experimental game. I've adapted the story from that.)
---
The pitter patter knocking out the rhythm above Cohen's head is relaxing, reminding him of so many summers spent waiting for the eventual relief of the brief storms.
It would be pleasant to lie here and reminisce, but that seems like a bad idea. Considering he was bleeding out.
There isn't much in the remnants of the old tin shed, one of the only structures still standing on the farm.
A mouldy apple. It's really gross. And he had no idea how to turn mould that might be penicillin into actual medicine.
Now seems like a bad time to try to learn.
There was also a dead rat the size of a cat. The only surprising part of this is that he managed to actually kill the damn thing with his bare hands before it killed him.
Well... Killed him all at once.
The torn remnants of his shirt. Considering what the rat did, it isn't surprising it was torn up.
It seems like a bad idea, what with the bacteria that rats carry, but wrapping it around his wound from the bite on his side seemed to be the only immediate choice to make.
Cohen wrapped it as tightly as he could. However... He was still bleeding. It's still raining. The rat is still dead.
He passed out.
---
"Wake up!"
The voice was crazy loud, enough that Cohen was dragged back to reality, kicking and screaming. Cracking open an eye, he saw something that could not possibly account for the insane volume of the voice.
A small, probably growth-stunted, young girl. At least... She looks almost like a girl.
Her bare arms outside her sleeveless shirt are covered in red fur, the same colour as her hair. He couldn't see her ears, the easiest way to tell if what kind of exotic she was.
Exotic. The term was used by humans to describe all the sentient, or near-sentient species that should probably be considered equals, but are mostly looked down on. Pretending that they were some kind of oddity, when humans might be dominant and dominating, but were outnumbered ten to one by the other races.
She was young, but not that young. Not a juvenile, but at an age and with a face that meant you couldn't guess if they were two or three decades old. Somewhere in that range.
Glancing at his side he saw that his shirt was gone, and replaced by a proper bandage.
Cohen groaned, "Did... Did you save me?"
"Mmm."
Well, that was extraordinarily descriptive.
She stared at him for a little while, and then sat down, a skin-coloured tail curling out from the bottom of her shirt to go around her feet and hands. She smiled at him, "Ratata."
Cohen nodded slowly, "Do... You have a name?"
"Maly Kiel." She said happily, before sniffing the air. Her pink eyes narrowed and she let out a low growl as she looked outside the tin building.
Her name sounded like a cute thing on the surface. Except it was less of a name, and more of a description. Directly translated from rattan, it meant "Little Fang".
Something like a nickname, then. Maybe.
Hard to tell with her kind.
Cohen followed her gaze, and growling. He hadn't heard anything. Not even the skittering of a rat.
"Przekleta bestia." She said in anger before diving out of the doorway on all fours.
A rattan curse. Meaning something like 'cursed beast'. Generally used to refer to exotics that have picked up an actual curse that has taken their minds from them. Dissolved their sense of self and left behind something that was more animal than person.
Not that dissimilar to what rabies can do to a human, if left unchecked.
Cohen crawled over to the doorway, wincing with each motion. From his vantage point he could see the thing at the edge of the wheat field that lay outside.
It and the young girl were circling each other, both growling.
The beast's hackles were up.
Shadows seem to swirl around it, to be a part of it. It was difficult to tell what it once was, before the curse took root. Too hard to tell if it was even bipedal before the curse. Whatever it was... That was long gone.
The girl on the other hand didn't look so cute and innocent anymore. Her pink eyes were those of a killer. Unblinking, unafraid. Her shoulders are braced, her tail floating to keep her balanced.
Cohen nearly died fighting a stupid rat.
What on earth was she thinking taking on something this fucked all on her own?
The cursed creature struck first.
It leaped towards her with a speed that made him flinch and go to cover his face, expecting nothing but a spray of blood as his would-be saviour died.
He knew he would have, if the situation were reversed.
Strangely, the beast hit the ground and spun, striking nothing at all. Instead the girl was now facing it from the same place the creature had been standing a mere moment before.
She was grinning, but the smile wasn't reaching her eyes.
The girl tensed up, her hackles rose every so slightly, a moment before she disappeared. She didn't simply attack, she vanished from his sight altogether.
Cohen flicked his eyes towards the beast, but instead he saw a huge path of collapsed wheat that stretched out of view. Neither of the two were in sight at all.
He tried to crawl outside, towards the damaged wheat. He had to know if she was okay.
A soft hand caught his wrist as he went to move outside the shed. Glancing down he saw Maly Kiel holding onto him.
She shook her head and dragged him back inside.
The girl pushed him down onto a soft bag of grass, and smiled weakly. "Spac. Sleep. Need."
---
