Chapter 21

  A Panther strikes plus Luna's pov

  The group slipped along the shadowed wall, feet moving in sync as they crossed the open stretch. One by one, they darted through the narrow side entrance into Springvale—wolf-men, horned man, goat-woman with her child, the avian boy, Renn’s parents, and the rabbit girl.

  Only Lux and the panther lingered outside, Lux scanning the treeline for any sign of movement before slipping in himself.That’s when the pantherman’s smirk curved wide.

  "Guards! Guards!" he bellowed, voice cutting sharp through the dawn air.

  The rabbit girl froze just inside the wall, eyes going wide in horror as the cry echoed. Lux’s stomach dropped, realization hitting too late.

  “Keep them safe!” Lux barked to her, already moving—

  But the panther’s boot slammed into his chest, sending him staggering back through the threshold and into the dirt outside. The heavy wooden door of the side entrance slammed shut, the bolt thudding into place from the inside.

  From somewhere deeper in the city, Lux could already hear boots pounding toward the alarm.

  Luna's pov

  Luna kept her hood low as she moved through Springvale’s waking streets, the faintest glimmer of amber eyes visible only when the morning light caught them just right. Renn clung to her hand, still wrapped in the ragged blanket Luna had scavenged the night before.

  The catgirl’s sharp ears caught whispers drifting between vendors setting up their stalls—rumors about a “disturbance” near the north wall, a guard gone missing, and the baron’s men “looking for someone.” She kept walking, weaving between the growing crowd.

  Renn tugged on her arm. “Miss Luna… where’s Lux?”

  Luna didn’t answer right away, scanning the rooftops and alley mouths. She had seen him vanish into the night hours ago, carrying nothing but that stubborn look in his eyes and a promise he never actually said aloud. She knew what that meant.

  “He’ll find us,” Luna said finally, voice softer than her usual clipped tone. “He always does.”

  They slipped into the back streets, avoiding the main road that led toward the guardhouse.

  Luna’s tail flicked irritably—half from worry, half from frustration. The man was reckless, too willing to bleed for people he barely knew. And yet… she couldn’t shake the memory of his face at the auction, the same look she’d seen only once before—on herself—when the world first showed its teeth.

  Just as she turned down a quieter alley toward one of her safehouses, a faint, distant shout rolled over the rooftops—guards calling out in the pre-dawn. Luna froze, ears twitching toward the sound.Renn looked up at her. “Is that…?”

  Luna’s eyes narrowed. Is he in trouble?

  As luna walked into a darker alley she froze mid-step, her grip on Renn tightening as the narrow alley ahead filled with movement.

  The group was impossible to miss—twenty-eight demi-human women of all shapes and sizes, their clothes torn, their hair matted, but their eyes… their eyes carried something Luna almost didn’t recognize at first. Hope.

  Renn blinked in surprise. “There’s so many…”

  Luna stepped forward, scanning them quickly—she counted wolves, sheep, a pair of foxes, even a slender bird-woman clutching a child. Her gaze locked on an older dog woman near the front, her weathered features lined with years of hardship.

  “What are all of you doing here?” Luna demanded, though her voice wasn’t sharp—more stunned than accusing.The older dog woman studied her for a moment before answering, her tone cautious but warm.

  “A man rescued us… from the workcamp. Said he was looking for someone’s mother.”Luna’s ears flicked forward, her tail stilling.

  Her heartbeat picked up—not from fear, but from recognition. She didn’t need the dog woman to say his name. There was only one man foolish enough to pull something like that off in just a single night.

  Luna stepped closer, lowering her voice so it didn’t carry to the rest of the group.

  “This man… what did he look like?”

  The older dog woman’s brows knit as if replaying the memory. “Human. Tall. Dark hair. Wore strange clothes, not from any place I’ve seen. Moved quick, knew how to use that little blade of his like it was part of his own hand.”

  Renn’s ears twitched, her eyes widening.

  “That’s Lux.”

  Luna’s tail gave the smallest flick at the confirmation, though she kept her expression carefully neutral. “And where is he now?”

  The dog woman shook her head. “Last I saw him, he was heading toward the labor camp. Said he had someone else to find—Renn’s father.” Her gaze softened briefly toward the young fox girl, then hardened again. “He told me to get the rest of the women out and keep them together. That’s what I’m doing.”

  Luna exhaled slowly, her claws flexing against her palms. Reckless man. Always throwing himself toward danger like it was a game. But… he’d freed all these women in a single night.

  “Keep moving,” she told the dog woman. “Find somewhere safe and hidden. Don’t talk to anyone unless you have to.”

  Then she glanced down at Renn. “Stay with them.”

  Renn frowned. “But—”

  “Stay,” Luna repeated, her tone firm but not unkind. “I’ll find him.”

