[Fiction] The first hard lesson.

[Wakinyan]

August 8th 2014, Monument Valley Utah

The shadow descended from the sky rapidly. A large compact form heading for the top of one of the ancient volcanic plugs that stood like sentries in the valley full of giants. At the last moment before impact the large shape changed and huge wings caught the hot desert air and the Nova know as Totem hit the hard rocky top of the mesa.

Taking in a deep breath of the air he registered all the minute scents in the valley. One being the reason he was here. While the view was most impressive from atop the old rock there was something else he was looking for. He found it quickly; she was a few miles away on a large flat rock. Sunbathing in her usual harem attire. He smiled and started to take to wing but stopped, she held up a finger signaling him to wait. She had seen him come; he was hard to miss at the moment. Apep grinned and rolled to the side of the slab of stone falling over the side into it’s shadow. Less than a heartbeat later her hand was running through the Griffin’s fur as she emerged from his shadow beside him. Her touch was magic to him, he rumbled deep in his throat as the reptilian Nova slithered alongside him.

She knew it was for the best that she do this. The young Nova kept repressing what he was and it was such as shame, not to mention harmful. She hadn’t met a Nova in a long time that was so unique noble, majestic, ferocious and utterly confused. She relished what she was about to do, not that she wanted to kill him. No, she just wanted to unlock the part of him he denied himself. She has seen snippets of it lurking behind his eyes. The entire world got to see him in his glory as he fought Ravana on the XWF floor. It was far time he started coming to terms with himself.

For a moment she thought of Leviathan and what she was truly doing out here. Didn’t she have better things to do than help out an angsty, hormonal Griffin? What was she thinking really about this boy? She knew he was infatuated with her and she was using it to guide him some. But was that it or was there more to it than that? It’s not like she ever had anything resembling the average human relationship. But was that what the fourteen-foot tall Griffin was asking for? He hadn’t really asked for anything at all yet other than help.

She dismissed the thought and got down to business. It was a gamble, she might have to kill him. He might get lucky and kill her, if he truly lost it. But the reward was something well worth it. “What brings you out here Apep?” Totem inquired as the beautiful Terat sauntered around him. Her scales glistened in the harsh desert light. Iridescent sparkle added to the way her body moved inside the light breezy fabric she wore, making her just that much more desirable to him. She didn’t respond. “You okay?” The response was not what he expected. A fist lashed out with such speed he barely saw it and had no time to respond. Striking him hard in his throat with such force his entire body was flung from the mesa top and sailed a quarter mile before striking the desert floor gouging a long trench as he came to a jarring halt.

She was on him again before he had a chance to even come to his feet. Claws and fists leaped from his shadow and began raking his hide as he struggled to break away from the fury of the assault. “Why are you doing this!?” He gasped as she backed away for a moment. Still nothing but a sneering smile crossing her lips as her tongue slithered out to scent the air and his blood. This time he was slightly more prepared for her but she was just to fast. She slid beneath him raking him as she went. Kicking off the other side she went over his back an elbow struck hard against his wing as she went.

Despite the wounds and pain still he didn’t strike back. “Stop please. Why are you doing this? I thought you liked me.” Whining was so beneath him she thought best to correct him of it. Her response was to once again attack. Catching him by the tail and throwing him hard by it into the side of a rocky mesa. An avalanche slid down atop him covering him in tons of stone. She knew better than think this would take him out of action. He was still pussy footing it, as he finally began to come out of the rocky prison. Totem roared his frustration, it was almost there she thought. In his eyes she saw it coming, the feral instincts where beginning to claw their way to the top. The soft-pleading look was being replaced by the hardened expression of a predator. One more push would do it. Now she just had to stay alive as it ran its course. She went in low and combined an uppercut with a slash across the face. As she hoped back from her large target she knew it was time.

Bleeding and haggard the Totem in front of her wasn’t the Totem from before. It paced with rage and determination around her. Sizing her up, looking for vulnerability. What happened next she wasn’t ready for and it pleased her. The fury of the roar emitted by Totem was beyond anything she had ever heard. It hit her with such force she was actually disoriented and deafened by its power. This Totem was quick to follow up, he pounced atop much smaller Nova. His saber like talons rained blows upon her. Cutting her top to bottom before she finally managed to roll away and place some distance between them.

Apep knew it was getting beyond dangerous for both of them. Her own bloodlust was demanding more of his blood now. Yet she knew this lesson was not one of death. She slid through the shadow and came out behind the Griffin. Before he could spin she sank her fangs into his haunches injecting her venom as best she could into the raging fury. The first bite did little to slow him down. In fact it just seemed to stoke the furnace of anger within him. He turned and roared again chasing her between boulders and down into a ravine. With a sudden stop Apep coiled and sprung at him again. Catching his massive throat with her fangs. Latching into his mane she refused to let go. Instead she bit down harder on the feral Nova. Totem showered blows as best he could upon the Terat but she refused to yield. Launching them both into the air he flung himself into the side of a cliff but still she refused to relent.

After thrashing back and forth across the desert floor for almost a minute her venom finally started having some effect on him. He stumbled and wavered a moment. With another defiant roar the beast finally succumbed to the effects and she released him as he thumped to the ground breathing heavily. Apep stood and looked over her defeated student. He was valiant and strong for a young one no doubt. His feral side fought back and did so well. She looked down at her shredded clothing and bloody wounds. She knew she didn’t have much time before his immense form shook off her neurotoxins so she knelt beside his head and spoke quietly in his ear. “I know you are in there now. I know you’re hurt and heartbroken. The beast in control now is a part of you Pigeon. Just accept him.” She leaned down and stroked his beak and looked into his huge eyes. They where confused with so many mixed emotions she almost chuckled but held it. She needed him to understand she wasn’t tormenting him now. “Accept it Totem. You are relying on this feral beast to protect you. Dear, you are that feral beast.”

Squeezing his eyes shut Totem pushed through the clouds of heartache, anger and despare. “I know.” He managed to croak finally. It wasn’t his voice that spoke. It came deep and rumbling from him like thunderstorms across the plains. He opened his eyes again and looked at the battered, bloodied female staring back at him. He felt different now, despite having his ass handed to him and being beat to a pulp he felt at home in his body. More so now than ever before. He blinked and willed his wounds to begin closing. For some reason he decided to keep her toxins within him for the moment instead of purging them like he had learned to do with Alcohol.

He shifted his weight as he lay there panting. Apep sat down and leaned into him. She was resting and pulling herself back together, night black blood slithering back inside the closing wounds. She had a very pleased expression on her face but he didn’t question it. Finally after a few moments of hard thought he gathered a bit of courage. “I’m in love with you.” He stated quietly.

For a moment she was quiet. Resting, nestled in his mane but finally she responded. “I know.”