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It was late, Kit had fallen asleep in his arms again, it was a feeling Kieran couldn't believe he was getting used to. The great warmth and enjoyment of the little weasel in his arms, the responsibility he felt towards him. This weak boy who had a harder and tougher life than Kieran, and it didn't even show or register to anyone. Not weak as in weakness, but weak as in powerless. Kit was powerless against the world, and until recently, Kieran had been as well. But now Kieran had agency. Kieran was free, and he could do something.

The fresh night air hit his muzzle and cooled his brow as he stepped out onto deck. The creaking of the planks from the ship's movement masked his silent advance towards the bow of the ship. He couldn't risk running into another secret congress again, so he kept low, silent and out of the tail wind. Duck was sitting cross-legged alone on top of the forecastle, scouting out the horizon in front of the ship.

"What is it really that we are after on this ship?" Kieran asked duck after a long silence, where the two had just stared out across the ocean.

"You are after the secret that the captain holds. I am after Krish."

"Why the tiger?"

"It's a long story... Do you have anything to tell me?"

"I have news about the captain and Kit..." Kieran said. "It's his deepest secret..."

"And that is...?"

"I'll tell you once you tell me why I should. It was really hard to get this information, and I feel like I've hurt Kit. I want to know why." Kieran protested, his voice cracking, but holding its defiant tone. He'd expected Duck to be firmer with him, but the spotted face showed resignation. He sighed and looked out across the ocean.

"Very well." He spoke out to the wind "I'm after the tiger, because the tiger is a dangerous man who knows too much, and has told too many secrets."

"What kind of secrets?"

"He's a member of my order, my... secret circles... suddenly one day, he started selling our secrets to our enemies. That ring... Do you have the ring still?"

Kieran had almost forgotten about the cheap trinket he had slung across his neck, a red stone on a gold, or gold looking ring.

"We all have these rings. This one was from the tiger, you remember. The other one."

Kieran nodded, the images kept cropping up in his dreams every now and then.

"That tiger knew too much, so I took care of him. This tiger knows too much, but we've got to bring him to justice, so that we can learn who he reports to."

"But you just talked to him, I'm sure I heard it. The other night, you and Krish were having a conversation" Kieran scratched his head, he couldn't make heads or tails of it.

"In a way, he knows who I am. In a way, he does not." Duck said simply "To him, I am a secret agent investigating the captain for high treason. He doesn't know how or why I've reached this conclusion, but he seems happy enough to let me get on with it. But unbeknownst to him, I've got my nose squarely on him."

"Then... the captain... is not a target? Why am I then still to investigate the captain? I thought I was here to help" Kieran protested

"You are helping. You are distracting Knish's attention away from my own investigations. I've told him that I'm investigating the captain, of course, it must then look like I'm actually doing that. That is where you come in."

"How is your investigation going then? How long must I pretend to investigate the captain?"

Duck smiled "Rather badly, I'm afraid. I can't find more out about the tiger, he's too private. I suspect a paper trail, documents or parchments detailing his transactions or dealings. He must keep something hidden in his room, which is just underneath us. And yet so far away."

Kieran shifted uneasily around, hoping sound didn't penetrate this roof and into the tiger's room, like light and water penetrated the deck and into Kieran and Kit's kitchen. It must have been safe, because Duck kept talking when he asked questions.

"So, the trick will be how to get into his room?" Kieran asked

"Kieran, I told you, you have a job, investigate the captain..."

"... He's a slave... The captain's property. Not that this information matters. "Kieran interrupted. He didn't feel good about it. He'd been under orders, but he didn't like it, and he found he really didn't want to go deeper into detail about what they had discussed

"A slave. I see." Ducks eyes opened, and he broke off his contemplative stare out over the ocean to look at Kieran "Are you sure?"

"There's nothing to not be sure about, Kit told me so himself."

"And he just told you?"

"I did what you said. Whatever it took, remember..." Kieran muttered. He got that old feeling that he was being used, but he didn't understand for what. "But... I want to do something for him in return. I want to take him with me."

Duck nodded and held up a paw.

"Kieran, sometimes you're almost like an open book. Don't take it the wrong way, but your feelings for this boy are out in the open, and every word you utter is delivered with his interests in mind." Duck smiled, but his eyes were serious and hard "Don't let him affect your judgement"

"Oh... Like you affected it? He's not like that, Duck. I trust him with my life, remember."

