The Crystal Swordsman: Alfheim's Awakening

Wildcats

Spriggan King, Guardian, Crystal Swordsman: K

I rushed to the aid of my wife who looked at me with eyes that became sharp like a cats. The whites of her eyes turned black and the oceanic cyan that highlighted her beautiful eyes was now encapsulated by total darkness. She thrashed away from me and took a stance, readying her sharpened razor claws. The fur on her cat ears and tail flared, signifying that she was completely unhinged at this point. She hissed and a set of very long fangs were easily seen within her salivated mouth. In that moment, I understood the gravity of the situation.

"She's gone feral." I took a step back and held my arms in front of the others just in case.

"What does that mean??" Asuna asked.

That was when Sinon pounced towards me with a swipe from her claws. I dipped back to avoid them which left us just a moment to think. Instead of making a move however, I was conflicted. This was my wife we were facing, I didn't want to have to put her down in order to fix whatever was happening to her. I wanted to try to find another way, I wanted to keep her safe. Before I could get to my next thoughts, Sinon immediately jumped up and bounced between both walls repeatedly until she caught the lip above and scaled to the rooftop.

"She's getting away!" Liz exclaimed.

As soon as Sinon disappeared over the edge, I turned around and forced myself past everyone to give chase. I watched as my Sinon galloped and ran like an actual cat, leaping and bounding with sleek agility.

"She's fast!" Leafa and the others followed suit behind me.

"Not for long." I stated, launching myself up with my feathered wings.

I swapped trajectory and flapped hard, landing swiftly upon the rooftop channels. Ahead of me I saw her, my wife pouncing from one building to another with grace and aggression. I saw this and began to sprint after her, hopping and flipping over each menial gap and divide. I felt alive, reinvolving myself in the art of freerunning once again.

"Where is she, K? We'll cut her off!" I heard Kirito yell to me from down below.

I peeked down and saw the others all running after me on the streets.

"Just follow my lead!" I told them, continuing to jump from roof to roof with utmost precision.

That was when Sinon jumped up and swung off a protruding flagpole, dipping away from view as she flung herself off it. I front flipped over my next gap and sprinted for the same flagpole she did. I jumped, gripped, swung and propelled myself to the next roofs edge. I landed and watched as Sinon ran frantically ahead. Instead of chasing this time however, I simply watched her skip to the next building and begin running along a few balconies and prominent edges. I looked around at the alignment of the other structures in the city and began to formulate a plan to close the distance.

"Where'd she go, K??" Kirito yelled as they stopped below me.

"That way. You guys tail her, I've got an idea." I told them before flying over to another set of rooftops.

Professional, Hero, Unbeatable: Kirito

"She's still up there!" Leafa pointed out as the group of us gave chase from below.

"Can't we just chase her from the air?" Liz wondered.

"Not here. The Cat Sith kingdom is one of few that prohibits flying within its grounds. They encourage organic mobility thru methodical platforming." Silica explained to the rest of the group.

"A parkour kingdom. Sounds right up K's alley." Liz joked as we ran.

"Isn't he flying?" Asuna noticed.