Chapter 5 – Feline Fiesta

 

"Caleb!" Thatti said, from a seemingly translucent image of herself projected from the wand on the floor. "T-thatti?" Caleb said, picking up Headhunter and nervously staring at what may as well have been her ghost to him. "W-what's going on, I just watched you die!" He said.

"I'm fine, I'm okay, I'm okay Caleb, really. Orchidians cannot die from a simple head decapitation alone. But she ate my friend! I'll provide you with the power you need. You need to take the wand and shout 'Jigernaut Splash!' at them, fast." The image said, before becoming blurry and fading away. Shaking, Caleb held the currently golden wand to Petal's blossomed form and yelled. "Jigernaut Splash!" A massive wave of water and bubbles formed around Petal, and all around the archives as it was a massive tidal wave, bursting apart in an explosion of bubbles that engulfed the monster and knocked them through a dozen shelves. Shaking himself to himself, Caleb looked at the water, and was relieved to see Petal reformed into her former state. Running up quickly, Caleb struck his fist at her and punted her stomach. She coughed several times, eventually gagging and spitting out her decapitated head and body. Veronica jumped on a fallen shelf as if it were a raft among an ocean, and Caleb followed suit.

"Good!" The wand said. "Now, put me together, hold the wand up to the body and yell Angelic Lazarus."

Caleb nervously stood over her corpse and grabbed the parts. "But.. but.."

 

"We just put together my head and body. I won't be able to talk to you anymore, but just do what I say."

"I hate girls telling me what to do.." Caleb mumbled, and then cleared his breath. "Mega Heal! Angelic Lazarus!" The imagery of a golden goddess with long blond hair and a heavenly demeanor flew out of the wand, she floated over and began to sing over Thatti's corpse. The

body glowed a golden aura and was consumed with light, the head and body reforming at the same time until they were one. When the light faded, Caleb put the wand in her hand and stepped back. Her eyes opened up once more.

Thatti dusted herself off.

 

"Jigernaut Splash! Code 13: Glacial Thresher!" Ice began to coat Thatti's hands and fingertips, until the frost rode up the wand and emitted out as long, quick shards of ice that impaled Petal. The gem flew back and out the room, knocking several archives over and blasting the lights in one of the rooms. Thatti dusted herself off and ran after her. Soon Petal rose up, taking on her monstrous blossom form once more, the sharkheaded figure glaring down. "You fucking ATE me you psycho gem-trash!" With a grin, she pointed the wand. Headhunter turned into a guillotine which wrapped around Petal's neck. The gem howled, her neck trying to break free from the blade's grip.

 

 

 

"Code 14: Gamma Knife. Get wrecked!"

 

The blade came down and Petal's head went flying.

 

 

 

 

Thatti took a deep breath and laughed. "BOOM! You really thought you could defeat me with that!? That's Karma comin' at 'cha! I'm a daughter of the Domina, I'm not a fucking toy wand or your meal you dumb bitch. You really thought you could kill me with that!?" She crackled hysterically. Caleb and Veronica looked at each other, figuring it best not to question her change in personality and grabbd her arm. "C'mon, we've got to go!"

Petal's head rolled up and out of the way, her neck regrowing in an instant and her body reforming. She attempted to get back up sluggishly in the flooded archive, only for a shelf to fall

on her and poof her into her gem. The other three soon fled the scene, not wanting to be responsible for any of the destruction below. By the time they reached the surface, Thatti had deactivated her transformation and appeared relatively normal again. "Y-you really went crazy there." Caleb shivered. "Not that I'd be any different, you okay?"

The girl smiled. "Y-yeah! Yeah I'm alright, just kinda.. you know." She put a finger to her lips. "I get.. carried away, in my own world I guess." She smiled and nodded, taking a deep breath. The three of them made their way to the surface of the school, which was the rooftop. The day was a cloudless sky. Thatti had no clue how much time had gone by. "So.. you know, I really hate seeing you get hurt like that." She said. "You, and Veronica."

