Vega asked, "Tell me Madam Gloria, how much were you told of our domain before coming here?"
Gloria glanced at the towering gothic castle and then around her at the village as they entered. The first thing she noticed was that there were more than were wolves, there were other mammalian apex predators such as bears or tigers... but they appeared to be traders, carrying sacks of things. With a glance it appeared to be a barter system, she didn't see any sign of currency being exchanged between merchants and travelers.
Also... they were ALL big, all of them easily towering over her, males and female alike, even the cubs looked like they could tear a normal human limb from limb.
She also noticed that while there were plenty of decorations, from jewelry to dying fur in odd colors, none of it was built for modesty, and their fur covered anything scandalous anyway.
"Honestly, I was just told, come here, and try to get an alliance formed." Gloria realized that might not have been best to say when negotiating, but she wouldn't have time for subtly and she had a feeling these were-beasts didn't care much for such things.
"... Then let me warn you. This is our domain. Our realm. Our reality. There is NO LAW preventing any beast here from granting you, an outsider, the Gift and making you part of their pack if they believe you can contribute, and the reward outweighs the risk. It is considered a fundamental RIGHT for any beast to spread the gift on anyone they deem worthy while in our own domain. So stay close to me, as it's a sign that you are under my jurisdiction here."
Gloria nodded. She realized every werewolf, from the adults to the cubs were eyeing her, gauging her and seeing Vega with her, averted their eyes.
"And since I know the Un-gifted tend to misunderstand our Gift. It is not a... how did Princess Winery put it? Oh yes, it is not a 'comic book superpower' where you are still you just with shape shifting powers added on top... When Gifted, you immediately gain a sense of belonging and loyalty to your new pack, you see the Gift as indeed a gift, and understand that The Alphas are our leaders and protectors to be heeded... Contrary to what you might have heard, our leader is not simply the biggest bully. You also gain a deeper connection to nature's law... "
"Which one?"
"That life and death are joined at the hip. The moon-grass dies so deer-folk live, the deer-folk die so we live, and that anything alive is expected to fight for its life to the bitter end, and above everything, to hold no grudge no matter which way it goes."
"Do you really live like that?"
"A deer-folk killed my older brother when I was a cub... But thanks to the Gift, I understood the deer-folk did what they did to live another day, same as us. I hear he still wears my brother's bones as a sign of respect. It's why in spite of the many innovation Princess Winery's has suggested, we have not accepted as any new hunting tools except what we're born with... it would unbalance things."
"The 'circle of life' thing, got it."
"The what?"
"Never mind."
Gloria wondered what advantage were-wolves brought to the table... unless the idea was to infect the bad guys... they didn't seem to be all that technologically advanced even compared to modern humans... and she didn't see them using magic left and right... she wondered what they'd bring to the table after Gloria got their assistance for protecting Winery's.
"Excuse me, it seems a hunt has wandered back close to home," Vega said sniffing the air.
Gloria stiffened as she saw a bronze blur skid nearby, spot the village and began to double back, only for three large silver blurs to catch up with him and circle around him.
It was a huge deer man, surrounded by three werewolves.
The deer was huge, buff, with antlers that could skewer a man with easy, he was even taller than the werewolves. The deer man moved like a blur, kicking one the wolfvess jaw with a left off and shattering the jaw bone, sending the wolf on his back with a shudder that left an impact crater. But the were-wolf got up a bit later, his jaw already perfectly heeled.
The deer had caught another of the wolves strikes and slammed him into the ground Judo style, only to be caught off guard by the third wolf... The deer's hoof hands flashed silver, leaving deep cuts in the third wolf's arms, blood staining his fur, and was kicked off so hard he went flying.
The first werewolf moved like lightning, leaving an after image, and was stabbed in eight places by the buck's horns, and was then stabbed in the stomach with his silver hand hooves, making the wolf gasp out and fall to his knees.
'I guess silver really is the only thing that can bypass their healing factor,' Gloria though.
The thrown down werewolf got his footing back, and zigzagged, the deer ripped his horns free of the stabbed wolf, leaving racks across the wolf's chest (Gloria noticed the buck's horns also had silver tips, she wasn't sure if they were added on... or were in fact some natural growth from their unique evolution on this alien world) ... and aimed his silver hooves right at the were-wolf's throat and in a flash, the buck fell, his own throat slashed.
The buck and his killer exchanged looks as life leaked out of him.
And.. there was no look of fear or hatred in the deer man's eyes he moved onto his next life... And there wasn't any look of sadism or contempt in the werewolf's expression, more like... looking at his prey with respect as he died.
'He's right. They aren't humans with the superpower to turn into wolves... maybe King Lycaon had been... but these were wolves, they didn't follow human morality, they had their own moral code.'
-
The magical energy covered Villar in a mass of shadows, and the blob of darkness got bigger, and bigger, until it took up much of Circle's thrown room. And it took the shape of something quadruped, skinny and elongated, the nine long limbs behind it's legs moving like intent with red flames burning from the tips.
It might have been shaped like a nine-tailed kitsune... but this was only a seeming, like how a parasitic vampire's spirit possessing a corpse might have looked still human, but this was a facade. This was a mass of shadows with glowing red eyes, towering over Morgan.
The terror spoke in Villar's voice, "I was raised by a kitsune blinded by tradition obsessed with his own kind, in a timeline where they all remained sterile, you think that logically they WOULDN'T have given me this form? Though I've made several improvement since them... I am beyond any of their pompous kind as much as Lilith is beyond any other demon. Consider this an honor oh Morgan Le Fey Reborn... I have not had to use this form in a long time."
"Which means you're out of practice, which means you're desperate. In order others, you're scared I'm going to win," Morgan said simply.