Poki's Mafia

(First time using this website, formatting was definitely not imported correctly at first. I have tried to make everything as obvious as possible with excessive paragraph spacing. Thank you for reading)

Ghost Prologue: (Alternate Intro)

There’s no time to die in a place like this. A place where even the paws of experienced warriors quiver, struggling to carry and balance the hilt of their own will. A place that leaves them breathless, with their knees buckling over to kneel in surrender for just a moment of rest. A place where their mortal, wounded souls now wail a symphony around the scarlet coated grounds of the battlefield, where a figure stands frozen in shock amidst it all. His yellow-orange fur matted and spattered with blood. But not of his own.

The encroaching atmosphere surrounding the figure was laden with dread, intoxicating the air he desperately searched for with shallow, hyperventilated breaths. The rancid smell of steel, airborne debris, and corroding armor partnered with the wind currents, assaulting his delicate senses. Below his feet laid the mutilated remains of a fallen adversary. His first. He observed helplessly as the blood of this enemy dripped off from the tip of his sword, permanently staining its anguished expression. But in a place like this, there is no time for moments of panic when another set of heavy footsteps rumble vigorously from behind. Demanding immediate attention.

Behind you.

His instinct would warn, his fur beginning to rise and prickle with urgency. But to no avail, he couldn’t move.

What? He would respond with a thought, paws barely clenched against the reinforced handle of his weapon. He could drop it at any second.

Look behind you. Another warning, his legs beginning to tremble at an attempt to turn.

I.. I can't...

“Can’t you hear me?” What was once a gut feeling was now an anxious, resounding voice.

Wh… what?

“Turn around!” Louder.

I…

“Poki!!”

"POKI! BEHIND YOU!"

Poki’s pupils tightened, refocusing his overwhelmed senses with a sharp gasp. The deafening white-noise in his ears shattered away, and with furrowed brows, he whipped his head toward the overshadowing threat behind him. Without hesitation, he heaved his greatsword, a presumptuous attempt to block an overhead strike. A strained, growling grunt escaped his chest upon the half-expected impact, and his entire being was sent inches into the ground, now surrounded by a small crater. He staggered to maintain his balance under the crushing pressure. The sword in his paws now vibrating violently from the sheer strength behind the force of his new opponent's weapon: a menacing warhammer. Fortunately, the thick blade Poki wielded had caught against the handle crevice under the hammer rather than the massive block of reinforced stone on top, granting it yet another day to prosper.

That was close… Tsss- I should’ve brought those damn gloves.

Another thought, muttered with a sort of incomplete relief. He shifted the grip of his unprotected paws to relieve the lingering, static numbness that was coursing through them. But that wasn't the problem of priority.

The towering figure now just a few inches away from him was nothing short of a monster. Boulder-like shoulders encased in spiked steel, fang-ridden, drooling jaws agape for the taste of blood; and an ever-stretching, sinister shadow that darkened Poki’s face, letting the radiant, crystal blue hue of his eyes glow dimly within the contrast.

To think that this is only one of the many great beasts from the Terrakin Tribes. Damn its breath stinks… !

With a grimace, he swiftly shifted his stance, leaping back to desperately gasp for fresh air. Enraged by the failure of its first strike, a ferocious, island-quaking roar was emitted from the Terrakin creature, causing Poki's tall, sky-striped ears to tremble and flatten. It prepared yet another vicious strike with its formidable weapon.

Oh shit!

With wide eyes, and a will to live, Poki pivoted away from the hammer's radius of pure devastation, swiftly dodging its blood-lusting blow. Debris flung in all directions from the impact, shooting toward Poki's eyes or ricocheting off of his scattered armor plates. A shuddering breath escaped his lips when he took another second to examine the massive extended arm of his opponent.

Haha- Yeah. Glad I didn't go for another block against that.

With another shudder, he propelled his body forward onto the creature, evoking his own thunderous roar, seizing the opportunity to forcefully plunge his blade deep into the vulnerable, exposed side of the Terrakin creature. Determined to finish the encounter, he gripped fiercely onto the hilt of his sword, and with his awakening strength, he drove the sword upwards, letting it carelessly sunder through the tough, stubborn armor and flesh of the beast.

"COME ON!!"

His continuing roar intertwined with the ear-piercing shrieks of the creature’s armor.

KRRREEEAAAHHHRRRK!

Poki's eyes closed tight, another coat of blood splashing onto his already stained face. When the moment came that the sword had nothing left to rip through, he flinched at the sound of a weighted, metallic thud below him. The indication of his second kill. He carefully blinked open his eyes, avoiding the sight of the body below but unveiling the chaos of an aged conflict ahead in a complete, focused picture. Countless bodies of flesh and flames were scattered around the crimson coated plains of the breach location. Resting tents and presumably important structures collapsed and overwhelmed from the damage of this long anticipated raid. Injured mercenaries from both the enemy and ally sides were writhing in pain. With some grasping the limp hands of their fallen right before taking their final breaths. The mingling pools of blood of which they laid in were now their graves.