The two students looked at her, and for a second thought about holding her hand, but then decided against it. "Well it was a miracle, thanks for saving us." Veronica said.

 

 

 

Thatti smiled, and scratched her head with the back of her wand. "It's what I do." She rubbed her head. "I didn't get the info I needed. But given how they were willing to kill me, my convictions were only proven more right." She scratched her head. "Just don't do anything that might make you enemies, ok? Cause these 7 Roses are a serious fucking threat. I don't know which one of them is behind all this shit, but I'm sure we'll cross paths sooner or later." "Well, it looks like we're done here." Thatti said. The three of them laughed as the sunset colored the sky purple and violet.

 

 

 

A week later

Thatti sat in front of a Galanet connected computer, trying to do her research. "Gem of Lust, Petal. Aah!" She scratched her head at her notepad document and closed the monitor, her lips pouting in frustration. She needed more info. She couldn't go around being a psycho about the gems like that, atleast according to Caleb.

She leaned back in her seat and sighed.

 

 

 

 

"Thatti? You okay my sis from another his'?" The voice of a girl said behind her. Thatti turned around and looked to see the slender, green skinned figure behind her desk. She held a cup of coffee to the Orchid girl.

"Thank you Jel."

 

She sipped the coffee as she sat. "I was trying to look up info on the Lust Gem." She put a finger to her chin. "And as expected, I came up short."

"You really wanna mess with them, huh?" Jelena asked. Thatti looked up, looking abit dismayed.

"Caleb said you told him you used to be a candidate meister for Glitterkiss. That so?" Thatti nodded.

"Yeah I went through the trials to be a Magus candidate of Chrysanthemum, Orchid's Glitterkiss division. My mom sent me there thinking it'd help me build character. Which is kinda true, but in a pretty bad way. I got, bullied alot there. The school.. was an experience alright. But when I was there.." She sighed, and took a deep breath. "I was really lonely. It was alright, you know?" Thatti shook her head. "I did it for my family, in the end I think they really were right in sending

me there. I grew. I learned to fight, though probably not as well as my mother hoped." She scratched her neck abit. "So long story short.. yeah."

The two girls gave a small smile to each other, and Jel dumped a cup of marshmellows on Thatti's head.

"Glitterkiss is cool." Thatti said, pulling out a marshmellow that fell into her ear.

 

Suddenly Caleb pushed through the door. "Thatti! You're not going to believe it. I made the finals for my karate tournament, and look!" He took out his phone and showed her the final contestant.

"That catgirl we ran into earlier, she calls herself Nefriset. One of Jel and Veronica’s dorky club friends." She was one of the ones on the rooftop that Thatti remembered from earlier. "So she's another gem? Her ears.." She stopped cold. "They look like, Set?"

"Ohhh ohh. She's not. She's a Gem. Look at the orange amber jewel embedded on her shoulder.."

Thatti scratched her head and pondered this. "I see. She's a half-breed." She swallowed. "We're going to win that tournament. Once we beat her, we'll make her talk!"

 

 

The next afternoon

 

 

 

 

Thatti was on the phone with her mother, who was out busy and unable to respond, visiting some important figureheads of hers. She paced the floor as she spoke with her on speaker. "Uhh, Mom? I'm going to do something a little weird, so please listen carefully. I want you to do me a favor and just try to, relax for a bit. But.. don't freak out too much, if you find out what happens

later, you know?" Thatti said, looking at her notebook. "I need you to give me a call at-" She stopped. "I'm sorry, I can't tell you on the phone. I'll text you the time and number when you get this message, it's important to our family. She hung up and returned to the gym bleachers, watching dozens of students practice on the mats, a huge electronic bracket board showing the final two competitors in today's matchup.

"I didn't know Caleb did karate." She said.

