Quitetly, Quiggly stepped into the darkness as he stealthily approached and steeled himself for the battle ahead. His muscles trembled as a cold sweat covered his entire body. His heart pounded against his chest as he breathed shallow, but his sharp eyes remained focused on the impending ambush that lay ahead. He had been waiting for the perfect opportunity to attack the unsuspecting guard that was patrolling the area. His sharp claws could rend apart steel and bone. He was large, but he was also quiet. No alarm would be raised and no humans would dare to get too close. He had to make sure he did it as he was waiting. In the shadows he would attack. He knew he would survive. It would be much more satisfying. He was almost ready when his mind began to work and he recognized the scent of the guard's wife. Shrewd, like a fox, Quiggly watched his opportunity. Now would be the time to strike! He stood stock still in the middle of the forest, not moving a muscle. His eyes focused directly on the lighted path of the guard as he walked toward his wife, a young woman only slightly older than he. She was not looking at him as she walked toward the forest to collect wildflowers. He crouched behind a tree, not watching the woman. He watched the guard. The guard's back was to him. He was talking to his wife as she gently caressed the guard's black hair with her delicate hands. His face was close to her eyes and his lips were soft. His ears looked like a pair of pink cupcakes that she had just taken out of the oven. Quiggly could feel his ears grow hot. It was a long shot, but he would take what he could get. He needed to kill at least one of the two in order to feel truly satisfied. As his prey made their way through the forest, Quiggly quickly approached the guard's wife. He felt the weight of his body in the shadows and began to inch his way forward. As they reached a thick cluster of berries, Quiggly stopped and began to watch closely. Both of the guards would not notice him. The guard stopped abruptly as his wife lifted her body up and down, as if she was about to have her first kiss from the man that stood a few feet away. The guard's body tensed up slightly as the redhead stopped to smell the roses. Her back was turned to him. Quiggly could see her from the corner of his eye. He did not move and dared not breathe. The guard slowly brought his face up to his wife's face. As he kissed her lips, he softly touched his tongue against the tip of her pink rose. Then he began to move his body toward her. Quiggly felt an adrenaline rush through his body as his mind raced for a plan. In this moment, the guard was exposed and he was going to attack. He crouched down slowly and listened for the slightest sound. He knew it was critical that he move without being heard. As he turned his body so that he was just inches away from the guard, he quickly whipped his body in such a way that he was able to touch the guard with his tail. He struck with all of his might, using his tail to attack the vulnerable neck. The guard gasped out in pain and fell to his knees as the weight of his body forced him to the ground. The guard's wife screamed as she saw the body of her husband fall to the ground. She ran to him as he tried to get up. Quiggly felt an amazing rush of power as he struck his target. A small gurgling sound could be heard as the guard drowned in his own blood. It had been an easy kill, but Quiggly still wanted more. He quickly pulled the guard's head close to him and began to tear at his throat. The guard's wife screamed out in horror as he crushed the man's throat with his powerful claws. A small, satisfied smile crossed the cat's face. The guard's wife was now in panic as she saw her lover dying right in front of her. She continued to struggle as the cat continued to pull at the guard's neck. In the seconds it took to tear the man's throat open, Quiggly knew that he was going to enjoy himself immensely. The terrified wife's screams turned to terrified moans as she continued to struggle. But it was too late. As her lover began to die in front of her eyes, she too was dead. For the first time in his life, Quiggly understood the joy that humans seemed to experience when they tortured and murdered others. The guard and his wife were such fine human beings. He had just shown them what a fine life they were missing. A new rush of adrenaline went through him. He felt invincible. It was almost as if he could sense what was coming for him. It was a rush that he was not used to. Quiggly knew he needed to be sure that this was the perfect moment to attack the rest of the bandit's group. Quiggly could not be sure how many men were in their midst. When the darkness closed in on him, he stopped for a moment and wondered if he was dreaming. Had his master created this very moment to teach him something about life? No. It was real and he was sure that he had just experienced the ultimate pleasure that a cat could ever hope to know. As he watched and listened to the humans make more noise than an army, he felt his whiskers stand up in fear. How much more horrible was he about to endure? He could feel the blood running from his victim's wound, down the guard's neck and pooling beneath him. His body covered in the thick red liquid made him feel even more powerful and his claws were growing sharper with each passing second. He felt he would make the rest of the job even more satisfying. The sound of footsteps could be heard in the thick woods. A man was running from the direction of the bandit camp. He would need to get past the cat before he was safe. This was going to be close. The wind continued to blow and the rain began to fall. The guard's wife knelt down by his side, crying out that the cat was near. She would try to protect him. Quiggly could smell the cat's blood. He could smell the fear of the human. He quickly dashed down the tree with such speed that he was beyond the guard. He continued to move quickly until he was safely in the campsite. It seemed like he would never be safe. The wind blew harder and the thunder crashed more loudly. Quiggly knew he had a job to do. He would need to be careful. This man had seen and heard him and was running from him. He was going to be caught in the open. He needed to be careful. The cat crouched down so that the guard would have to see him. He would hope that he would not get attacked so close to his home. He crouched down in the shadow of the dark tent and waited for his chance. In a flash, the guard was upon him. It would have been easy for him to run him over if he could. But Quiggly moved so swiftly, he was no match for him. Quiggly lunged at the guard, but was not fast enough. The cat's claws met the guard's arms and legs. A strong tail hit the guard's face. The guard's body fell to the ground. It was over. Quiggly crouched down and waited for his prey to be dead. He knew that he would get a closer look at this human. He was curious about them. He could feel that they were humans. He felt that he could speak to them and perhaps understand them. He would never think of harming these humans. It was amazing that they were so close to his home and yet could never see him. Quiggly continued to watch the human and waited patiently for the man to sleep. Finally, his time had come. The human would lie there all night. In a way, it was a sadistic thing to do. Quiggly felt such pleasure in killing the man. He would not have to do that every time he was hungry. No, Quiggly could eat his fill on his own each night. He would only have to kill to satisfy him. In the morning, the human would be dead. He could not kill for pleasure and then go about his day without doing something to satisfy his hunger. That night, Quiggly would remain unseen in the human's tent, lying awake just on the edge of the human's dreams. * * * The young woman laid down on the bed and quickly fell asleep. Quiggly did not stay in one spot. The sounds of the humans was too loud for him to just wait for the humans to fall asleep. He had to do something. He was in the tent! The cat was looking for an easy way to get to the sleeping woman. He knew that it would be easier if he would crawl in. But he did not want to risk waking the sleeping woman. He made his way slowly along the corner of the tent toward her. It was close now and if she awoke, he would have to defend himself. He held his breath as he crawled along the corner of the tent, not being able to breathe any more than he needed to. He could smell the