☆ Flight and Fight ☆

“Alright! There’s the Goddess Cache! All I have to do is swoop down there and grab it!” Sugar chirped, pointing down into the gaping gorge toward the divine treasure chest perched on a tiny ledge. Goddess Caches were a rare thing in the Realm of Adventure and Hunting, and the potentially vital supplies they carried were just as hard to come by. And considering Sugar and Koala hadn’t seen any signs of monsters, this was a golden opportunity they couldn’t pass up. Thus, the normally skittish sphynx cat was eager to drop down into a ravine on her paraglider.

“I really hope there is something good in that Cache…I’d hate to fly all the way down there just to find another box of tube socks…” Sugar grumbled as she pulled out her paraglider, reminiscing about the worst Cache she had ever unearthed with her wife.

“..I don’t mind socks.” Koala rumbled, shifting her massive frame closer to the edge of the gorge to see the crate. This was the side of Koala that Sugar wished the rest of the villagers saw, her big, goofy cuddle-bear, not the monster-maiming demi-god. Koala wasn’t a chatty cat, but Sugar knew her lover well enough to see she concerned about her safety.

“Don’t worry Koala-Bear,” Sugar said with a smile, “I know as long as you’re looking out for me, I’m as safe as houses.”

That seemed to reassure Koala, as did Sugar hugging herself against the gigantic cat’s arm and burying herself in her plush, warm fur. That earned Sugar a warm smile and a thunderous purr as Koala wrapped her other arm around Sugar and leaned into her tiny love. After a few seconds, Koala nodded down at her little lover and released her, letting the sphynx make her way tentatively over to the edge of the chasm.

“Wish me luck.” Sugar smiled at Koala and raised her paraglider before stepping over the side of the cliff. Using her paraglider was always a little nerve-racking, as looking up Sugar would only find a backpack sized strip of cloth and some wood holding her in the air. But it always worked, regardless of the wind or the weather, so she had learned to swallow her concerns and trust the strange item’s ability to keep her aloft. Thankfully for Sugar’s jittery nerves, the paraglider slowly lowered her into the gorge and toward the glowing chest.

Of course, at the same time, this slow rate of descent meant that Sugar was a sitting duck for passing monsters. Koala was acutely aware of this, and kept a watchful eye out for anything along the gorge walls or in the nearby woods that looked out of place. Unfortunately, she almost missed the real threat, catching only the shadow of the creature as passed overhead before disappearing into the glare of the sun.

Suddenly, a dark shape came down from the sky like a bolt of lightning, aimed directly at Sugar’s paraglider. Koala wasn’t fast enough to catch the shape, so all she could do was cry out to her wife.

“SUGAR!!” The sphynx jerked her glider to the side on a nervous reflex, causing the creature to miss her glider by mere inches, although the strong wind it kicked up almost cost the cat her grip

The monster landed on the face of the nearby chasm, giving both cats a good look at it. The creature was some hybrid of lizard and bird, covered in scales on its body and head, with feathers on its arms, wings, and tail. Its colorful body sported two powerful limbs, four mighty wings, and a massive, multi-eyed head complete with a mouthful of vicious fangs.

Sugar was terrified enough before the creature let out a snapping, hissing shriek, winding up to lunge at the defenseless cat once again. It never got the chance to, however, as the massive frame of Koala slammed into the creature from above, pinning it to the wall with a sickening crunch. Seeing her beloved in danger sent demi-god into a rage, and immediately after the initial blow crushed the creature’s wings, Koala tore into the monster with her claws and beastly strength. The unrecognizable remains of the creature eventually fell from the gorge wall, piece by piece, and into the bottom of the ravine in a sickening heap.

“…Sugar!” Koala floated over to the terrified cat with her demi-god powers, scooping the smaller cat up in her arms and carrying her to the ledge with the Goddess Cache. Koala hugged Sugar tight to her chest with one arm, while grabbing the chest with the other, and carrying both up to the safety of the edge.

Koala could still tell Sugar was nervous, not about the creature but about watching her wife tear the beast to shreds. She could see the fear in her eyes, and feel how the little cat trembled against her in terror.

“I’m sorry Sugar.” Koala set both the chest and her wife down safely before moving to step back and give Sugar some space. But instead she felt the little cat’s hand wrap around her finger and tug against her arm. Looking down, Koala saw Sugar smiling up at her warmly, the fear and concern gone from her eyes.

“It’s okay, Koala, I understand. Let’s open the Cache together.” That got the big cat smiling again, and she kept smiling as she sat down with Sugar in her lap and pulled the chest up to them.

Inside the chest the cats found a treasure trove of medicine, from antibiotics to allergy pills, as well as an enchanted needle and color-changing thread that worked themselves, a solar battery pack, and a pack of tube socks with an adorable cat pattern on them. While Koala was excited to see such a valuable haul, what she really loved was watching how giddy Sugar got over everything they found. So Koala once again wrapped her massive arms around Sugar like a warm, black blanket of fur, and nuzzled her wife close against her body.