What do you want to do today Aaron? Crenshaw asked me lazily.
I looked up and saw Crenshaw lounging on one of the branches of our tree. The dappled pattern from the leaves above were imprinted on his fur, making him look more like a leopard than a panther. I shrugged and told him that I was going to go hunting.
Okay, I'm just going to be here, yowl if you need me. Crenshaw said.
"That's fine, would you like to me to catch you anything special while I'm hunting?" I asked him.
He shook his head in response. I waved goodbye to Crenshaw and morphed into my cat form and jumped down from branch to branch, reaching the ground in no time. I started to run as quickly as my paws could take me. I stopped in a clearing that was well known to me and Crenshaw that was always filled with prey. I check the air for any prey scents and found a rabbit not far from me, just a few feet away. I walked a little until I could see the rabbit, washing its fur underneath a holly bush. I quickly got into a hunting crouch and silently crept over to the rabbit. When I was about to attack, a dart whizzed towards me and clung to my neck. I let out a screech of surprise and morphed back to my human form so I can fight off the drug more easily. Out from the tall grasses, five Organization X soldiers came into view, guns all pointed to me.
"Put your hands on your head and get on the ground now!" One of the soldiers yelled out.
I glared at the soldier who said that and saw him cower a little bit, making me smile at the thought of them being scared of me. When I was about to summon my dual swords, another dart was buried in between my shoulder blades. I twisted around and tried to find the shooter in the forest surrounding the field. Before I could do anything else, another dart was shot into my side. I could feel myself getting heavier and heavier as time ticked by due to the sedatives. Even though I couldn't see well anymore, I could still see the outlines of the soldiers closing in on me. I finally gave into the drug, collapsing onto the ground with a loud thump. In my mind, I could feel Crenshaw worried for me, but I told him not to come after me. I could sense that he was agitated about it but stayed put. My mind went black as I fully took the effects of the sedative.
??? Perspective:
"We've officially captured the Summoner, Sir." Sergeant Woodson said.
I watched with great joy as the Ani Summoner, one that we've been hunting down for three months, was being put into the containment cell. He lay unmoving, clearly under the effects of the multiple sedative darts that was used to bring him down.
"What about his Ani Spirit?" I asked Woodson calmly.
"Unfortunately Sir, the Spirit was not with him at the time." Woodson explained.
"That's not good then, is it?" I said, adding a deadly tone to my voice.
Before Sergeant Woodson could say anything, a yowl echoed across the forest. Yells from the men increased as they rushed to get their weapons ready for an incoming attack. A large blur launched itself out of the forest and began an attack frenzy of claws and teeth. It made its way toward the containment cell and purred. From where I was at, I could see that it was an Ani Spirit. It was a large panther, with two sets of wings on its back. It turned to look at his Summoner and pawed at the cell, not knowing what to do. Once I knew it was off its guard, I grabbed Sergeant Woodson's gun and fired at the Spirit, not caring if the gun was full of tranquilizers or bullets. It let out a yowl and whipped towards me. It came at me at full speed and swiped its claws wildly. I felt the immense pain as one of its claws sunk into my cheek, going in deep. The panther went limp after the tranquilizer took full effect. Soldiers and medics rushed towards me to see if I was alright. Meanwhile, the Spirit was put in a second containment cell, away from its Summoner.
"Commander Campbell, are you okay? How do you feel?" one of the medics ask me, cleaning the wound with a piece of cloth.
"I'm fine. Woodson, get the Summoner and its Spirit back to the lab." I commanded.
"Yes Sir." Woodson said, saluting to me before he left to the truck.
Aaron's Perspective:
Everything is numb.
I couldn't see anything, just a veil of darkness across my vision. I tried to lift myself up, only to realize that I was in a moving vehicle and that I was bounded by chains. I couldn't feel Crenshaw in my mind, and that set me on panic mode. I tried to gain some details on my surroundings but failed. All of my senses were blocked out completely, making me feel very vulnerable. It was like that for hours until I was finally able to move. I still haven't gotten back my hearing yet from my only good ear, but the rest of my senses came back to me in no time. I sat up and examined all of the chains that bounded me to the floor. There were chains on my chest, waist, wrists, neck, and wings. I began to notice that I was in a clear cell, with one sliding door in front of me, the outlines of the door a faint dusty pink color due to my disabilities. My thoughts came back to the time in the field and how I was finally caught. I knew I put up a good chase with the Organization, three months to be exact. I chuckled when I remembered the faces of the many soldiers that I tricked and deceived. Suddenly the vehicle stopped moving, and the back of it opened. I moved backward while four men advanced towards the cell, heavily armed with guns filled with tranquilizer darts. I gave them a warning growl, low at first but making it louder as they approached. They stopped near the door, two men on each side as someone walked up to the cell. The woman was not a soldier but a scientist, judging by the lab coat she wore. The scientist looked at me for several moments, and I looked at her right back. We stared at each other for awhile until she turned to one of the men and started to talk to him. Since I didn't have my hearing back, I couldn't tell what she was saying, until one of the men opened the door and shot two darts at me. It took awhile for the darts to kick in, but I finally went under the effects of the tranquilizers once again. I woke up again to find myself in a room that was deprived of windows. I was laying on a bed, nothing on me but my boxers. I looked around for my clothes or anything else but saw nothing. I was about to get off the bed when the wall opened up in one place, and the same scientist from before entered in with guards on both sides of her. I immediately tried to morph into my cat form or any form that I can change into, but couldn't. I backed myself towards the wall as the scientist came towards me, the two guards staying behind to guard the entrance. She put her hand in front of her, inches away from my chest. I flatten my ears and let out a snarl, showing her my fangs.
"I don't want to hurt you." The scientist said with a thick accent.
"Yeah right. Why am I here then?" I snarled at her.
She didn't answer, just continued to approach me. When she was close to me, her hands went directly to my side. Out of nowhere, she plunged a large syringe into me, drawing blood from my side. I let out a small whimper as she slowly took out the syringe from my body, let me suffer in from the pain of the large syringe moving out of my body. I couldn't believe how thick and long the syringe was, it was about the size and width of one of my fangs. A medium sized hole was found where she plunged the syringe, blood starting to steadily drip down my side. She held the syringe full of my blood to the light, marveled how black it was. When I became an Ani Summoner, multiple things happened to me, one was my blood turning into a blackish color. I tried to get up but the wound just bled even more. I turned to look at the scientist exiting the room, a smile plastered on her face as she faced me.
"Hope you enjoy your stay here kitty. You are going to be here for a long time." She said, the wall closing afterward.
The next year were painful. I only got to see Crenshaw a few times when I passed by the room they experimented him in. The people there put a metal collar on me, like I was an animal. I tried escaping multiple times but never succeed. For punishment, they would chain me up in my room and whip me until I was covered with blood. I was tired of everything that was happening and tired of the cruel scars that have accumulated all over my body. I grew weak from starvation and abuse, all my strength dwindling down to nothing. I saw a few Ani Summoners in the same building but would never see them again the next day. All that changed when I finally was able to transform into my final form. Because of that, I became a beast, a monster. Soon, the entire building was engulfed in black fire, while Crenshaw and I were flying away from the destruction that I had caused.
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Hello Everyone!!!
I am proud to announce that this will be my first long chapter and first character story. I want to thank you all for all of the views I've been getting, so I posted this earlier! I intend to do background stories for new characters I am going to introduce and I am also working on chapters that describe Ani Spirits!! Hope you all like this!
-Everest Smith 🐺