"I remember Kieran, as I said, please don't take it the wrong way. I admire your spirit, and you clearly fight for that which you think is right. I just happen to think you're being a bit rash and quick here." Duck sighed "That being said... We may need the help of Kit."

"How?"

Duck smiled. "I have a feeling Krish doesn't trust me. He lies to me. He might already know that I'm onto him. In short Kieran, I consider myself compromised. And so are you. But that boy is not."

"You can't mean..." Kieran's eyes went wide. "Isn't Krish dangerous?"

"It's the only way to get the truth from that tiger. We must know who he reports to, who is Knish's actual boss. We must use someone who he doesn't suspect"

"I can't. It's too much to ask, He doesn't deserve to be put in danger, I will take his place if I must. Whatever it may take."

"Kieran, it will not work, Krish thinks you are my assistant, and will be suspicious of you."

Kieran's shoulders sagged; his ears flat.

"Kieran, I'm sorry. I know it's not fair. But it's the only way. You said the boy could be useful, did you not? Stay away from Krish for now, but think on what I said, are we clear?"

"I didn't know it'd be like this." Kieran sighed. Their eyes looked to the horizon again. Duck's paw rested across Kieran's shoulders, and he pulled him closer. It was not a hug, but close enough that Kieran felt his body's warmth against his own.

"Be strong Kieran. We'll make it through this, you have my word."

Kit was in a deep slumber when Kieran returned from his midnight walk. He looked so peaceful where he lay, Kieran felt bad for him. As he laid in the bed that night, He drew a list with his finger in the air in front of him, dotting out a plan, then crossing it out, imagining the words of a parchment, and the strike of the pen as the words were writ and undone.

"Step one, follow Krish during night. Remember good eyes." Kieran mumbled to himself, trying out the letters with his fingers. Would the tiger be out during night? He couldn't remember having seen him out, Kieran had only ever ventured outside very late, when everyone was in bed already.

"Step two, ask Kit... To..." Ask Kit to what, exactly? He only needed Kit to get close to him, there was no need to do anything, just talk, maybe distract him. Maybe Krish kept a diary or log on himself? Maybe he hid some possession of great significance somewhere on his body? Could Kit try to lift it from him? Kit wasn't a pickpocket; he shouldn't consider this.

"Step... two... Get closer to him. One way or the other" He gestured to the air. If Kit couldn't help, Maybe Kieran could do it? He only needed to talk to the brute, he didn't need to do anything he didn't want to. Why weren't there more steps? He'd like to get past that uncomfortable impasse.

His friend was sleeping next to him, unbothered by the complexities of the job that Kieran needed to do. He didn't dare to disobey Duck. He owed everything to him. But Kit had suffered enough, and Kieran felt protective of him too. He'd gone through so much more than Kieran, so it was only fair.

The next few days, Kieran made it a point to scrub the floors around the top deck, where Krish stood, guiding the ship and staring into the distance morosely. Kieran had tried to small talk with Krish, but he didn't so much as pay attention to him. He knew it was dangerous for him to get close to the tiger. He knew the tiger knew that he was working for Duck.

Kieran noticed that he retreated to the forecastle every evening when the sails had been furled. He knew that the forecastle was where Krish resided, but neither at day nor night would there be an option to inspect the place. The door was in direct line of sight from the top deck, and Krish always had his eyes out forward. Apart from when he ate or slept. But Kieran had his duties still and could not run off when there was food to be made. Kieran had even proposed to scrub the inside of Knish's room, but the tiger had blankly refused him entry.

"You have to be careful, Kieran." Kit said, a few days after. "You're making yourself obvious. Even I can tell what you're up to."

"You can?" Kieran's ears flattened. "I'm..."

"You want to get closer to the tiger, but he seems especially reserved for you. I don't know why, I mean, even I can get him to talk, it's just that he'll never say anything worthwhile."

Kieran wasn't so sure that the whole sneaking around thing wasn't a better option. But he'd need to get the tiger out of his room in the forecastle and distract him. He couldn't get close to him. Kit might.

"It's not so easy..." Kieran was absently looking into the blank space between the roof planks above their heads, but he trailed off, the fox had already started working out a plan.

Would it be safer to tell Kit, or would it be nobler to take the risk himself and leave Kit in his safe ignorance? Even if all went wrong, and he was discovered, who could say Krish wouldn't come for Kit after? His plan needed to place Kit at the safest place he could place him. Pieces of the puzzle were starting to fall into place, but he couldn't reveal the plan just yet.