Fuck… This is bad. Poki mumbled in thought, gazing upon the scene. Shortly after, something had come back to his constantly shifting attention.

Where was his brother?

His gaze darted over to look for the previous voice that had warned him. He lowered his weapon, finding and locking onto a familiar silhouette.

The silhouette was covered by a handsome, majestic flow of lavender and violet fur that ruffled in the gusts of battle. His eyes were orbs of bright, glowing orange and yellow, brimming with unshakable resolve. His battle ax sparked against metal and steel, attacking fiercely, knocking his enemy over with a powerful swing and a shout much like Poki’s. Everything was silenced as he raised his ax before suddenly swinging downward, sundering the overstretched tension of inevitable death. The impact brought out a piercing shriek from the downed mercenary. A sound like that… Would reach the depths of Hell.

Poki winced and looked away from the agonized shout of the soldier. He brought his sword behind him, slipping it into the sheath that was slung behind his back. He looked up at the silhouette, seeing their cocky little smirk as they panted. "Thanks for having my back there, Yuno." Poki huffed in exhausted appreciation. Upon hearing this, Yuno would raise his blood-stained, lavender chin, nodding back towards Poki.

"I’ll always have your back dude, I can’t have ya gettin’ killed now. Come on!" Yuno replied with triumph, beginning to sprint towards the target vicinity: the outpost headquarters. Poki had caught up next to Yuno, rushing to match his speed. He lifted his head and gaze to him when he spoke once more, "We need to hurry, we don’t have much time before-"

"AAHH!"

Poki and Yuno roared a yelp before shielding their eyes with their arms to a blinding flash of light, completely stopping in their tracks. This was followed by a gust of wind that pushed them back a few inches. Poki squinted, noticing seven silhouettes surrounding them.

Damn! Their reinforcements made it early! Not good! Poki placed one of his paws on the handle of his sword behind him. When the dust from the wind cleared away, he took a step back with Yuno beside him, his eyes darting around at the surrounding figures.

Each of the seven figures were shrouded in sinister cloaks. The luminous, shimmering rays of a full moon glorified them all, making their golden hood embroideries glint brightly. All of cloaks had a small recognizable silver insignia attached to the overarching forefront of their black hoods. It was a skull, carved in the shape of a rhombus with a long, pointed jaw. However, this skull had no nose or teeth. Its only facial feature were two glaring eye sockets that were as dark as the inside of the figures’ hoods. An abyss of evil. When squinting, a symbol of what looked like Poki and Yuno’s kind would appear to be etched onto the skull’s forehead. It was a simplistic, geometric facial structure of a fox with a pair of great dragon wings on either side of it. There was a downward-facing triangular hole laying in the center of it.

The figures all varied with different heights and features. Some could be seen with great, feathered wingspans, and some with fins pointed from their backs. Some had scruffy ears and tails twitching out of the openings of their clothes, and some could even be seen with smooth, hairless, and tanned skin; absent of any features belonging to the Akin Tribes. Though, despite their differences, they all seemed to have one thing in common: An overlaying, faint glowing hue of dark-blue light coming off of what seemed like their eyes from under their hoods. Poki took a sharp breath, a soft rumble sounding in his throat and popping against his bared teeth. He looked over to Yuno with an unsettled look on his face, "It's them.." I was certain that this type of backup wasn't going to show up. How were they notified so quickly?

Yuno gave Poki a quick glance, meeting their fear-tinted gaze. He nodded and took out his ax, spinning it with a small toss and catching the handle with ease. He posed dauntlessly. Yuno was always the type to show off his confident, dramatic flair to everything he does.
Poki unsheathed his own weapon, posing in much more defensive stance beside them. Unlike Yuno, Poki was much more careful, reserved, and more observant than anything. He looked at Yuno, noticing a small grin beginning to tug at their lips when they spoke. "Hey! You're pretty early but we expected ya. Don’t go thinkin’ you’ll live for a second longer though!" They commented with a snicker, holding out their ax. Their grip around the handle tightened. The cloaked figures hadn’t planned to play along with Yuno’s energy; this showed clearly as they all spoke in unison.

"Such bold words. Though I’m afraid your daring tongue will not change your fate." Hearing what the cloaked figures had to say, Yuno scoffed and spat out a quick retort.

"Tch- I'm pretty damn sure my ax will work pretty fine in changing that! I’m gonna beat the ever living crap outta all of you!"
One of the cloaked figures stood out in front of the six others. Scarlet flares of dense, unstable energy wisped out of their hood and sleeves. They laughed maniacally, "Because of you, your sacred little village will soon be captured, slaughtered, and remembered as nothing but trivial history. You have been no match for us since the very beginning. If you want to be the saviors your kind.. Then die like one." They raised out their hand at the two. The scarlet spirals surrounding it beginning to expand.

Poki and Yuno snarled, raising their weapons. However, another wave of enemy mercenaries emerged from every opening, storming through to surround them. They both had the same response to this situation...

"Shit!”