Tap.
Leon touched down in a clearing in the forest where he had come from earlier. He looked around for a moment, wondering how he would track down the fawn and snatch it from its captors.
Whoosh!
A small dot of light appeared in front of him, carrying the familiar aura of the fawn.
"You came?" The voice was weak and disbelieving.
"Of course, I can't let someone else take my prey." Leon nodded his head. "Where are you? Can you lead me there?" He asked.
"Yes, follow this light. I am currently being held captive by the Black Shadow Panthers. The same kind of creature that you fought before." The fawn gave a few details.
"Wait, you were captured by them? I thought you were a master of escape? You evaded me for days before. How were you caught so easily?" Leon asked, half mocking, half serious.
"Sigh..." The voice of the fawn sighed and was silent for a few seconds while leading Leon deeper into the forest. "Some of the strongest Black Shadow Panthers teamed up against me. I was not able to shake them off long enough and ended up being tired out and caught by them. They want revenge for their dead clansman." It explained.
"...So, they want revenge and you are leading me to them? Do you think you can exchange your freedom by turning me in?" Leon asked in an amused tone.
"Err... I know how it looks, but believe me, I don't have any intention like that. I called out to you because you are the only other one that has a vested interest in me and is not likely to kill me outright. At least, I think. You were the best bet." The fawn's voice nervously explained.
"Hmm." Leon paused his steps and held his chin in thought. As he was in his true form, it was hard to tell what he was thinking of as there were no facial expressions to read.
"Please, I truly need your help. I might be dead a few hours from now." It pleaded desperately.
"Fine, fine. But if this is a trap, then you can be sure that I will at least kill you before I escape." Leon said gravely, his tone oozing killing intent.
"That's fine with me!" The fawn readily agreed with him.
With that settled, it continued leading Leon deeper into the forest. With its lead, they easily avoided any troublesome areas. However, Leon never let down his guard.
Several hours passed as they went deeper and deeper into the forest. It was not until they got to a certain region that was not as populated by vegetation and was covered in rocks that they stopped.
"From this point on, we are in the territory of the Black Shadow Panthers. We must be exceedingly careful. If they catch you, then they might suspect you are here for me and kill me off." The fawn warned Leon with a grave tone.
"Don't worry." Leon said. "I should be able to blend in easily enough." As he spoke, he waved his hand and a black crystal appeared out of thin air. It was the Divine Fragment of the Black Shadow Panther that he had killed back then. Without wasting any time, he crushed it and absorbed every ounce of Divine Power that was released from it into his Core.
In the next moment, his body began to morph. He hunched over and his bone structure quickly became much different from a few moments ago. Flesh and organs grew from nowhere and skin and fur sprouted all over his body.
In just a few short seconds, Leon had turned into a Black Shadow Panther! His aura and demeanor were no different from a true Black Shadow Panther. It was so convincing that not even the fawn could spot any difference!
"Get in my mouth and lead the way." Leon spoke to it telepathically.
"R-right away!" It hurriedly hopped into Leon's open maw and the two of them strode past the border that marked Black Shadow Panther territory. Before long, they came across a trio of Black Shadow Panthers that stalked through the pathways between rocks and moved through the shadows. One of them walked up to Leon and growled low, communicating with him.
Of course, Leon was not caught off guard. He already expected this interaction to happen. This was thanks to the Divine Spark that he had absorbed earlier. Not only did it give him the ability to morph into a Black Shadow Panther and copy their traits down to the tiniest detail, but it also granted him knowledge of all their habits and actions, especially those in this group that had captured the fawn.
He responded with a string of growls and other sounds and before long, the other ones were satisfied with his response. They turned and carried on with their patrol, leaving Leon to go ahead with what he was doing. Before long, he came upon the central part of the Black Shadow Panther territory.
"You can't sneak around randomly anymore. This is where their leader stays. I am also being kept here. If you enter, you will constantly be watched." The fawn told Leon telepathically.
"How strong is he?" Leon asked.
"Strong enough to be considered something of an overlord on this island. I can't match up to him, at all. Not even with my unique abilities. You might be able to, though. Gods are much more powerful than us celestial creatures on a qualitative basis." The fawn said.
"Tell me, what are his powers? His affinities, domains?" Leon pried for more and more information.
"Darkness, Shadow, Blood..." The fawn slowly told Leon of the affinities it could sense from the Black Shadow Panther King's body. It was as detailed as it could get, but even the fawn knew that was not all. There were surely some abilities that the Black Shadow Panther King hid very well. It would not blatantly show off all of its cards.
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