  Luna didn’t waste another second. The moment the dog woman nodded in understanding, she was gone—slipping into the shadows, her body low and silent as she darted between buildings.

  The distant shouts she’d caught earlier were still echoing faintly through the pre-dawn air. Male voices—urgent, commanding—and the unmistakable ring of weapons being drawn.

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  Her paws—light on the cobblestones—carried her toward the sound. Every few strides, she leapt to a low rooftop, using the height to scan the streets ahead. There—movement near the east wall. She caught sight of guards clustering, their attention fixed on something beyond the gate.

  Then, above the noise, she heard it. A single shout—angry, desperate—cut off by a heavy thud.

  Her tail lashed. Lux.

  She didn’t slow, weaving through the narrowest alleys, every step pulling her closer to whatever chaos had erupted.

  Luna’s eyes were locked on Lux’s retreating form when the rabbit girl yanked her back sharply.

  “What are you doing away from the others?” the rabbit girl said, ears standing stiff. “We’re supposed to stick together after what he—” She stopped, really looking at Luna for the first time, her nose twitching. “…Wait. You weren’t in the group we freed. Which camp were you from?”

  Luna blinked, momentarily thrown. “Camp?” she repeated, her tone flat.The rabbit girl’s ears tipped forward, confusion knitting her brow. “You… you’re not one of the rescued? Then how—?”

  “I’m not from any camp,” Luna cut in, tail curling around her leg. “I came here on my own. I’ve been… watching.”

  That seemed to throw the rabbit girl even more off balance. “Watching? Why?” she asked, clearly baffled.

  Luna’s gaze flicked once more toward the gate, where Lux and the guards had already vanished into the dark beyond. Her voice was low but steady when she replied,

  “Because I needed to know if he was different from the others.”

  The rabbit girl tilted her head. “And is he?”Luna’s eyes narrowed faintly. “…Yes.”

  Luna’s muscles tensed like she might break into a run after Lux, but the rabbit girl’s grip on her arm tightened.

  “Wait—don’t go,” the rabbit girl urged, her voice firm despite the exhaustion etched into her face. “We’ve still got the others.

  The ones he left in my care. They’re scared, hungry… and they don’t know the way back to the first group without getting caught.”

  Luna’s ears flicked back, her tail lashing once in frustration. “They can move without me.”

  “They won’t,” the rabbit girl countered, stepping in front of her. “They trust me, but they need more than one pair of eyes. If we don’t get them to the others safely, they’ll be picked off before sunrise.”

  Luna’s jaw tightened. She glanced toward the tree line one last time, the shadows already swallowing the spot where Lux had disappeared.

  “Fine,” she said, her voice edged but calm.

  “But we move quickly. And if anything happens to him…”

  The rabbit girl gave a small nod, clearly not understanding the weight behind Luna’s words.

  Together, they slipped back into the warren of alleys, leading the ragged, fearful group toward the safety of the first camp.

  They moved in a tight, wary pack through the half-lit alleys, the city still drowsy before sunrise. Luna’s sharp eyes swept over the smaller group as they followed behind—instantly noting the mix of species.

  Four wolf men padded in silence, eyes darting to every shadow. A goat man kept close to a tall, broad-shouldered horned man clutching a spear in calloused hands, his glare locked firmly on a sleek, cool-headed pantherman who walked as if the world owed him nothing.

  An injured avian boy stumbled here and there, his wings drooping, the fox-eared couple flanking him protectively. A sheep woman clutched a swaddled infant to her chest, her gaze constantly shifting between fear and exhaustion.

  Beside Luna, the rabbit girl leaned in close, her voice barely above a whisper.

  “Keep an eye on the pantherman,” she murmured. “Something about him doesn’t sit right. He’s too calm for someone who just escaped chains.”

  Luna’s tail gave the faintest twitch, her amber eyes flicking to the pantherman without slowing her pace. Too calm, she thought. Or too calculating.

  The rabbit girl’s long ears twitched nervously as they moved, her gaze fixed ahead but her thoughts far from the cobbled path underfoot.

  I can’t say I saw him kick Lux… she told herself, the memory still sharp—the sudden shove, the cold smirk, the side door slamming shut. If I do, he’ll know it was me. He’ll turn the others against me, or worse… he’ll get us all caught.

  Her grip tightened around the strap of the satchel slung over her shoulder. All I could do was sound the alarm, get people watching him… just enough so he knows I’m not blind.

  She shot another quick glance at the pantherman. He walked in silence, every step measured, tail swaying with infuriating calm.

  He didn’t even look at her—but she couldn’t shake the feeling he knew exactly what she was thinking.

  Luna caught the flicker of tension in the rabbit girl’s expression, her ears angling subtly toward her. She didn’t press—not yet.

