Shortly before Sheila and the others made their way to Ania and Yonka's special spot, and in another part of the forest, Sem and his group were out hunting for supplies. They managed to gather a few smaller animals, and without Sheila's expertise, were not sure enough to gather any crops or herbs. When they found what little they could in the immediate area, they regrouped while keeping an eye out for any signs of a foreign beast.
In the moments of relative silence available, Variann became a bit aware of something that felt off, though she couldn't quite put her finger on it. The rumblings through her body seemed to be on a different wavelength, but she was uncertain of the suspected origins.
"This area is dry as a bone. How are we supposed to feed everyone with a small haul like this?" Ulva asked, as she dropped a small mole-like creature into the wagon alongside some berries evidence suggested it had been eating.
"We haven't found any signs of the thing we stayed back here for. It may be time to move deeper into the forest," Kenrir stated.
"We've already circled the initial outskirts of the village between the five of us. We've been playing it safe, but I'm inclined to believe Ken is right," Malin agreed.
As Variann stood close to the others, she began looking at each of their chests, as if focusing on something. Her face was still, as she took several moments studying each of her comrades vibrations.
"Perhaps that's the case, but while I agree it'd be better to gather supplies further in, I feel like it would be best to make sure there wasn't anything we missed," Sem suggested.
"It's good to be cautious, but if we spend too much time closest to the village, it'll be dark before we've gathered everything we need," Malin pointed out.
"I understand this isn't the greatest suggestion considering the circumstances, but wouldn't it be better to split into pairings so we can scope out the area, while also getting a better start on collecting resources?" Ulva asked.
While the rest of her team discussed matters, Variann's suspicions rose. There was definitely something strange. As they talked, she counted their heartbeats. Her eyes fell upon Sem's chest, scanning his rhythms, and when she looked to Malin—her brows twitched and furrowed. Something stood out more about Malin than the others, and just to be sure, her focus traded between those of Kenrir, Sem, and Ulva before falling back on Malin again. Variann grew tense, as she turned her focus upon herself, covering her ears over her dampening hood. The next moment, her eyes were closed as her breathing grew heavy.
"That would be dangerous. If we're spread too far, it would risk our ability to make immediate contact should we run in with whatever is out here," Kenrir answered.
"We can't leave the village unguarded, but we can't allow the resources to run much lower either," Sem admitted.
"If there were something this close to the village though, don't you think we would've found it by now with Vari here?" Ulva interjected.
At that moment, Variann grunted, and the others turned their gazes upon her to see the dismantled strain on her face.
"They're wrong... They're all wrong..." Variann's raspy voice trembled.
"Vari...?" Sem questioned in concern, his body language shifting to her slightly.
Variann sharply gasped, bearing her teeth as her eyes opened. Her sights had focused on Malin intensely.
"Malin— Your heartbeat... Why hasn't it changed?!" Her eyes were watery, as turmoil was splattered within her gaze.
Malin's eyes widened in a shocking concern. He was puzzled, and everyone froze with a similar reaction as a slight tension was on the rise.
"'My heart...?'" he asked, "Variann, what are you saying?"
Kenrir stepped forward, instinctively driven towards his pupil.
"Vari, what's wrong?"
Variann's hands began trembling, as she was slightly slouching in her stance while her eyes convulsed rapidly, dilating and constricting in a rhythm of question and fear. The wavelengths stormed throughout her body, as every changing fiber within her became apparent and caused her senses to scream.
Back on the outskirts of the village, within the property of the temple grounds, Cheiro and Sheila had returned together from the woods.
"Lady Cheiro, you have returned," said one of the suppliers as they approached. "We've finished with our deliveries here and are about to head back," they explained. "Were you able to find the one you were looking for?"
"Yes, thank you for all your help today. Though I'm afraid I must ask you for one more favor before you go," Cheiro insisted, as she carefully held Sheila's arms below her shoulders.
The individual talking with Cheiro noticed the young woman, whose eyes were looking away in some form of thought.
"This young lady here appears to have come down with something, and as a personal favor from me, I would ask that you take her back with you to see what she needs if I may," requested Cheiro.
The individual paused, as they considered the request.
"As a personal favor to you, I will fulfill this request, but it would help if you could describe her symptoms for analysis."
Cheiro nodded in understanding, and upon describing Sheila's experiences as best she could, the individual looked to Sheila, considering that perhaps there was more to the story that Cheiro had revealed.
"I understand. We shall take her back with us and ensure she gets the attention she needs," they soon replied.
The individual went to gather the others, and with their wagon collected, the same individual returned to Cheiro's side.
"Please miss, come with me," they instructed Sheila, as they reach out to patiently offer their hand.
Something that stood out about these individuals that were traveling with Cheiro, was that they were each wearing masks adorned in plates of a similar shade to gold. Most of them looked similar to that of a plague doctor design, but more compact, with a flat beak design which curved down over their chin, and there are whiteout lenses for the eyes. Not only that, but they also wore light robes, which hooded their surrounding features. However, the features for this individual's mask is only the top half, which was showing off their mouth as they spoke in a restricted fashion. They also wore special gloves which had narrow plating pieces over where their nails would be.
