Full Charm Short 2023

Chapter 1

“Go crawl up the ass of an armadillo and die slowly!” I screamed, voice muffled. Pulling at the restraints on my hands and legs was useless, but I tried anyway. My nine tails were rigid, pushed against the glass tank that held me. My ears perked back, but none of my kitsune powers were of help. It wasn’t long ago that I rejected the idea of being a kitsune, and now the person with a cup of my blood wanted to take that power from me.

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

Let me say this—when everyone around you treats you like a god, you start to believe it. At least in my case, I had a team of superpowered badasses who, while not precisely my power level, were pretty damn close.

The problem was, on this particular day, the rest of my “Breaker’s Berserkers” teammates were nowhere to be found.

It was my fault. I’d woken up way before everyone else and decided it would be fun to get a head start on the mission. Over the past week, my team received more than a few jobs from the Citadel. Each involved heading off to various planets, finding supervillains who were trying to run the show, or infiltrating nefarious groups of supervillain loyalists and putting a stop to them. Generally without difficulty.

So after putting on my skin-tight blue and pink superhero suit and heading to the mission hub, I pulled up our holo-screen. It showed a new batch of missions was waiting to be handled. Maybe I’d been planning to have a look and move on, find a slice of carrot cake in the mess hall or something. Except, there was my name, right next to a mission and words that said, “Cult of the Fox might have information on a local branch under the Supreme Leader.”

Running my tongue along my pointy teeth, I considered the screen. It took me all of three seconds to decide I was going. The carrot cake could wait. After all, considering how badass I was, how much trouble could I get into? You already know about part of it, but the rest is coming. Hold your damn horses.

“Charm, accept mission?” the holoscreen asked. It was programmed to know which of our teammates would go through the portals. What better way to keep track of our location at any given time? Considering how many supers were now involved in these missions, such logs were necessary. After all, we had our team, Drew and his people, the winged woman known as the Ex Succubus—don’t ask if you don’t know—and the former bounty hunter, Ezra. At the moment, the bounty hunter and his people were off on a mission, but basically on the other side of the universe. They won’t have any interaction with me on this world.

I stared at the holoscreen, which displayed my solo name, only considering for a moment that this would be the first mission I went on by myself. With a shrug and a scratch of one of my pink, fluffy fox ears, I hit accept. Light started to glow on the platform in front of me, so I stepped onto it and smiled, eager to kick some ass.

As the light took me, I held out my arms and spun, tails waving around me as I imagined a crowd applauding my bravery. More likely would be my team scolding me for going off without them, but every once in a while a girl needs some special alone time with the villains she plans on trouncing, you know what I mean?

Flashes of multicolored lights came next, then a burst of darkness and a jolt as I landed on something hard. I braced myself, using my tails for balance, only to find the ground slipping out from beneath me. Shit, this was a trap, and I’d walked right into it!

Not exactly, it turned out, as my eyes adjusted and I let off a glow in time to see that I was on a roof, heading for the edge as loose tiles failed to hold my weight. I leaped, throwing myself into the air, and then used a twist of my tails to get enough momentum to redirect my fall. Landing a second later on a nearby balcony, I perched, catching my breath. What an entrance!

Roof tiles clattered on the street below. When their slight echo stopped, silence filled the night. Moonlight glistened off of thick leaves nearby, though no rain fell at the moment. A glance around revealed small houses with a large building towering over the rest of it all. I figured that the going would be too easy if my mission was to infiltrate that building, so decided to instead have a look around the houses.

One of my most useful skills when it comes to snooping is my ability to cloak. Turning invisible, I leaped down to the street below and landed with a soft thud. Next, I crept up to the nearest house’s windows to look inside.

The place was empty, and a strange glow emitted from the walls. I quickly checked the other rooms and the next house, even breaking a door down and barreling into one of the houses. From what I could tell, nobody was in any of these houses, and the strange glow from the walls was beyond my comprehension. When I finally decided to give up on the houses, my best guess was that the walls had simply been built like this to avoid the need for electricity. Either solar-powered buildings, or material that absorbed light. What added to the feeling that the people were no longer living in these houses was that, in at least two locations, furniture was turned over. I also found a pot with long-ago rotten food, among other messes.

“Get out of sight,” a voice hissed.

I spun, alert and ready for anything. There, crouched at the corner of the nearest house and hiding behind massive leaves, was a woman.

“The hell are you supposed to be?” I asked, stepping close but pausing at a hand held up from her.