 

"And I didn't Gems could hybridize with other beings, let alone Set." Veronica said, beside her. "Surprised they allowed her into this school."

"Yeah." Thatti scratched her head. "Gem-hybrids aren't typically from this school. They're from another world."

"Well, so what? Who cares where you come from or what you are. Only bigots care about that." Jel said, folding her arms. “Oh take it easy, we know you and Sunny are buddies. Snug like a cat and a bug.” Veronica elbowed her. “Just because she cares about your stupid projects and shares your lack of hygenie, doesn’t mean Thatti cannot have her own rivals. Don’t go monopolizing everyone for yourself.” She said.

Thatti looked at her. "Look, I need you guys to do me a favor." She bit her lip. "I'm gonna need to go check something out. I'm just going to be taking a long time, longer than I'd like. I'm going to need the two of you to get me out of it if I start getting, weird."

"Thatti, come on!" Veronica argued. "I can see you're upset but you're acting strange."

 

Thatti smiled. "No, I'm alright." She turned around, to see Nefriset standing by the bracket board. Caleb approached her slowly.

The two stood across from one another. Her skin was a canvas of vibrant orange and black, tiger stripes swirling and dancing across her humanoid form, with almond-shaped eyes that can

flicker between warm brown and a mesmerizing emerald green. The girl was lithe and athletic, limbs slightly elongated, ending in sharp claws that retract when not needed. Behind her, Nefriset's golden complexion was offset by orange-black striped hair flowed like a kiln being lit for bountiful warmth. She bowed, and licked her lips waving at Thatti.

"Uhh.." Thatti cleared her throat. "Can I ask you a question?" She looked around. "Private." She whispered, and the two girls left their seat.

 

 

 

In the lobby, Nefriset sat down on a bench, waiting for Thatti to join her. "What's your name?" Nefriset asked.

"Thatti Nezura. Not very original, I know." She scratched the back of her neck. "You're a Gem?" "I'm a half-breed. Half-Gem. Half-Set. You? Same?" Nefriset asked.

Thatti scratched the back of her neck. "K-kinda. Minus the gem part. Part Set, part Aphid." She looked up. “Though you wouldn’t know it by looking at me. I didn’t really get any of my other Moms features, like hidden ears, tail or retractable claws. Brother got most of those genes.”

Nefriset threw her arms around Thatti in a big tight hug. "Oooh I knew it. 'This' one can definitely smell a fellow kitten." She licked Thatti's lips. "I'm going to go beat up your friend now, but I wanted to greet you personally and say hiii! Neffy loves making new friends, and Set have to stick together!" She pat the girl on the head. "I know you are on, as they say 'the hunt' right now but it'd be really cool if we could be furmates!"

The Jel and Veronica laughed as the tournament bell rang, the crowd of students cheering.

 

Nef grinned at her. "We really are going to make great friends, aren't we?" Her claws gripped Thatti's wrist so tightly they drew cuts.

Thatti didn't answer, licking the skin of her inner arm. She looked at the blood seeping out, a red tint in a sea of pale flesh.

 

 

 

Soon Nefriset was back in the center of the gym facing Caleb. The boy threw off his jacket, revealing iron-plated bracelets with Writ encryptions. He turned to Thatti, as if to ask 'Are you sure these things are really going to work?' She gave him a thumbs up.

Nefriset took a deep breath and stepped forward, raising her fists to the ground. Caleb nodded and did the same, throwing his weight forward and kicking. Nefriset's hand slammed the ground and sent him flying back with a massive kick, knocking the boy against the wall with a smack. "Nefriset!" She yelled, and her hand went back up and shot a fist like a lance out at the ceiling, a bolt of amber energy exploding into him, Caleb barely catching her striped fist with his two hands. The sigils on the bracelet were glowing red hot.

