Guilty x Creatures Ch. 56

Mokai nodded in agreement as he deactivated the swords enchantment and laid it across his lap.

"It sounds as though you've had some interesting experiences lately." he said as he looked at Anton "Do you mind telling me what happened?"

"...Unfortunately there's really not much I can say. You see, I'm afraid that this is a very sensitive situation. And not one that I'm willing to involve too many people in." explained Anton.

"...I see. Well, while that is regrettable." mumbled Mokai "I'd still be interested in hearing whatever it is you can tell me. Especially as any extra information you can give would only help to identify where this sword came from."

"Hm... Fair enough." mumbled Anton as he crossed his arms over his chest "Just understand that I can't give out any of the finer details, so you may need to read between the lines a bit."

Mokai nodded as he slid the sword back into its sheath and settled in against the large cushion that was propped up behind him as he readied himself to listen to what Anton had to say.

Keeping things as vague as possible, Anton gave a quick, chopped up retelling of what happened over the last few days. As he explained it, the sword they had was taken from an assassin who had tried to kill him with it, and whose clan mates had later appeared to try and reclaim it. And how they were now trying to figure out which clan these assassins had come from so as to take the fight to them.

For his part, Mokai stayed mostly quiet, with the few questions he did ask being neither overly prying nor intrusive but simple things that he seemed interested in having clarified. When Anton finally finished, he remained silent for a few more moments before slowly looking over towards Mica.

"...Alright then. I think I can understand why you feel it's necessary to try to keep so much information to yourself." he said as he kept his eyes on the kiochi "As well as what you mean by reading between the lines... Though, just because I may understand parts of your situation does not mean that I'm willing to completely play along, Anton. There is an obvious gap in your story, one that I see no reason to ignore."

Anton said nothing as he followed Mokai's gaze to Mica, as he looked over at her, he gave her and the dark elves all a reassuring grin.

"I have more questions, and I would appreciate it if you would tell me the full truth." stated Mokai "And first and foremost among them, I'd like to know whether or not this kiochi that's here with you, Mica, is the assassin that tried to kill you?"

"...Yes. She is." said Anton with a nod.

"And why is she here with you now?" asked Mokai.

"Well it's like I said, she's our new bodyguard." said Anton as he smiled at Mica "Or, bodyguard in training, I suppose."

"And how did that come to be the case?" questioned Mokai as he turned to face Anton "Did her clan give her to you? Or did you make some kind of deal with them?"

"No. There's no agreement to speak of, least not officially." said Anton as he shook his head "Truth be told, Mica herself is not part of a clan, and has never been part of a clan."

"...Then where did this sword come from?" asked Mokai "Was she not the one who had it?"

"She was." nodded Anton.

"Then where did she get it from?" questioned Mokai as he shifted his gaze back to Mica.

"She borrowed it, from her parents." said Anton "Who are themselves, in a clan."

"...Her parents are in a clan, but she isn't part of that clan?" questioned Mokai.

"Correct." nodded Anton.

"...You're being reckless by letting these shinoccubi get as close to you as you have. And I don't intend to do the same, I think it's time for you to leave." said Mokai as he shook his head "I don't know what kind of game you're trying to play with this nonsense, but I don't want any part of it."

"This isn't a game, Mokai." signed Anton "Look, here's the truth. Mica's parents are in a clan, but due to certain circumstances they were given a level of freedom that allowed them to keep Mica's existence a secret and raise her outside of the clan. Unfortunately, this led to a disconnection between them that resulted in a sense of longing in Mica. So taking it upon herself, she sought to bridge the gap with her parents by proving herself in their eyes. This, was a misguided decision. And it obviously didn't work out for her. But now because she's put herself out there like this, her existence has become known, and it may be only a matter of time before her parent's clan makes an effort to investigate her. Which is why we need to know who they are, we need to be able to-"

"You can't be serious." stated Mokai as he interrupted Anton "Do you honestly expect me to have sympathy for someone who tried to connect with her parents by committing a murder?"

"...Again, it was a misguided decision on her part." said Anton.

"To say the least." said Mokai "And even if this was all as legitimate as you say it is, then you're acting just as misguided as well, if not down right stupid."

"...Excuse me?" said Anton.

"Tell me exactly why you're so trusting of this kiochi after what she's tried to do to you. And while you're at it explain to me how you can be so sure that this isn't some ruse on her part." said Mokai.

"Ruse?...What are you implying?" asked Anton.

"I'm implying that this could all be some kind of long play on the part of these shinoccubi, that they could have some reason for wanting to get close to you. Perhaps they're after some kind of information you have, or they want access to any valuables that they know you're keeping." said Mokai "Whatever the case may be, it's a fools end to ever trust them at face value. And I assume that you're smart enough to understand this. So I'm asking you, why are you willing to trust this kiochi like this?"