To my surprise, the woman had fox ears but no tail. Upon further inspection, however, she saw that the fox ears were part of a mask. Was this some sort of game, and part of the reason why my name had been included on the mission to come here?

“You… you’re really her, aren’t you?” the woman asked.

I frowned, about to ask what the woman meant, when a whistling sounded—this was followed by a curse and the woman tackling me to the ground. Before I could fight back, I registered something passing through the air overhead, caught the scent of gunpowder, and then felt the heat and power of an explosive blast.

“Follow me if you want to live,” the woman said, and she was up and running.

She didn’t need to tell me twice.

Chapter 2

“Who are you and what the hell’s going on?” I asked, then ducked under a cold stone bridge, my eyes darting between the mottled greens and browns of the ravine’s walls.

Clumps of moss lined the underside of the bridge. Vines spilled from sideways-leaning trees. A river of sludge snaked through the ravine ahead of us, carrying a distinct metallic scent.

“You got our messages, yes?” the woman said in a hushed voice, glancing back repeatedly.

“Messages?” I halted, listening as the river gurgled between rocks and splashed as something moved through it. The wind whistled above us. “Sorry, what messages?”

Destiny turned, confusion taking over. “If you didn’t get the messages, why are you here?”

Uneasy at the thought of giving away too much, I hesitated before responding. “I’m not sure I can say…”

“This doesn’t make any sense. We’ve been trying to reach your people for so long, and then you show up, but…” An explosion sounded, causing her to cringe and then motion for me to hurry. “We’ll discuss when we get there.”

“When we get where?”

“The lookout so that I can show you the enemy base.”

Exactly what I was looking for, in theory. That is, if this woman’s enemy was the same as the enemy of the Citadel. For all she knew, Destiny could be aligned with the Supreme Leader.

I followed, but not without caution.

“Keep it down until we’re out of range,” Destiny whispered, motioning up.

Whatever she was motioning to was beyond my comprehension, but I obliged. Considering all of the supers and aliens with super-like powers I had come across in my time, I wouldn’t have been surprised to learn there were beings up there with super hearing or other related skills. Just as likely, tech that would accomplish the same feat.

As we went in silence, only the dim orange glow from a hunter’s moon providing light in the ravine, I had the chance to get a bit of a look at Destiny. The fox mask hid her eyes, leaving only a single slit over her mouth, leaving room for me to see her lush lips. Her dark eyes glimmered in the light, giving her an otherworldly appearance. She carried a sword on one hip, its hilt crafted from polished wood and gleaming silver, and a pistol on the other, the barrel shiny and well-maintained. She moved with grace and confidence, every step telegraphing her skill with the weapons she carried.

Considering Destiny’s fox mask and the fact that the woman had mistaken me for someone her people had been trying to get in contact with, it was likely there was a connection between her and the Kitsune Planet. Not necessarily the Citadel, but at least it gave me hope. After all, the Kitsune Planet was strongly aligned with the Citadel. It hadn’t always been, so there was the chance their connection had been pre-Citadel, but even then, the Kitsune Planet had been on the side of good.

I had been a tool in the fight to keep a powerful tool with potential for universal domination out of the hands of the Supreme Leader and his followers, even if I’d purposefully had that part of my memory wiped for some time. What better way to protect something than to forget about it altogether?

Such thoughts brought me back to members of my team and a pang of guilt that I’d wandered off without them. Not that I doubted being able to handle whatever this world threw at me. I’d gone up against some of the universe’s worst by this point, and if I was being honest, I mostly enjoyed the sense of danger. Give me a challenge over boredom any day.

Ahead, Destiny had stopped under the bridge, and I soon saw why. Several figures were on the bridge, one starting to turn our way. Lucky me, cloaking does wonders for not being seen.

A gasp escaped Destiny’s mouth at seeing me vanish, and I instantly realized my mistake. While vanishing helped me stay undetected from those above, I hadn’t accounted for Destiny not knowing my abilities. I’d grown so used to my team and each of us operating as a unit, almost like we were of one mind.

“Heard something—down there,” a voice said from above, and I had to act fast.

Darting up the ravine, I prepared to strike. Closing in on the soldiers, I saw that they were dressed much like Destiny, complete with fox masks or ears, and one even had three metallic fox tails that glowed in lines along the middle of each. What the hell was going on?

As one had leaned over the bridge with a rifle, I decided that there had to be a reason Destiny was sneaking away from these people, so I took action. Killing them wouldn’t do me any good without knowing the situation.