He found Duck on the forecastle, by the bowsprit where the spotted dog had made his place of meditation. His legs crossed, his paws resting on his knees. He seemed to try to absorb the moonlight with his body. He didn't even stir when Kieran sat down next to him.

"You're taking great risks when seeing me like this. I just hope you're aware of these risks, Young Fox" He spoke into the wind, eyes closed.

"I think I know how to deal with Krish, but I might need your help." Kieran sighed "and I need Kit's help too. He wants to help but he doesn't know how dangerous it is"

"Kieran, but you're ignoring my orders..." There was no harshness in Ducks voice, however. He sounded more intrigued than cautioning.

"Only a little" He said, "I shouldn't be on the captain's tail all the time, it'd be too obvious, especially not when I'm already so close to Kit."

"Well said" Duck nodded "Carry on"

"I really want Kit to not come into any harm. I want you to keep an eye on him. My plan involves him talking to Krish. But I don't know what might happen and I want to be sure he is safe."

Duck opened his eyes and fixed them on the fox. He was sitting cross-legged like Duck, in a bid to find the secret to a calm heart, but it didn't work. Kieran did not find any truths, and his heart was pounding.

"Your dedication to this boy is admirable, Kieran, but I don't want you to place yourself in greater danger than him because of this."

"I will sneak into the tiger's room. It must be me. I can read letters, and move silently, but I cannot deal with a fully-grown tiger. Kieran will be able to talk with the tiger, perhaps even keep him in a conversation, and keep him distracted. But he will not be able to stop Krish if he gets violent..."

"... and that's where I come in? You've given this some thought, Kieran, that is good. You show promise." Duck smiled

If only Duck knew how he struggled with numbers and letters, he wouldn't be so quick to praise. But the praise felt amazing. It was like a flood of warmth washed through him, and every word that came out of Duck's muzzle was exactly what he needed for courage. His little tail batted softly against the deck.

"Do you think it will work?"

"That now hinges entirely on your friend." Duck scratched his chin, like he did when he was unsure about something. "I dearly want to avoid a fight with the tiger. I have never seen him in combat, but he has the scars to prove that he's no pushover."

"You don't think you could take him?"

"He's not like that other tiger you saw. That one was a nobleman. He had only swung that sword in the shop where he bought it. This tiger has the scars of many battles, He could be a challenge, he could be an old cat. But the uncertainty about him is his greatest weapon against us. that's why I want you to solve this in such a way that it doesn't provoke aggression. He must not suspect a thing when we reach land."

"I think I can do that, just tell me what I am looking for." Kieran's heart pounded, but he was feeling better already.

"Anything with this seal on it." Duck stuck a finger into Kieran's thick chest fur and pulled out the necklace with the ring on. "If you see anything that has this writing on it, then you must copy it down, or remember its words. Look for names. The name of people, castles, towns and places."

Kieran studied the ring in the moonlight. When he looked directly at the ruby in the middle, he could see a tiny picture underneath it, shining in the moonlight. The picture was small, but very intricate. It consisted of two eyes and looked as though the eyes stared back at whoever looked at them. Underneath the eyes, there was a tiny piece of writing that Kieran could read, but it was in a different language, not Castellanian. 'Quis Separabit'

"Keep an eye out, Kieran. We will talk again. Leave now."

Returning to bed, he found Kit sleeping. It always made such an impact on him how peaceful and content the boy looked in his sleep. Was he not haunted by the terrible dreams Kieran sometimes had? Did he have wonderful dreams about Kieran too? Kit's dreams must be ten times worse, but he seemed to take them in his stride, like he took all the pain life had given him. It struck Kieran how strong Kit must be.

He took the boys paw, and gently placed it across his chest, as he got into bed. The warmth was good to him, and Kit reacted by digging his fingers into the long black pelt. Kieran couldn't sleep for the worries in his head about his newly laid plan.

The following day's evening, preparing supper went slower than usual. There was a dark cloud of doubt over Kieran's head, his resolve and confidence in his plan had blown away like the vapor as he removed the lid of the great cauldron in which he prepared the food. His heart told him to reconsider or find some other way. He needed to feel Kit was safe in order to calm down. If Kieran could only pull this off, Kit would have proven himself to Duck, and He would let him bring the weasel off the ship.

"Kit, I have something to ask you..." Kieran hesitated, as they were cleaning out the empty mess hall.

