Tess stepped in front of him and addressed the twins without taking her eyes off the tiger. "Get your dad out of here. Give him one of the injections. I'll be along shortly."
Zavier felt the stab of a needle and watched his health shoot to full, the last thought in his mind before the powerful liquid carried him into a red oblivion, That woman is so fucking hot…
As the twins dragged their father to safety Tess dropped into an aggressive stance, Claw held to her side and her dagger held in a reverse grip. The tiger assessed her before dipping its head in appreciation. This was finally a fight between predators.
Tess activated the fear enchantment on her cloak but the tiger sniffed it off with disdain. It flickered out of existence but Tess brought Claw around in a swing that caught the creature's claws, a hollow clack of Claw against claw echoing into the woods around them. Then it was Tess's turn to disappear, the Cackle Cloak giving her the same amount of invisibility in shadowed terrain as the tiger.
It looked around in alarm and sniffed the air, jumping to the side with a hiss when Tess materialized in a blur, raking both weapons down its hide. It caught her with a reflexive strike and Tess hissed in return when the claws just managed to puncture the cloak. Then they were both invisible again, silent stalkers waiting for the other to make the smallest of mistakes.
Shadows with teeth and razor's edges flitted through the jungle, plant life and small trees falling to the frenzy. This was a battle of ambushes and fast strikes, punishing the other for being a little slower or a little clumsier. This graceful dance of death would have given any action movie director dreams of awards, but this fight was only for the killers.
Tess didn't know how long it had been - time had become nothing to her. Family had faded to a distant memory along with the concept of pain. There was only the fight for dominance, the desire to be victorious, the silent struggle for life and death that brooked no quarter and no mercy.
The shadows deepened as the sun dropped below the treeline, but Tess had long ago turned off the party chat. Their voices had been a distraction - a human thing that didn't belong in this perfect moment. She was battered, bloody, and if she'd been in the mindset to check her health would have seen that she was down in the 30% range. She knew that the next mistake would lead to her death.
She had never been as happy as she was in this moment.
She limped into a clearing that hadn't been there when they'd started fighting, the foliage around her so devastated that it looked like a logging crew had been through it. She caught movement and turned to see the tiger limping in from the other side, its invisibility spent.
She raised her sword to her face in a salute, then slashed it downward. The tiger dipped its head, closing its eyes in a gesture of respect before opening them again, deep green fire lighting them from behind.
There was no noise as the two of them flew at each other.
Tess reactivated her party chat and a series of panicked notifications scrolled by in a flash. She dismissed them all and just sent "On my way."
She stepped out of the window to a family practically jittering with nerves. Zavier was standing but looked groggy. He stepped over to her and wrapped her in a tight hug.
"I'm okay," she patted him on the back and smiled at the kids. "And Mommy got a new toy," she said and held up the items.
Item Name: Shimmer
Type: Weapon (Melee)
Description: A dagger fashioned from the fangs of the Shadowstripe Tiger, Shimmer resembles clear glass with shadowy stripes reminiscent of the tiger's natural camouflage. This weapon is perfect for assassins and those who prefer to strike from the shadows.
Stats:
Attack: +4
Agility: +2
Effects:
Invisibility Stalk: The wielder becomes invisible to the intended victim, when not in their line of sight, until the first strike. This effect resets if the wielder stays out of the victim's sight for 10 seconds.
Spectral Cut: Successful hits have a 15% chance to deal additional damage by targeting vital points, causing severe bleeding.
Shadow Ambush: Increases the damage dealt from surprise attacks by 30%.
Item Name: Shadowstripe Tiger Core
Type: Alchemical Ingredient/Enhancement Item
Description: The core of the Shadowstripe Tiger, pulsating with raw stealth energy. This core can be used in alchemical concoctions or to enhance weapons and armor with shadowy powers.
Effects:
Enhancement - Shadow Infusion: Can be applied to a weapon to grant it a chance to turn the wielder invisible on hit, enhancing their stealth and evasion.
Enhancement - Silent Shielding: Can be applied to armor to grant the wearer near-silent movement and a chance to turn invisible when attacked.
Alchemical Use - Shadow Elixir: Can be used to brew a powerful elixir that grants temporary invisibility and enhances stealth abilities, allowing for perfect stealth maneuvers and surprise attacks.
"Woah," Cass said as he ran a finger on the fragile-looking blade. "It has a name?"
She shrugged and slid it into its sheath before sliding it onto a loop in her belt. "Guess so!"
She recounted the highlights of the fight but time was pressing down on them. "We can talk about it all when we get home. Right now I think we need to get out of here."
Nods all around and they left at a brisk walk, breaking into a jog once they got outside. The shadows were long and low, the sun not long from dipping below the horizon. Already they could hear the sounds of animals in the distance - the nocturnal residents were waking up and none of them had the desire to be there when that happened.
They avoided the hyena canyon, choosing instead to circle around to where they'd first encountered the monkeys. Their hope was to just run through there like bats out of hell and hope they didn't have to wash themselves off after.
Just before reaching the woods again Zavier skidded to a stop, looking at the signs on his right. Tess looked at him with concern. "Do we really have time for elephants?" she asked.
"I just want to look real quick," he said and jogged over to the door that led to their cages. A few minutes later he was back out, sprinting past them.
"Nope!" was all he yelled as he flashed by.
The mad dash through the woods was less eventful than their first, it seemed the monkeys were getting some well-deserved rest from all their poop flinging. They were past the penguin pool and in the lobby before they stopped to take a rest. Zavier had led them on a short detour to pick up the bag of butterflies, enduring a scathing glare from Tess in the process, but everyone breathed a sigh of relief as they slid the door shut behind them.