Peek: Hellcat Interaction (Patreon)

"Alright, settle down, scouts! You might be officially Rangers now, but there's still important things to learn. A Ranger that thinks they know everything is a Ranger that's not coming back from a patrol."

The instructor's gaze washes over the gathered Rangers before nodding to himself. "Now, while we mostly deal with stagnation monsters, dungeons still have some of the best ways to gain levels. And, once out in the wilderness, it's not unheard of to come across a denizen on expedition, so learning the tells for what they're thinking can save your life. And so, we have a set of three hellcats."

He gestures at three covered cages, then looks back at the gathered scouts. He points at a random elf. "How do you identify a hellcat?"

He looks surprised for a moment, before answering. "Uh... similar size to a bobcat, but not really limited in environment. The simplest way to identify them is from the dark coat and floating flames."

The instructor nods and pulls the cover off the first cage, revealing a large cat lounging inside, a few wisps of flame idly floating around her. "Be careful to count the tails when you spot one. There are a lot of denizens and monsters that look very similar, but have multiple or split tails." He crouches down to look at the creature. "You gonna cooperate and let me show you off?"

The form inside the cage yarns and stands, looking utterly at ease, which is answer enough for him. He opens the cage and the hellcat strolls out, and she lets him pick her up to hold like a housecat, even petting her as he speaks.

"Now, this one is from a toybox dungeon. Hellcats behave much like more ordinary cats, though they're much smarter. They don't speak, but they can understand you to an extent. If you see a hellcat and it seems relaxed, it's likely from a toybox. They're not interested in fighting you, but if you are going to try to hinder them, they will defend themselves. This one is behaving nicely because I'll be taking her out on my next patrol, to let her eat whatever stagnation things she wants, and take the mana back to her dungeon."

He walks around the scouts, letting them pet the hellcat as well, before he returns to the cage and puts her back. He even covers the cage back up before removing the cover from the next one. This one immediately hisses and arches its back, the orbiting flames looking on the verge of exploding. He squats down again to speak to it.

"I know, but you'll be out of there soon." He doesn't show any signs of opening this particular cage. "This one is from a belligerent dungeon. Toybox expeditions are usually curious, but belligerents are cautious. They're out hunting stagnation, and don't want to deal with people at all. If you spot a hellcat fleeing, it's probably from a belligerent, and you should ignore it."

He replaces the cover and pats the cage for a moment, before turning to the last one. When he whips off the cover, flame envelops him. Rather than scream in agony, he trusts in his tough hide to protect him as he smashes through he bars with a hand and grabs the hellcat. He slams it on the ground, stunning it long enough for him to elbow drop it, ending the threat with a crunch. He takes a moment to dust himself off, the scouts gawking, before he speaks up.

"And that one was from a murderous dungeon. They will attack first, and often behave like a stagnation spawn. Deal with them quickly, and be aware of others in the area. Murderous dungeons don't tend to send just one denizen, nor just one expedition. Once you've improved your mana sense, you'll be able to tell the difference between a denizen and a stagnation spawn at a glance, and the difference is important. Stagnation is our job, so be sure to mark down what you eliminate. But if it's a denizen on expedition, that signals a problem for the Dungeoneers to handle. A murderous dungeon can be even more dangerous than a stagnation knot. At least the knots are always out in the middle of nowhere. A dungeon could be located right in the middle of town."

He looks over the scouts one more time, then nods. "We have a murderous one not far from here, young, thankfully. We're going to do our patrol, and you all are going to learn to feel the difference between stagnation and a denizen. The Dungeoneers are working on a quarantine around the dungeon, but there's sure to be ones that have slipped past them. Clear camp, we leave in thirty minutes!"

The scouts quickly disperse, giving him the time to tend to the other hellcats. The belligerent he simply lets go, watching it bolt off as fast as it can move. The toybox one he smiles at while he opens the cage. "Do you want to come hunt murderous expeditions with us, or wait for a quieter hunt?"

The hellcat stretches and calmly walks out to sit in front of him, and he rubs her ears for a moment before standing up. "Alright, but be careful. I've got enough tamed critters already, I don't need to accidentally tame another one." The hellcat continues to look at him, her tail idly swaying as she sees right through his toothless threat. He shakes his head and rumbles in amusement, wondering if he's going to have to explain another tame to his wife.

-Steeff Awren, crocadilekin Ranger