"Oh, have you given up on this quest to... eh... Get to know the tiger?" His eyebrow was raised, but there was real concern in his voice

"Not... not quite." Kieran pulled him along and set him down on the bed. The nook was the most secluded space they could be right now "I have something to ask you, something very, very big"

"How big?"

"I need help sneaking into Krish's room"

Kit stared at him like he was going to explain the joke

"You're not actually serious, you're not going to actually sneak into the room of the biggest, scariest tiger on the crew?" Kit shook his head incredulously. "And you want my help?"

"Duck thinks it's a good idea, actually" Kieran protested "You only need to talk to him, keep him distracted, I'll do all the dirty work, and Duck will keep you safe if anything happens, He keeps a watch at night"

"I don't know Kieran... It feels a bit rushed; don't you think?"

"I've thought it through, Kit, I promise nothing bad will happen to you. I don't intend for him to find out that anything ever happened. I'm not going to steal anything; I just need to look at some papers."

Inside Kieran, however, doubt was flowing over, he had hoped, Kit wouldn't question him, or his methods. He was worrying himself sick over every little detail that could go wrong, and how it'd all be his fault if it did. What if Duck wasn't quick enough, or the tiger was too dangerous.

Kieran didn't know why he did it, but he took Kit's shoulders with his paws, and turned him towards himself. Kit's white fur was so pure, so unspoilt, his face questioning, his eyes blank, slightly confused. It showed no signs of what the boy had seen or been through. Kieran didn't know what he was doing, but he couldn't think of anything else to say. He needed Kit to understand the importance of this. He pulled him close to his muzzle and placed a kiss on his cheek. He had hoped it would erase some of his doubts, but all that happened was that more worries came and took the place of the old ones.

"Very well, fox." Kit smiled after a long pause, looking into his eyes and leaning into the embrace. "I guess you've got a glib tongue..."

Kieran grinned. He felt strong again, the strength he had felt the last time he'd made a major choice, and walked out of that bar, that fateful night almost two months ago. Kieran was making his own decisions, and he had decided to protect this weasel with his life.

A few uneventful nights had passed where Krish had retreated to his forecastle too early or had been preoccupied with other matters and there hadn't been a chance to execute the plan. This night, a favourable wind was blowing. Krish was going to take advantage of it, and sail into the night for a while before he turned in. Kit had made sure to get the job of second mate, as the crew jokingly called it. Kit's job was to stay up there and keep him company, and when the time came for the sails to be raised, to climb down and wake some of the crew to pack the sails for the night.

"You know what you have to do?" Kieran asked Kit

"I understand, Fox. Just be careful, okay?" Kit said, a worried look in his eyes, but Kieran was too busy thinking about his plan.

As Kit wandered up to Krish with his meal, Kieran kept a close watch from behind some barrels on deck that would hide him, while he waited for darkness to descent. In the silent night he could hear voices exchanging, one deep and rumbling, distant and confident, and another, timid, high voice with a hint of allure to it.

When he looked up the tiger had his back to him, chatting away with Kit. It was now and never. He hoped this would work. He glanced up at the crow's nest where Duck had sconced himself, some 50 feet above deck. In the rapidly descending night, he was almost invisible, but not to Kieran. If the tiger paid attention to him, he'd not be invisible to him either. But Krish was occupied.

Kieran snuck up to the door leading into the forecastle and tried the handle. It slid open with a gentle creak. Kieran looked back at the noise, but the tiger had his ears pointing the other way, it seemed to have worked. Kieran opened the door to the bare minimum and slid inside closing the door carefully behind him. Inside the little room was a burning candle. Its meagre light illuminated the sparsely furnished room. There was a great chest in the foot end of a large bed, both in the far forward corner of the room. The walls around the bed tapered to a point, marking the very bow of the ship. Kieran found himself directly underneath where his nightly meetings with Duck had taken place, but he'd never realised how close the tiger was to their conversations.

The candlestick which was placed on a heavy looking table with claw marks and scratches on it. On the table, several books were scattered, whose letters were printed, not written. Kieran looked past these books. He noticed a few red spots of candlewax on the table, and underneath some parchments, he found a small metal plate the size of a coin, with a little handle on the back, and the inscription "Quis Separabit" written out back to front. His head did some mental calculation before realising the meaning of this item. Somewhere around here there was more evidence. He carefully replaced the metal item back where he'd found it and stalked around the room to where the large chest was.