Sheila was familiar with this group of people, as they often worked in deliveries, similar to her group. However, these individuals had their reasons to conceal their identities, and it was unclear as for what purpose. It was to everyone's benefit, that much like the rest of the people, they were here to help maintain the livelihood of the village—serving as traders to benefit them, and the people of the village.
Sheila reached out her hand with uncertainty, and as it touched the hand of the half-masked individual, their masked face shifted slightly as they eyed Sheila's nervous expression.
"You don't have to worry about me, we're only here to help," the figure assured her.
By this point, Sheila was starting to look a bit tired, and the two began walking alongside together as the small caravan of traders moved along back towards the village. Cheiro on the other hand, took a moment to brush out her dress before heading into the temple property to refresh her memory on the lay of the land. She knew that Alena and the others would soon return, and needed to prepare for the additional tasks she had ahead.
Back with the others, Alena stood surrounded. Her friends kept her company after Sheila departed with Chiero, and the twins soon remembered why they came out to their special spot. There was still training to be done as they had agreed to help fill in for Alena's lessons, to who of which was staring off into the distance.
"Well, I guess we should get on with today's lessons," said Ania, "It wouldn't do us any good to stand around." Ania moved closer to Alena, as she placed a paw on Alena's shoulder. "Come on, Sheila will be alright, and we need to work on your training," she added.
Alena's graze turned upon her dear friend, and as she studied Ania's eyes in silence, she soon subtly nodded. Yonka then approached, and resting her hand on Alena's other shoulder, chimed in.
"I know you haven't seen much of Sheila since we've been away, but she's a strong woman, and with her talent I'm sure she'll figure it out—so don't worry about it," said Yonka. She was confident in Sheila's capabilities.
Just then, Tika and Maulana circled around in front of Alena, and each of them took one of her paws as they pulled Alena forward. They led her a few steps ahead, and Alena seemed a bit surprised—like she wasn't sure what to focus on—before they released her and took a couple steps away.
"Do you recall our lessons from yesterday?" Tika asked Alena.
"I... remember a few things," replied Alena hesitantly.
"We're going to practice a few of those techniques with you," Maulana added in.
"It's always good to have a refresher, especially when you're just starting out," said Tika.
"Not only that, but Ania and I have a few things of our own to show you, so, we hope you're still a fast learner," stated Yonka, "You're going to need all the help you can get if you're going to excel."
As Tika and Maulana spoke, her eyes remained on them, just looking over shoulder to shoulder as to give her attention to each of those speaking around her.
Ania nodded in agreement with her arms crossed.
"That's right! And as a fellow paw type, I've got some very special lessons for you!" she insisted with an eccentric pride.
Tika and Maulana gave Ania an understanding glance as their eyes traversed between her and Yonka. They felt it was a privilege to help Alena with her lessons, and potentially see new techniques brought up by those more experienced than themselves.
"Are you ready Alena? Let's get those arms up," Tika instructed Alena with a bold grin. She gently grabbed Alena's wrists, and directed her to bend her arms up at the elbow so her paws were held out in front of her.
Alena gazed upon Tika's kind smile, then eyed her directed limbs. Now, we pass the time as Alena undergoes her training. Tika and Maulana walked Alena through her basic punches, and demonstrated the motions their class practiced with Kenrir's direction prior, even showing her a few techniques from even earlier lessons before Alena's attendance. Alena noticed how similar her punches felt to when she was doing instinct training with Kenrir, remembering just how tantalizing the strand of yarn was that he held. In this new session, Alena did her best under the supervision of Ania and Yonka—as well as her friends—though her balance still wasn't perfect. After a couple hours, Yonka took over the lessons, and showed Alena some of her own techniques. Alena found these lessons a bit easier to replicate as they continued. Tika and Maulana observed these lessons with fascination, even trying a few of the techniques for themselves. When it came to being Ania's turn to teach, everyone listened closely—especially Alena—while Ania's sister Yonka stood back to observe while bearing a smile.
"Alright! Now my dear Alena, watch closely. This is something every paw-type nekomata like ourselves should know," Ania said as she held her paws out in front of Alena. She made her retracted claws the center of focus, and as she flexed the muscles in her digits, her claws and dewclaws extended out—giving a more fierce display. Alena, seeing this, raised her paws up facing herself and proceeded to open and close her digits as she tried to understand the concept while looking at them.
Unlike cats of the real world, it was common for a ten year old nekomata to not yet have a grasp on this natural function. It wasn't often that they would instinctively kneed something, regardless of whether they had paws or not.
"You see Alena?" Ania began to say, catching Alena's attention, "We paw types have the upper hand when it comes to our counterparts, and it's all thanks to our additional natural defenses."
While speaking, Ania was very expressive, showing off an almost spontaneous flurry of attacks. With her claws extended out, she thrusted her open paws forward one after the other towards Alena, and followed up by lowering herself—bending at the knees slightly—before throwing up one of her paws straight up with an outstretched arm, which shifted her gravity in the process.She was quite proud of the traits she bore, and wore a large grin. "Now are you ready to learn some of my own personal skills?" she asked Alena. Alena blinked twice, her mouth open and eyes wide in amazement. A moment later, she sealed her lips to nod with a hum that matched her approval. Ania immediately pumped her elbows to each side, one after the other, and threw her paw down towards the ground expressively as she spoke once again, hyped up for the lessons ahead.
"Okay then, get ready! This is going to be a STORM!" Ania declared.