"Aw ha! Writ charms, for strength Nefriset supposes? Very impressive! I wonder where cute boy must've gotten those." She turned her head to Thatti watching on the sides, and then back. "But even so.." She slammed her foot down to the ground and began to charge, slamming the ground with all her weight, Caleb falling to the ground from the force of a massive kick.

Nefriset stepped back and turned her body to Caleb, her claws extended to a length that made them appear like shark teeth, her eyes glowing and her tongue flicking like a snake. She took a deep breath, her body turning into an orange and black wave of energy that rushed towards Caleb in a wave of pure strength. "Siberian morninglory!" She rammed him as powerful wave that shook the entire gym and landed him into the ground. When he tried to stand up and throw a swing, she swiftly parried and kicked him from behind.

"With words, Nefriset is not so good. Never was one for Writ." She karate chopped through the floor greating a shockwave which was barely blocked by his bracelets. "But with my fists~" She

punched with so much power that she shattered the floor, Caleb barely being able to withstand the blow and was nearly knocked out. When she saw he couldn't block anymore, she grinned and held her arms up and roared, the power of a tsunami exploding out in all directions.

The entire gym was filled with shocks and tremors of the earth. A tidal wave of golden radiance covered the ground in seconds and smashed through Caleb, throwing the poor boy up and smacking him with a hard impact on the side wall.

The gym became a wreck. The two bracelets began to crack and shattered, falling to the floor The coach blew the whistle.

Thatti had seen enough. "I suppose it was worth a try atleast." She leapt into the center of the gym, wand in hand. With a single grip, headhunter became two gigantic gauntlets worn by her, which were longer than her own arms in their brace and poked out her shoulders. Nefriset appeared so pleased. She licked her shoulder. "Blossoming: Amber sunrise." Her entire body was bathed in a sunlight glow and transformed, gaining massive muscles and 4 additional feet of height, her feline form growing into a bulked up musclebound frame. There were no breasts or curves, no fat or any sign of a sex, just enormous, rippling muscles. She leapt into the air, her body transforming like a dragon soaring to the heavens.

Her teeth and fingernails grew longer and longer, and black stripes shimmered down her tail and into her hair, which fell in a black striped shroud. A tiger-striped aura surrounded her, radiating out like a fountain, her eyes gleaming pure green.

Thatti stood, posing and twisting her wand. “Not bad. But my mom grows much bigger than that when she flexes.” She licked her lips.

"Leave your mark, God's Spark." The electrical blue eclipsed her until she had fully changed, her two blue pigtails swinging behind her. "Code 2: Titanium Fortituda." A silver aura covered her,

and she was completely encased in a massive exoskeleton of titanium along her like a second layer of metallic skin. Her eyes were red with a pair of red goggles that covered her face and framed her eyes like a pair of red suns. Nefriset licked her lips, put one foot out, then pounced forward, becoming the same blurry wave of energy she did against Caleb. Thatti barely caught her, her boots leaving sparks as she was pushed along the ground inch by inch backwards. "Heyyy~!" Nefriset threw her fist out, her palm opening up into a flurry of claw attacks, creating sparks against the girl's reinforced body. "Woooah, this one is amazing, you're so cool N- Thatti~" She leapt backwards.

"Mint Girl~ T-Tatti! Cute you~!" She yelled at Thatti.

 

She was so excited to meet someone who could finally put up a fight. "Thatti, tell you the truth I am glad, to fight for one's every beautiful breath!" The girl let out a loud holler and punched a hole into the wall behind Thatti, throwing her backwards.

Thatti's body twisted like a tornado and pounced forward, knocking the gem into the ground and standing back up. They clashed, attempting to punt and knock the other back continually, Nefriset had never felt so alive. "Ne-Tatti, N-Tatti~" The girl clenched and released her fists, her strength surging forward and pushing through the tigress.