Instead, I reached the side of the bridge where my charm breath could reach them, so I breathed out a burst of purple that hit the first two. I ducked down and counted to two before the first punch hit. Purple being the breath that turned people against each other or, when I gave them commands, let me control them, the people I had just used it against were attacking each other.

Only problem being that when I used my powers on others, they always had a slight effect on me. I put a hand up to keep Destiny back—as much as I had learned to control my powers and impulses, it was still best to avoid accidentally turning on her.

Unfortunately, I misjudged when it was over. The fighting above had turned into a couple of screams and groans of agony, so I moved back to Destiny, ready to keep moving.

I growled, bared my claws, and glared. Destiny’s eyes went wide beneath that mask, a hand moving for her sword, then pistol, as if she couldn’t decide which would be better. Finally, she put her hands up, and I took a deep breath to find my calm. It worked.

“How—what?” She shook her head. “I mean, where’d you go?”

Not sure if I wanted to give away my secrets yet, I shrugged and said, “Figured we’d need some help evading them.”

“Yessss, but…” She glanced at the bridge back, then shrugged. “There was a reason we wanted your people’s help, after all. I shouldn’t be surprised.”

She darted off again before I could ask more. Quickly following, a gentle wind She darted off again before I could ask more. Quickly following, a gentle wind flew through my tails, bringing the scent of fresh soil and sweetness that likely came from the violet flowers growing from walls of vines along nearby stones.

Destiny vanished around a bend ahead. When I came around it, she was already at the peak, motioning me up.

“There,” she said, “the enemy who have held us down for so long.”

Chapter 3

Having joined Destiny at the top of the ridge, I found my excitement rising at the view in front of us. Without a doubt, this enemy had a connection to the Supreme Leader. For one, pillars with balls of purple flame at the tops surrounded the fortress, much like I’d seen the enemy harness—those known as the Nihilists. The structure of the buildings was further evidence, with jutting edges and jagged metal that stuck out erratically—a telltale sign, based on what I’d come across so far.

A grin spread across my face as I thought of taking these bastards down. I’d been holding back before, considering all of the new power I’d received along with my ninth tail. By most accounts, I had become Tier 1 or above—since I was, after all, not from the Oram system, I could think of myself as being in god mode. Being superpowered beyond most Tier 1 supers meant there weren’t many that could go up against me. Not that I was letting my newfound power get to my head.

“So, when will the rest arrive?” Destiny asked, staring my way with large, hopeful eyes.

I wanted to reply, “Bitch, I already told you I have no idea what you’re talking about,” but instead I put a hand on her shoulder, gave her a comforting look, and said, “Don’t worry, I’ll fuck ‘em up for you. Every last one.”

Destiny shook her head as if trying to make sense of my words. “The Kitsune Planet really doesn’t know about our situation?”

I ran a hand over one of my furry ears in thought. “Honestly, I haven’t been back there recently. But I’d like to think they would have reached out to me about something like this.”

“Haven’t gone back… But if you don’t live there, then where?”

“I’m originally from the Kitsune Planet, but lately live on Earth in the Milky Way galaxy. Sometimes on the Citadel.”

The woman blinked, clearly not sure if she should believe me. “I thought the Citadel was a myth. And Earth gone, long ago.”

“Nope to both.”

Judging by the woman’s wide eyes, she was clearly mind-blown. My attention was on the enemy base.

“Don’t worry, I’ll investigate, gather intel, then find you,” I said, and took a step forward before the woman took my hand and spun me to face her.

“I’ll come with,” she said, eyes beseeching me through the holes of her fox mask.

“You’d get in the way.”

She pursed her lips in thought, then shook her head. “Really, I’d like to see you in action. It’d be a dream come true.”

Arching a brow, I gave her a once-over. “You want to see me in action, I’ll demonstrate for you after. Your own private show—just you and me.”

Silence followed, during which I wondered if she was blushing under that mask. Finally, she knelt down and said, “I’ll wait right here.”

“I won’t be long.” Taking a step and about to go, I paused. “Wait—anything I need to know about them or their powers before I enter?”

“Powers?” she laughed. “They don’t have powers. They take powers.”

That sent a chill through me. This wasn’t the first time I had encountered an enemy with the ability to steal powers. Memories of a creepy pyramid came to mind, and I did a doubletake to assess this building and wonder if this was some other version of that place.

“I… think I’ll be all right,” I said, and then took off into the night.