"Ah, I see what you mean now." said Anton "Well as I've said before, there are details to this situation that I'm afraid I still need to keep to myself. But suffice to say, there's no reason for me to think that this is some kind of ploy. As at this point I don't feel that any of the shinoccubi involved are a threat, save for the clan itself, the same clan that we're trying to identify."

"And how do you really know that this kiochi isn't actually part of that clan? Because she told you she wasn't? And you just believed her? How do you know she isn't going to betray you, Anton?" asked Mokai "What makes you so certain that it's even safe to have her around?"

Blinking, Anton turned to Mica and raised an eyebrow.

"Wait, do you not see that collar around her neck?" he said as he looked back at Mokai "She's been enslaved, Mokai. Bound to me. She couldn't betray me if she wanted to. She doesn't even have that option anymore."

Pausing for a moment, Mokai turned back to Mica before going still again.

"She's not a threat at all." said Anton "But her parent's clan is, which is why we're tying to figure out who they are."

"...How did you do that?" questioned Mokai.

"...What do you mean?" asked Anton.

"...You really enslaved her?" asked Mokai as he turned back to Anton.

"Yes?" confirmed Anton.

"...I see....Well that changes things." mumbled Mokai as he again looked at Mica.

Fed up with this conversation, Mica's tail curled up high over her head as she glared at Mokai.

"Oh! So now I'm suddenly trustworthy now that you know I'm a slave, huh!?" she exclaimed as she crossed her arms over her chest "Guess the fiend isn't so scary now that she's under control, eh!?"

Mokai said nothing as he continued to stare at her.

"...Look! This ain't a scam, okay! I'm not trying to fuck anybody over!" continued Mica "And I'm not a threat to you or anybody. I haven't even done anything at all since I got here! But oh no! I'm a kiochi, so you're gonna be suspicious of me regardless, even when you don't even know me!"

"I know you've tried to kill someone." said Mokai in an even tone "And that alone gives me all the reason I need to be suspicious of you."

Mica went still for a moment as her face twisted in rage.

Expecting her to continue, Mokai was surprised when she sighed in defeat, slumped her shoulders and looked at the ground.

"...Yeah, I did." mumbled Mica as she closed her eyes and shook her head "But I didn't want to... Not that, that matters though... I was stupid. And I knew I was being stupid, even when I was doing it..."

Everyone stayed silent as Mica sighed again and lifted her head.

"I fucked up. Big time. And I know I did." she said as she looked straight at Mokai "But whatever it takes... I will pay for my mistakes."

Looking past the dark elves, Mica turned and locked eyes with Anton.

"I'll wear this collar. I'll serve him, and I'll protect them." she declared "And I'm not going to do this because I'm being commanded to, or because I have no choice....I'm gonna do it because I want to!"

Mokai remained still as Mica turned back to him.

"I know you don't trust my kind, and yeah, trust me, I get it! They suck!" she exclaimed "...But I'm not like them. Okay!...This isn't a scam or a ploy or a game, or anything!...This is just these guys trying to help me. That's it!...They're just trying to help me. They're the only people that are trying to help me..."

Dropping her eyes back to the ground, Mica wrapped her crossed arms around her torso as she hugged herself in despair.

"I fucked up, and they're still trying to help me..." she whimpered as her eyes welled with tears "I owe them everything... And I would never betray them... I trust them!"

Mica went stiff as Fiona and Kianna suddenly appeared on either side of her. Wrapping their arms protectively around the smaller figure, the dark elves held the sobbing kiochi between them. They tightened their hold on her when they felt Mica's tail slowly wrap itself around them to complete the embrace.

Staring at them for a long moment, Anton couldn't help but to let a thin smile spread across his face.

"This is why we need your help, Mokai." he said softly.

"...Yes. It's clear that there is more going on here than I realized." said Mokai with a nod "...You really do keep some interesting company, Anton."

"Oh, you have no idea." chuckled Anton.

"Maybe not... Sadly though, there really isn't much info I can give you at the moment." said Mokai as he looked at the sword in his lap "There's no question that this is a shinoccubi clan sword, but I can't say which clan it came from... There's just no easy way to know. These swords are made in such a way that makes them intentionally difficult to track."

"Hm, that's disappointing. But not necessarily surprising..." grumbled Anton "Well if this sword is going to be a bust, do you have any ideas for what we should try next?"

"Now hold on a moment. I may not be able to tell you anything myself, but that doesn't mean this sword is a hopeless case." said Mokai "Let me ask around a little bit. Some of the people I know may be able to tell us more about this sword than I can. So just give me a little time, and I'll see what I can dig up."

