The river stilled for a heartbeat, and then a glint caught Luna's silver eyes. Amid the shattered watery corpse of the bear, a smooth, lustrous pearl gleamed faintly, nestled where its chest had been. A clam pearl, large as a fist, humming with strange, malignant energy. Luna's tail flicked, curiosity flashing—but she had little time. The pearl pulsed, thrumming like a heartbeat, and the water around it churned unnaturally.
The river itself seemed to shudder. From the depths, tendrils of liquid sprang upward, twisting like serpents, arcs of water sharp as blades. The pearl had not died with its host; it had become the river's new heart, bending the currents to its will.
Luna's eyes narrowed, daggers forming in her hands once more. "So, you're alive… and foolish," she murmured, her voice cutting through the roar of the river.
A massive water-tendril lunged, snapping toward her with terrifying speed. Luna spiraled beneath it, her tail whipping against the current, deflecting the strike with a flash of her dagger. Another tendril rose, a dozen smaller offshoots splitting from it like the fingers of some watery demon. Each one lashed at her, carrying the bear's raw strength in every strike.
She darted, twisting through the currents like lightning. Her daggers carved arcs into the water, the Qi-forged blades searing the tendrils, slicing some clean in two. Yet the pearl pulsed again, darker, more insistent, and the water responded as if alive—coiling, striking, reforming faster than her eyes could follow.
The river screamed, waves rising high enough to swamp the banks. Luna lunged, daggers stabbing toward the pearl, and the water lunged back. A tendril shot up from below, wrapping around one blade and hurling her backward. She crashed into the shallows, the impact sending sprays of blood-tinted water into the trees.
Luna rolled, rising swiftly, her eyes alight. Her tail lashed, whipping up a counter-current. With a sweep of her hand, she drew the Qi daggers in wide arcs, carving paths through the river's writhing limbs. The pearl quivered violently, and the water twisted into a towering, coiling figure—a monstrous avatar of the bear, now fully animated by the clam pearl's heart.
It surged toward her with multiple tendrils, some ending in claw-like tips, others splitting into razor-thin whips. Luna ducked, twisted, her body flowing with the river, daggers flashing. Every strike she made caused sprays of liquid to hiss and steam as Qi clashed with water imbued with yokai energy.
The pearl pulsed again, and one tendril lashed at her midair, snapping her dagger aside. Luna countered with a sudden thrust of her tail, striking the tendril from below. The creature shrieked, and the river bucked as if enraged. It slammed a massive whip-like appendage at her, forcing her to dive beneath the waves, water swallowing her whole.
Even under the surface, Luna's laughter rang out, bright in the darkness. She twisted, daggers piercing upward, slicing through tendrils and cutting at the core of the river beast. The clam pearl shivered violently, and the water's shape convulsed. Streams of current struck from every side, attempting to crush, slice, and drown—but Luna danced with impossible speed, her body a blur of silver.
A final tendril, larger than the others, surged directly at her chest. Luna braced, spinning her daggers in a wide arc as her tail cracked against the current. The tendril struck the ground, splintering in a geyser of water, and the pearl, now cracked and glowing, sank into the riverbed, dragging its remaining watery army with it.
The river stilled once more, leaving only ripples and the faint scent of defeat. Luna rose, daggers vanishing, her tail slicing the water clean. The silver light of her fins shimmered faintly, droplets falling like pearls from her body—her lower half shifting back into that of a deer. She stepped onto the riverbank, chest heaving, lips curling into a satisfied, blood-tinged smile.
"Good… that was fun," she whispered, her silver eyes gleaming with both hunger and delight. "But you'll have to try harder."
From beneath the water, the clam pearl's glow dimmed—but faintly, a pulse lingered. Luna's smile sharpened. Ah… this game isn't over yet.
"Grow stronger, little one. I'll be back to fight you again and again," she said as she turned toward the bushes, hooves carrying her back toward camp. She smirked faintly. I wonder if Oliver wants to play that game again today…
A ripple stirred behind her. She froze. Another tendril shot weakly from the river, swaying like a dying limb.
Luna huffed, silver eyes narrowing. "I said recover first." She sidestepped the sluggish strike, then turned back, glaring at the pearl's faint light.
The tendril lashed again.
Her jaw tightened. "Fine. If that's how you want it—then die!"
She rushed back toward the river, leaping high, her lower half shifting once more into its aquatic form. With a whip of her tail, she dove straight for the pearl, fury burning in her gaze. Her hand reached, ready to crush it.
But instead—
Her eyes widened. Pain exploded through her arm, her breath fleeing in a stream of bubbles. A blinding current of light burst from the pearl, crawling across her skin like fire. Her scream tore from her throat, muffled beneath the water.
The pearl writhed, threads of glowing energy snaking up her arm, burrowing beneath her flesh. Her silver blood leaked into the water as her body spasmed. With a wet, tearing sound, the pearl forced itself through her skin, worming into her veins, clawing toward her chest.
Her form warped—flesh bubbling, scales erupting, her bones bending as the pearl tried to consume her. She convulsed, tail whipping wildly, as the river boiled around her.
"No!" she screamed, forcing Qi to flare from her core. Her silver eyes blazed, a storm of light fighting against the invasive tide. "I am no one's prey!"
The pearl pulsed violently, trying to rip her apart. Her body melted, skin peeling, fins tearing away. For a moment she was nothing but blood and screaming light, dissolving into the current.
Then—her will surged.
Silver erupted from her chest, her laughter slicing through the chaos. She seized the pearl's power, wrenching it inward, devouring its essence as it had tried to devour her. The river screamed, the water surging in agony as it collapsed into the pearl. Tendrils shattered, currents drained, the great body of water shrinking, shrinking—until all of it was pulled into the pearl clutched against her chest.
The riverbed lay bare, cracked earth steaming in the sunlight. Fish gasped in the mud, trees sagged as their roots dried, and silence hung heavy over the hollow.
At its center, Luna lay on the dry earth, her chest heaving, pearl fused into her body like a beating second heart. Her skin shimmered faintly, her tail curled limply beside her, droplets clinging to her pale frame.
She laughed weakly, eyes half-lidded, hunger and exhaustion mixing in her voice.
"Mine… all mine."