Riptear slipped through the shadows of the forest. The night was alive and Riptear became part of it, swept up in the blood of twilight. The cricikets chirped rather loudly, and the haunting mating screams of owls could be heard which excited Rip in a sexual nature and caused the blood to pound and throb in her body, and frequently she screamed in reply.
She ran up to the top of a large hill which stood out like a bald spot from the surrounding wilderness. The moon seemed so close she could almost reach out and touch it, and it lit up the hilltop in a serene, soft glow. Rip stared up at the moon, and its rays caressed her ashen face gently, causing her eyes to flash. She was caught up in the moment and, betraying her raptorial nature, she lifted her head back and howled at the moon. It was a howl of victory, a howl of excitement, and it proved to all and to herself that she was alive and ever-present, much like the nighttime itself.
Suddenly she felt as if someone was watching her, and her owl-like hearing picked up a rustling noise. She whipped around with a high-pitched whinny, and saw a pack of wolves creep their way through the darkness, evidently attracted by her nighttime call. The alpha male lifted his head and regarded her, and she backed up a bit, dropping her gaze from his eyes and rolling over belly-up on the grass in submission. The pack descended upon her and greeted her. She was greeted by much licking, nuzzling and caressing. After a time they departed into the darkness. Rip was raptorial in nature, but she was wise in the language of the wolves, and therefore had many lupine allies.
She laid there for awhile, staring up thoughtfully at the moon. She thought of alot of things, her foster brother for one. She wondered if her human family was still alive and well. A tear glistened in her eye for a moment, but she shook it off. It was then that she heard something else, a loud, gruff voice calling from the woods.
"Die, unjust creature of evil!"
Rip jumped up with a start. "Creature of evil?! WHERE?!" Rip may have been an accomplished fighter and warrioress, but sometimes she wasn't very swift. She whipped her head all about, trying to get a view of the "unjust creature of evil". She was so occupied with trying to find the offending creature that she failed to notice the massive club connect with her head.
When Rip recovered from the blow, she found herself laying sprawled on the fresh autumn ground, staring up at two people silhouetted against the moon. One was ungodly large and bulky, most likely male. The other was smaller and frailer-looking, most likely female, clad in a long cape and hood, clutching the larger individual and staring down at her with weary, hollow eyes. Rip swatted away the little hawks floating around her head and tried to stagger up onto her feet.
"Oh...you mean ME! Well, uh, I may be related to a mazoku, but trust me, I'm not - "
BAM!!! WHAM!!!
Darkness