Its lock was not particularly intricate, Kieran pulled out his slender pocketknife, and picked around inside the lock until he could twist the blade. A gentle click came from the lock, then the latch slid across. With a considerable heave, he opened the chest.

Inside the chest, riches beyond his imagination met his eyes. There was jewellery, and precious stones and gold everywhere. Magnificently bound books, and daggers with intricately carved blades. A pair of matching of pistols with ebony inlays and gold scrollwork rested on top of the real treasure, he noticed. A sealed parchment. The seal was the same as he'd seen on the desk, and the candle wax was of the same colour. It was ready to be sent, but there was no way to send it here from the ship. This must be what Duck wanted him to find.

He slid his knife underneath the wax seal, careful as to keep the image intact, and popped it free of the paper it was melted to. He unrolled the parchment and read, as quietly as he could. He had not yet learned to read without moving his lips, but he didn't have to say the words out loud for his own benefit anymore. He struggled with the letters, which simply wouldn't stay on the page, but there was no wine here to calm his eyes, so he forced himself to read on.

There was a lot of mention in the letter about some brother of a prince, and a secret agent. Kieran couldn't make sense of the longer words, so he skipped those. There were no names named in the letter, but Kieran could pick out some words he thought were nicknames, or code. The Master, The Brother of The Prince, who was being hunted by someone called the Raj. The Raj reported his secret to a stranger. The stranger came from the Order. But that was all Kieran could gather, before there were two gentle taps at the roof, and a knocking sound. He jumped and startled so violently that he knocked over an inkpot, which spilled out onto the parchment.

Kieran hissed a curse, and grabbed the parchment, replacing the ink pot in its place. It was completely covered in black ink, all over the text. The inkpot had only spilled on that parchment, but it was ruined. He couldn't make out a single word underneath the black stain. He cursed again, as two more taps came from the roof, more urgent now. A warning. Something was about to happen.

Hurriedly he packed the parchment back into the chest and struggled to avoid slamming the heavy lid down on his fingers. There were footsteps coming from outside the forecastle front door. Two heavy shuffling footsteps, and two smaller, skittering footsteps. Like they were slipping on the deck constantly. Was Kit seriously coming along with Krish into his room? What was going on?

Kieran made a rash decision and dove under the bed as quick as he could. There was a click then a creak at the door. Cold moonlight was thrown onto the floor and the warm, but weak light of the candle dissipated. Kieran quietly crept further under the bed; the beam of light could not touch him from where he hid. He saw the tigers two great feet, heavy and planted firmly, and the saw Kit's feet, struggling to keep footing, as if there was no weight over them.

He could hear Kits choked protests. He cursed himself for putting Kit in this, and Kit for putting himself in it, and Krish. He cursed the tiger under his breath until he could not think of any more curses. His heart was racing, his mind was racing. There was a creaking from the bed and the mattress sank into the frame with the tiger's massive bulk on top. Kits yells of protest were muffled by some fabric or the tiger's paws, but Kieran was so close he could hear the breath whistling in the tiger's nose ring.

Kieran thought he could hide in silence at first. He thought he could just wait until it was over, and then rescue Kit later. They were struggling on top of him now, there was a sound of tearing of cloth. In his mind's eye, he could see everything with clarity. The tiger on top, clutching the scruff and tail. His own body pushed down into the mattress forcefully as Krish growled at him to stay quiet. His visions alternated between an otter and a tiger, as they alternated between Kit and himself in the victim's position. He thought back to the captain, and the otter changed to an Aardwolf, a great brown and black striped canine with a stubby bushy tail. Kieran's body, underneath, changed to Kit's. With red stripes across his back and his cursed stare.

Kieran still had a knife. His heart pounding, he grasped the tiny blade. It was sharp enough to cut. It only required one jab, a quick one to the neck, or maybe the heart. Whatever was the best place to strike. He thought about the other tiger. Neck, definitely. It was soft and white and yielding to his touch. He shook his head and focused on the task at hand, his breathing growing thick and heavy. A quick strike, then a slice. Down or up or across. Kieran hadn't decided. But he felt strong again. Kit's protestation, again. A pained moan. Not again. No. Never. Never again.

Kieran had always been the contemplative, hesitant one. The quiet one. He had always just allowed atrocities to happen to him, but when he heard the pitiful whine of protest and sobbing voice of Kit, his body simply moved on its own. He shot from out of the bed quickly and silently. The tiger didn't realise he was there, he was too preoccupied with his work. His neck was exposed, he sat across Kit's thighs, holding Kit's arms against his back, like Kieran had once been pinned. The hate that emanated from him now eclipsed every feeling he had ever felt. He focused his eyes on the tiger's neck and thrust the blade forwards. It plunged into the side of Knish's neck. The tiger recoiled, as Kieran leaned his entire body mass in, plunging the knife to the hilt.

