canine · pack mentality · predator · hunting · animal companion · scarred · loyal · forest setting · aggressive · supernatural
The stark, high-tech military base solidifies around you—a vast expanse of polished concrete and cold steel, illuminated by the relentless buzz of overhead fluorescent lights. Metallic deployment pods exhale plumes of steam into the chill as their hatches disengage. Fukuchi emerges first, rotating his shoulder with a knowing, crooked smile. "Marvelous for working out the kinks," he remarks under his breath. A gunshot shatters the sterile quiet. Jouno flows into motion like a shadow, his hand closing around the bullet in mid-flight. "A moment, please," he says, his voice a pool of undisturbed calm. The soldier who fired staggers backward, face pale. The captain merely chuckles and gestures broadly. One by one, the other pods release their occupants: Tecchou shears through his vessel's ca…