8.2

The beast returned to the ground, mouth open, bleeding from the nose, unable to hold its breath or run as before, but it did not stop and raising its right claw, it attacked violently.

The little white-eyed one continued:

"Mnnn!!!, with my current strength, I could only fracture its floating nose and ribs. I guess it remains for me to strike with the intention of causing contusions and fainting" Making use of his elbows and knees, he moved even closer and, dodging the claw, struck at a certain angle against the main veins in the neck of his enemy, once again attacked the chin, temple, joints of the huge animal and, in this way, after escaping three attacks, he made his opponent lose strength, mobility and energy to continue attacking.

The beast trembled on the spot, not out of fear, but out of weakness. Resigned to lose, it puffed out its chest and with all its might gave its most frightening roar.

Rey stood motionless. "The brain is a vulnerable organ... Even so, with my present strength I could not give him an impact strong enough to make him lose consciousness. He looks disoriented and with loss of balance. If I can't knock him unconscious, it means I lack the strength to effectively deliver one of the various 'death touches'. Now it's roaring to intimidate...the roar feels different. If only I had known this before," he said to himself to fall into nostalgic reminiscing. "Back on topic and taking nature as an example: if you roared at a rock, what would you gain from it?".

Amidst the darkness of the place, Rey decided to behave like a mountain, opened his intimidating white eyes and let out the killer instincts he had been holding back. The little guy with no last name, with solid courage, looked straight into his opponent's eyes for a long time, until the beast understood that he had been given the chance to go on living. Yes, it made more sense for the beast to leave at that moment than to continue fighting to impress the others or to be the first to lunge at the prey. The Paradise guardian ducked its head and, somewhat awkwardly, left the way it came.

At that moment, White, aware that they were surrounded, rushed at Rey like someone throwing himself into the arms of a loved one who was about to die. Rey, as one who did not attach any importance to the matter, said:

"Worry, you must not. Even if I were missing both my feet and one of my hands, it would not be enough for one of those beasts to kill me."

In the Ever-Changing Forest, Rey ran his hand over the trembling cub's head and looked straight ahead.

"Hmmm! Something strange seems to happen when the trees touch... What could it be? Now that it's daylight in Heaven, the darkness must not be so solid and you can see better. Maybe it's the entrance, or the exit. To find out I have to go there, don't I?"

White did not understand the little boy's words. But he did understand that it was dangerous to continue advancing, better to go back to where the green pastures were in order to escape from the other felines.

Rey didn't seem to care at all about what was going on around him.

"Well, since I already tried the art of melee fighting using pressure points and it was ineffective. I guess I'd better attack in earnest using my best move from now on... you've been warned, leave one alive. From now on I won't feel sorry for the death of those who want to try their luck."

Showing an expression of intrigue on his face, Rey stopped stroking his companion, who was trying to push him back with the force of his head, and advanced in the direction of where he had set his sights.

"White, don't hang back," he said stepping over the corpse of a liger which he killed with a single blow."

"When? How? From where?" were the little white cub's questions as he saw how something that wasn't there had appeared on the ground dead.

Countless felines circled around the little one whose face was splattered with blood, but they did not dare to make any move after seeing how the second attacker had lost his life in just the blink of an eye. Not everyone understood that the little boy, who was walking wounded and smelling blood, was dangerous. Not everyone understood that even if they attacked together they would meet the same end, killed by him. But all did understand that he would not attack them, unless one of them attacked him first.

Among those who did not understand were the younger and more foolish ones who took advantage of the absence of aggression or warnings from the prey to position themselves in the perfect way and make an attack from a different angle.

White saw a third Paradise guardian attack him without warning. One of his own attacked him, was that logical? It had not happened before. In the animal world, yes, and if it didn't happen before it was pure luck, the little feline understood. It is common behavior for youngsters, in search of power, food and recognition, to commit crimes against their own kind, even cannibalism. Also, even if they were of the same species, they did not belong to the same group, therefore, it was a target. White understood all that at the same time as he watched the creature that had assaulted him lose its head instantly shortly before falling to the ground. The little feline was happy to be in the same group as the hybrid that walked on two legs.