  The ragged procession wound its way through the dim backstreets until they emerged into a half-hidden courtyard. The first group of freed women was there, huddled close to one another beneath the weak light of a single lantern.

  Renn sat among them, knees tucked to her chest, her wide brown eyes scanning the newcomers. Then her gaze locked on the fox-eared woman in the second group.

  “...Mama?” she breathed.

  The woman’s head snapped up. “Renn?” She pushed past the others, stumbling the last few steps before dropping to her knees and wrapping the girl in a fierce embrace. The sob that broke from her chest seemed to shatter the stillness. Renn clung to her like she’d never let go again, whispering between tears, “I thought I lost you… I thought they—”

  Luna froze, ears flicking back in disbelief. She had prepared herself for many outcomes tonight, but not this. Not this.

  Her eyes flicked over the fox woman, then to Renn’s small frame tucked into her arms.Lux’s words from their last meeting echoed in her head. I want answers… I want to help. She had thought him reckless—maybe even stupid—for stepping into something this dangerous so quickly.

  But now… now she was staring at the proof that the crazy human actually did it.Her tail twitched once, a mix of disbelief and something that felt suspiciously like respect creeping into her expression before she masked it.

  Renn’s father broke from the line before anyone could stop him, nearly tripping over the uneven cobbles in his haste. His arms wrapped around both wife and daughter, pulling them in so tightly it was as if he could shield them from the world by sheer force of will.

  “I’ve got you… both of you… never letting go again,” he rasped, voice breaking as he buried his face in Renn’s hair.

  The moment was raw and unguarded—until a low, smooth voice cut through it.

  “Alright,” the pantherman drawled, stepping forward with his tail swaying lazily behind him, though his golden eyes were sharp.

  “We can celebrate later. Right now, we move, and I will be the one deciding where.”

  He let the words hang there, scanning the group as if daring anyone to disagree, his posture just short of threatening.

  Luna’s ears angled back slightly, her gaze narrowing. This was exactly the kind of shift in control she didn’t like.

  The murmurs started softly, almost like the wind rustling through tall grass.

  “Where is he?” one of the lizard women whispered.

  “The man… the one who cut us loose,” said the green-haired sheep woman, holding her infant closer.

  “Is he safe? What happened to him?” another pressed, eyes darting around as if Lux might appear from the shadows at any moment.

  The pantherman’s tail lashed once, a sign of his fraying patience. His jaw tightened, but he kept his voice level—barely.

  “He’s not here. That should be enough for you,” he growled, glancing toward the east wall as if willing them all to shut up and move. “We can’t waste time pining for a human who—”

  He cut himself off, noticing the way some of the women’s expressions hardened at his tone. His claws flexed against his palms, the irritation clear now.

  Renn’s small voice cut through the low murmurs like a blade.

  “He’s the one who saved me… and my parents,” she said, stepping forward, chin trembling but eyes locked on the pantherman. “Mister, I don’t want to go anywhere unless he’s leading.”

  The crowd stilled. Some of the women exchanged glances, their murmuring growing bolder now that someone had spoken aloud what they were thinking.

  “That’s right… he risked his life for us.”“He stayed behind so we could get away.”“If he’s not here, then why should we—”

  The pantherman’s ears flattened against his skull, his tail lashing harder now. He took a slow step toward Renn, the quiet menace in his movements making a few of the freed women instinctively pull her back.

  “We don’t have the luxury to wait for him,” he said, voice deepening to a growl. “Every second we stand here, we risk losing everything. He’s human. He’s gone. Accept it, or be left behind.”

  The murmurs didn’t die this time—they sharpened, the distrust in the air thicking

  The women didn’t shrink back this time.A green-haired sheep woman stepped forward, voice trembling but resolute. “If it weren’t for him, most of us would still be chained to those cursed machines. He earned the right to lead.”

  A lizard woman crossed her arms. “I’ll not take orders from someone who wasn’t there when the blood was spilled.”

  The murmurs turned into sharp retorts—soft voices finally finding the courage to speak. The pantherman’s jaw tightened, but he didn’t interrupt, letting his eyes sweep over the group like a predator sizing up prey.

  In the midst of the growing tension, the rabbit girl slipped closer to Luna, leaning in so only she could hear.“It was him,” she whispered, her tone low and bitter. “He pushed Lux outside the gate… and called the guards.”

  Luna’s amber eyes narrowed, but before she could speak, the rabbit girl added in an even quieter tone, “And before that… when we were escaping with Renn’s father, he tried to get Lux to lead us into a trap.”

  The air between them seemed to thicken with unspoken implications, the distant sound of wind through the trees doing nothing to ease the sudden weight in Luna’s chest.