Krish swept him away with a giant paw and clutched at his neck. His wild eyes caught Kieran where he laid sprawled from the force of the impact. Kieran hadn't accounted for his immense strength, and lay staggered on the floor, watching the tiger climb off Kit with a dazed, confused look. There was a thick stream of blood coming from his neck, a sickening splash like the sound of spilling wine came as the blood hit the floor. He stalked up to Kieran where he lay, still clutching the blood-soaked knife. As he looked up, another paw descended, aimed at his head. He rolled forward, and Krish almost tripped over him, kicking him roughly as he fought for balance following through his lunge.

Kieran scrambled to his feet in a second, and held the knife out in front of him, His entire world focused on the tiger with the bloody neck. It was only a matter of time before that beast bled out. Kieran only had to survive. Protect Kit, then survive, then come what may. Krish studied the outstretched knife. He wanted to taunt but seemed unable to find a voice to pronounce any words with. Kieran must have hit something important. Krish was unable to speak, but that didn't dampen his speed or catlike reflexes or his burning rage. Hate filled the air of the little candlelit room.

In another heartbeat, he had lunged forward at Kieran with claws outstretched. Time slowed down for Kieran, the fox could suddenly observe with clarity every twitch of the cat's muscles, every movement of the cat's whiskers, the way his eyes tracked Kieran's paws and feet constantly, even mid lunge. The lunge itself felt like it was taking several minutes, as the three-inch-long claws came hurling towards him.

Kieran, still stunned, could only dodge, but he was grazed by inch-long claws, leaving a deep gash down his chest. He could feel the unbelievable force behind the swipe, and though it burned and stung, and drops of blood hit the floor, he knew he got away lightly. The heat of the battle had shut out all pain. He fought for balance while the tiger was recovering from the lunge. The push had sent him backing into a corner of the room. Krish regained his posture and grinned at Kieran's wound, his shadow cast across Kieran's entire body.

Another tiger battling another opponent flashed back to Kieran. He saw in his mind, the nobleman's stance, the nobleman's feet planted in a certain way. He could see it all happening slowly. The toes spreading and the food tensing with the effort of moving the body. The forward raked body movement. Low and upwards. If Krish put his foot in one place, the other foot must be somewhere else. Where was Krish putting the balance? It was identical to the nobleman in Kieran's memory. The tiger in the room with Kieran was lunging forward, paw outstretched. It came at Kieran low and sweeping upwards. His left foot hit the floor only a little bit in front of the right one, and he transitioned into the lunge. Kieran saw it all transpire clear as day, and his body acted before he knew what he was doing.

His legs, bent to keep his weight low to the ground, shot out forward. The jump was low like a low flying arrow and sent him directly towards the tiger's pounce. He took the sweeping tiger paw in his and pushed it aside with all his weight. The force of the push caused him to roll mid-air. As his back turned slowly downwards to the floor, he could see the tiger's exposed neck just above him, where he had planned. With the force of the roll behind his arm, he buried his knife in the soft white fur. He'd felt almost no resistance, as if the tiger had been made of vapour, until the knife caught on something, and wrenched out of his grasp.

The tiger flew on forwards, but couldn't catch his lunge, and barrelled headfirst into the wall which Kieran had been backed into just seconds earlier. There was a shudder from Krish as he tried to get up, but when he went to lean himself on his elbow, they slipped in the blood that was flowing from his neck in great quantities. Kieran had avoided his heavy body by sliding between his feet as he travelled the other way on his back, his thick fur protecting against most of the bad splinters, but his back still felt like he'd slept in a nettle field as he got to his feet. The pain from his claw wound started to catch up to him as he laid stunned on the floor. At his feet, a very dead tiger.

There was a cracking, rending sound as the door suddenly shot up, and Duck stood in the opening with his flintlock and sword drawn at the ready, scarf up to cover his muzzle from the sparks and acrid smell. He immediately levelled the pistol at the tiger, but he could see in the shine of the moon that the bullet would have been wasted. For a long time, he only stood there, taking in the scene. Then he finally closed the door, and shut the moonlight out of the scene, with such force that it nearly blew the candle out, and sighed.