"Let me tell you something, the gem of Gluttony is not a fool! There's no such thing as too much to eat! Never enough!" The tiger-form of Nefriset snarled at the girl and smacked her across the face with a gigantic clawed chop, throwing her back and nearly putting her on the floor. "But it does not come with as many fancy abilities or powers as the other Roses, by comparison it's quite limited and boring." She looked up at the ceiling, admiring her own pecs. "Funny, they used to say that about Nefriset. I share something with you- I too was born in Orchid, though I spent most of entire life calling Xi my home under a gem mother's womb and Set father. But unlike you and the Domina's dynasty, Nefriset wasn't born with any cool hobbies or interesting

talents. I really cannot remember if my parents ever praised me, but not once did anyone ever say who Nefriset would be. Never. A tiger without stripes.." Her memory flashed back to herself in a forest, wearing a tight Gi uniform with a black sash. "No one liked me because I was weird. I was clumsy, I was dumb, a dumb Set with no silvertongue or gifted ability for words like my mother. I could never be like everyone else." In her flashing past, she began to practice on the nearby trees. First for hours, then days, and days turned into months. Before she knew it, every tree in those woods had been chopped down, her knuckles bruised and hardened. When she looked at her bloodied claws, Nefriset knew pure joy. "I was a very bored girl before, but they could not destroy my spirit. They just had to.. wait for me to grow. Once I found out the one thing that makes me feel alive.." She looked around herself, her face glowing a warm green. Her fist swung forward, a boom of shockwaves as her body went to super-speed, and she shot a fist down to the ground that nearly flattened Thatti like an avalanche.

"I'm sure you can understand my desire to be free, and to live a life I'm passionate about." She looked at Thatti, who was standing back up, and laughed. "So, that's my real deal, T-Tatti~! I'm going to fight you until you're black and blue, so they can know the excitement Set feel when their blood rushes! My fists are my greatest treasure. Why? Because Nefriset's hunger is endless and endless for power, the power of martial arts! That’s why I’m the gem of gluttony! Got it Ne- Tatti~!" She pounced again, her opponent was getting abit disoriented. The girl finally focused enough to grab her arm mid-strike, and slam her down into the ground. She stood back up and leapt at Thatti, only to be countered by a punch that sent her back, which drew blood from Nefriset's lips. Headhunter shifted along her arms, drawing its light until it became a tall javelin rising from Thatti's hands. She shot the bolt of energy at Nefriset and engulfed her in a golden radiance, which shattered Nefriset's amber aura. "Lay off already." She looked at Nefriset and blinked, her eyes opening and closing a few times. "W..what the Flora, your power's way too strong. Even with my strength I can't really do a thing." She panted.

"Y-you have no hobby? No talent, outside kicking and fighting?" The girl's eyes widened as she looked at Thatti, her eyes glowing.

"No.. not really. I'm a freak of nature, so it's no wonder I can't do a thing. Compared to the other Gems.." She smiled. "But you.. that's amazing. You got power.." She licked her lips. "Do you love fighting?"

The girl took a deep breath. "No. I love WINNING." She leapt up and in a surprise attack, pierced Nefriset's body with the javelin, holding her up. Headhunter turned into a rocket- launcher, and she pulled the trigger. "That's my darling! Nye-ne-T-Tatti~" She welcomed the ensuring explosion. The tigress was sent flying on a rocket through the air, slamming into the gym wall.

"My power..." Nefriset whimpered. "Is it really so pathetic?" She groaned and sat back up, feeling her skin burn from the javelin's hot plasma. She could feel her legs were beginning to shatter.