"I'd appreciate that, I really would." said Anton "And if you could let me know as soon as you find out anything, that would be great."

"Of course." nodded Mokai "I just wish I could be more helpful right now..."

"...Well, there is actually one other thing that you might be able to help with." said Anton as he stared at the sword.

"Oh, and what's that?" asked Mokai.

"Well, and I hate to even ask out of the blue like this." said Anton as he looked over to where the dark elves were still comforting Mica "But do you think you could have one of your staff give my bodyguard an assessment of some sort?"

"An assessment?" repeated Mokai.

"Yeah, something to give me an idea of where they think her skill level lies. And whether or not there's anything specific I should have her focus on." explained Anton as he turned back to Mokai "You see, Mokai, being able to protect us is a nice idea and all. But the reality is that she really needs to be able to protect herself. She's never had any actual combat training in her life, and she's now in a position where she is going to be facing real danger. And not even because I intend to put her in harms way, but because danger itself is going to come for her... It already has come for her, and it's going to come again, whether she's ready for it or not."

Shifting his head to the side, Mokai remained silent for a moment as he watched an irritated Mica grudgingly allow Kianna to clean her face with a handkerchief.

"...Can she fight at all?" he asked softly.

"...In a rudimentary sense, yes." said Anton with a half shrug "Though I'd say that any basic skill on her part has probably more to do with instinct than anything else."

Mokai nodded slowly as he shifted his shoulders back and forth.

"Hmph... Well maybe we need to test those instincts a bit..." he said as he set the sword down on the table next to his drink "And see just how strong they really are..."

"Sounds good to me." nodded Anton as he turned back to the kiochi "Mica! Come here for a second, please."

"What?" questioned Mica as she looked around Kianna and then quickly got to her feet "What's up?"

"Mokai has been kind enough to offer to give you an assessment today." explained Anton as he nodded to Mokai.

"...Okay, cool." said Mica as she came up to stand almost between them "What does that mean?"

"Nothing too complicated. I'm just going to test your skills a bit with a simple strength test." said Mokai as he began to stretch by lightly twisting back and forth at the waist "Something like an arm wrestling match. Simple. That's all."

"Oh. Okay, cool." said Mica as her tail curled excitedly "Yeah, I'm down for that!"

"Wait, you're going to do it yourself?" asked Anton "Are you sure you're in any condition for this, Mokai?"

"It's fine. No point in calling in someone early when I'm right here already." said Mokai as he began to shift back and forth to stretch the kinks out of his back.

"...Yeah, I really don't know about this." mumbled Anton.

"Hey, don't try to baby the monk!" said Mica as she planted her hands on her hips and mockingly grinned at Mokai "If he wants to test me, then let him test me!"

"He's not really the one I'm worried about..." said Anton in a hushed tone.

"Monk?" chuckled Mokai "I'm far from a monk, little one."

"Little one!?" sneered Mica as she cocked her hip "No offense, pal. But you don't seem that big to me. Definitely not big enough to be calling me little one!"

"Oh, you think I'm... Heh, I see..." said Mokai as his chuckling became ominous "This is going to be fun."

"Now hold on just a second!" said Anton as he stood up "Mokai, are you really sure about this? Because I was under the impression that you were still recovering from a molt?"

"I am." said Mokai as the "pillows" he was sitting on began to suddenly quiver "I've hardened up about as much as I'm going to through. And I think this is just what I need to work out the last bit of stiffness in my joints..."

"...Whoa, whoa, hold on....What the hell?" questioned Fiona as the pillows beneath Mokai began to move in earnest.

Suddenly sliding out from under the sheet that had been hiding them from sight, two giant, dark-colored, chitin encrusted, cylindrical legs stretched themselves out before Mokai. These legs were made up of long segmented sections that were covered in short, sharply pointed hairs and were connected to each other by fleshy joints that stood out clearly due to their lighter, yellowish color.

The "feet" or paws at the ends of these legs consisted of two large toes and were, far and away, reminiscent of padded slippers, this appearance was helped along by the fact that they were covered in a dense, fuzzy looking coat of light gray hair.

"Oh, yeah..." drawled Mokai as the toes at the ends of the legs stretched out to their fullest and began to lightly tap themselves on the edge of the porch "I've been sitting for long enough I think..."

The ears of the dark elves pointed themselves straight upwards in surprise as two pairs of long, serrated, hook-like claws suddenly shot out from between each set of toes and instantly clamped themselves down onto the edge of the porch with a vice-like grip.

Using this hold on the porch as leverage to help pull himself forward, Mokai began to stand up.

"Oh... crap..." mumbled Mica as she slowly tilted her head upwards.

The kiochi's confidence quickly fell away as she watched the now ominous shape before her begin to rise higher and higher into the air.