Rey returned to his normal position and, with his more functional arm, remounted the shoulder that had been dismounted with the movement of his violent attack, almost imperceptible to feline eyes.

With a second body on the ground, all was clear for the Paradise guardians. If they did not provoke any of the little ones, then wandering in the forest was safe. These charcoal-camouflaged felines were the strongest, who stood at the pinnacle of the food triangle of the place, but not because they had claws, fangs or tough coats, but because they were the smartest and most adaptable. They knew that they were in front of a dangerous individual, that it was better to leave him alone and go on in search of other prey. The black shadows left. All except one.

Rey asked the air while, with the tip of his hands, he touched some sort of portal that apparently did not accept him:

"It's been a long time, hasn't it... Yes, you. Why do you follow me and let me notice you? Do you need me or can't you attack me if I know you're there...?" As if realizing something, the little boy continued, "You're afraid. Interesting..."

A characteristic little girl's voice spoke in a thin tone, rather so that her words would not falter or tremble:

"I want to kill you instead of waiting to take you. Only I wouldn't have honor if you didn't know why first."

Rey had never heard such a voice before, but he had perceived and seen the figure at least twice. It was the one the Great Wise Wizard had said was opposed to life and dressed in black. The same shadow he saw when he was born, the one who also loomed at the entrance to the cave when White was about to die.

Rey spoke employing a stern tone of warning:

"If you attempt to kill me, I will be forced to defend myself and end your life in an instant".

Silence ensued; she was not going to answer, for she was sure that the little one was simply talking for the sake of talking.

"You leave no trace, you walk wherever you want, you see everything and hear everything wherever you are, but you cannot be stopped by anything solid or material. You are a "non-tangible being at will". Let me tell you something: power is in knowledge and knowledge can be found in books. I love to read a lot, and in the stories I have read there are countless anecdotes in which beings like you can be eliminated. It's funny, call me paranoid if you wish, but in a way I was once like you and experienced what you did. That experience opened my eyes and made me think about how to defend myself if suddenly something that isn't there comes along and attacks me...."

Rey turned and with his eyes looked off into the distance.

"I can hear the sound of a heart beating inside a distressed chest. Breathe trying to be silenced. A dry throat trying to swallow...you can't control your power if you get nervous, can you?"

Rey noticed that his companion was aware that he was in the middle of a battle....a dry throat trying to swallow...you can't control your power if you get nervous, can you?

"White, attack!"

The puppy ran off at the little one's command and, as soon as he rounded the huge tree trunk in front of him, a little girl with jet-black hair came out from the other side, running and screaming with her hands up in the air. She, who carried a dagger in her hands and wore a huge outfit that she even dragged on the ground, collided against Rey's outstretched hand and then fell on the ground on her buttocks.

"White" said Rey in a commanding voice for his companion to stop.

The little feline stopped. White was proud of her feat, you could tell when she put one of her paws on the victim's body and roared loudly, a roar that sounded more like a shriek, but still she was claiming attention and conquering territory without further damage.

As soon as the agitated little girl opened her eyes, Rey held her nose and continued:

"So this is what hatred looks like in the eyes of someone with a sad heart. Strange..." he said referring to the little girl wearing a hood. "Did I take something from you? I don't even know you for you to hate me so much. I apologize if my existence makes you uncomfortable. Since I don't plan to make up for my mistakes... I can give you something you want instead. But first you, who move around here, maybe you know things that I don't. Tell me: what is this thing that opens in front of both of us and won't let me in?"

"Don't call me "stranger", I have a name, and tell him to get his paws off me. Her nails are hurting me" replied the little girl.

Rey made a sign with her face and White obeyed.

"My name is Edith Laquesis Of-Tartarus, and yes...you took away my childhood and even more, it's your fault I'm lost!" She folded her arms and tilted her face away from looking at the little boy. "For your information, that's a portal. Don't you know that, you who have read so much. I don't think you can go through it unless you've met the conditions, and even if you can, I don't recommend you go through it. That is one of the many entrances to Purgatory. There you will be a foreign body to that world, just as I am to this place. If you do something you shouldn't and change the structure or the purpose, you may end up being eliminated."