"You know, Ne-Tatti?" She said as her opponent came over. "Being a half-breed is hard. But I don't care what people say about me or my GemMom. I'm me, and I'm gonna do what I love." She turned around and licked her teeth. "Now.. sorry to cheat you out of a fair matchup. Let me show you my fight is the one I'm passionate about." The girl punched her fists together. She un- clenched her hands, and the rocketwand fell to the ground, her eyes narrowing as she grinned. Nefriset's blossoming state wore off, and she reverted to her more humanoid form, her roided muscles gone, several feet of height compressing downwards. The two had no weapons, no super enhancements, only determination. Without technique or skill, they can began to swing their fists at each other wildly in a powerful fisticuffs matchup of blows and punches. They fought all across the length of the gym, slamming fists into each other with all their might. The air around them was filled with flying chunks of floor and drywall, as they took some blows and dished out

a lot. Thatti was bleeding from her ears and mouth, Nefriset was sweating profusely, and the gym itself was wrecked. "O-oh!" Nefriset said, her eyes widening as her fist was caught. "Tatti- Ne." She smiled. The mint girl swung her by her own arm and slammed her into the ground, putting a boot on her chest. Nefriset held her arms up in surrender, tears in her eyes.

 

 

 

Before the girl could could walk away, her tail swiped at her and dragged her to the ground with her. Her transformation offset and her power returned to the wand, mint coloration becoming pale and plain again, no magical skirt . The two lay in a crater.

Thatti wiped a trickle of blood off her lip. "W..what is it?" She stood up. "Do you feel the same excitement as I do when we fight like this, ne- Neffy?"

Nefriset slowly got up, using her fists to pull herself up, the pain was still evident as she wiped a few more bloody tears.

"What.. no... no one can feel what I feel. No one loves fighting like I, even if they try to love it. Fighting is something I.. I live for." She wiped more blood off her mouth. "Fighting is my one true passion. Fighting is the one thing I am most alive for. Fighting is who I am."

Thatti put her hands on her hips and smiled. "I'm just as passionate about some things. Love, kindness, freedom. Those are things everyone is gifted with. No one should have to earn them or have them stripped away." She turned her head, beatup on the ground beyond numb so every muscle turn was a struggle.

"And fighting, if that's what you truly love.. I don't think anyone else should be able to take that away from you, either." She held out her hand offering peace, which Nefriset happily grabbed. The two embraced.

"Oh thank you, thank you, thank you~ I got it, Tatti-Ne!" She laughed, licking her lips. "We can be friends? Set-sisters." The girl wiped her tears off, and nodded.

 

 

 

Nefriset beamed, a goofy smile on her face. "Great~ Can't wait to beat you again, someday~" Thatti sighed. "Maybe someday."

Caleb and Veronica ran to her side, while Petal and Diane ran towards Nefriset. "You lost, you big noob!" Caleb yelled, kicking Thatti's side.

"Thatti's a moron? Is that what you think?" Nefriset said, giving Caleb a noogie. "You're the one who's weak and ugly, you dumb dumb dumb boy. You know what? Thatti-Ni's too kind! She could have put me away a looooong time ago! She should've beaten me to a pulp a while ago!

She's like the little sister I always wanted Diane-ji!"

 

"Let's head back to our dorms." Thatti said, poking Nefriset in the face. "You're one of a kind, there's no other Gem like you." She smiled. "Unlike you other ingrates." She glared at Diane, who glared back angrily. "You took even Neffy's fists? You really are a monster.." Lynn said, helping carry her along her shoulders with Petal out the gym.

"Ne-Tatti, Tatti-Ne. Let's have fun again okay?" Nefriset said as they departed. "You too, Neffy~"

Thatti spend the rest of the night with an icepack, watching cartoons in the dormroom. Caleb sat by her side. "Hey wait, why don't you use that resurrection spell to heal up?" She simmered, brows furrowing. "Because abusing that is super laaame."

Jel came in, holding a pack of sodas and a bag of licorice gummyworms. "Got your goods." She dropped them next to Thatti. "Now, care to tell what weird things you were on earlier before the match?" Jelena frowned, wiping a chunk of gummy from her cheek.

Thatti looked to Jelena, who looked back at her. "Let's share a drink, and talk later about that, hm? For now." She shook her sodacan, opened it up and it splashed it her face, to Jel's grin.

"JELICA!"