Would I be lying if I told you that my mind wasn’t reeling with thoughts of what would happen if I was taken and thrust into the strange, coffin-like boxes that were used to keep a super in place while their powers were cultivated? Mostly, yeah. The idea was terrifying.

And would I be lying if I pretended not to be imagining my man holding me tight, cradling my head and telling me it was all going to be okay? You bet. And more than that—I started imagining his body pressed to mine, the warmth of his nude flesh reminding me I was alive. At least one last time before I was trapped.

I pushed all those thoughts aside and flung myself into the air. My tails caught in the wind and I glided along until I came upon a tall tree branch. There I perched to scout out the enemy compound.

The fortress was surrounded by a shimmering, translucent force field, protecting it from any external threats. From my vantage point, I could see over the outer wall and, fluctuating as the image appeared through the force field, at least the grounds of this place were visible. I was awestruck by its towering pillars and glowing balls of purple light. The light pulsed with a rhythmic intensity, almost hypnotizing in its effect. The pillars were sleek and metallic, and they seemed almost alive with energy.

Perhaps the purple light on those pillars kept the force field in place, which meant I had to disrupt them to gain access.

Moving my hands along my body, I was reminded of my blaster pistol, a wrist device and accompanying earpiece for communications with my team when within range, and a not much else. A sudden urge to relieve my bladder came over me and I had to laugh at the timing. If anything, that made me want to hurry and get inside even faster.

Using my comms device, I went on a hunch that this planet would operate on entirely different frequencies, and if I tweaked it just right, it could have an effect. Sure enough, the signal went out and, at least momentarily, the closest part of the energy field fizzled, then was down! I took a step toward it and paused, throwing myself back as the field returned. A curse escaped my lips. I glanced around, preparing myself. Once again, I activated my device, this time ready to move with all of the speed at my disposal. To anyone watching, I must have appeared to be no more than a blur of pink.

Then I was in, staggering to a stop and turning to see the energy field back in place behind me. My breath came short and strained, giving me reason to wonder if something about this world or maybe the purple energy was affecting me. Regardless, I was there to gather intel, so I continued toward the tall fortress.

Pillars rose up on either side of me, strange balls of purple sacks on a field to my right, the fortress rising up ahead to block out the night sky. Pointed stone jutted out from the ground. A golden light covered the base of the fortress, emitting from natural glow stones.

I started toward the doors, seeing three robed figures moving along the wall toward that spot. Best to avoid detection at this point. I cloaked briefly and instead turned to the nearest pillar. My claws helped me climb it, and then I was up and moving, better angled to enter through one of the upper windows. Sure enough, only a slight burst of energy was necessary to reach the outer wall, and then I was up and looking at an inner courtyard on one side, parapets and an entrance on the other. From here though, I could make out more golden light through a point between two towers, so I leaped over and found a perch. A sprawling city glowed there beneath the watchful gaze of this fortress, and past it were dark, purple hills and more fortresses. What the hell had I stumbled upon?

Without hesitation, I used my claws to scratch a jagged opening in the window, and I pushed myself inside. The room was dark and filled with thick dust particles that clung to my fur. I moved toward a set of steps, my boots clanking softly. At the bottom of the stairs, a long hallway stretched out before me, lined with numerous doors.

After a few moments of thought, I strode forward and pushed open a door on the far left. Inside was a closet filled with dark robes similar to those worn by the Nihilists I had encountered before. I quickly grabbed one, flung it around my shoulders, and crept back into the hall.

As much as I knew this wasn’t the time or place, I couldn’t exactly hold my bladder any longer and wasn’t about to go in my suit. While the Citadel insisted the suits could take waste and repurpose it, that was beyond my level of comfort. Instead, I ducked into the first dark corner I came across, slipped out of my pink and white spandex, and squatted.

Damn, that felt good. The slight chill in the air caused my skin to pull tight and I looked forward to putting my clothes back on, but footsteps echoed, drawing close. Best not to move, or I’d risk alerting this enemy to my location.

A man walked by in a long, dark cloak, gray arms visible for a brief second as he walked. They were covered with dark marks similar to tattoos. I squatted there, quickly cloaking and hoping he hadn’t heard my tinkling… and for a beat noted his head turning and even saw the violet glow of eyes within that dark hood. To my relief, a mumbling sounded to his front, and he looked straight ahead, then continued past my field of vision. I let out a sight, wiped with the robe, then discarded it and continued to dress.

Once I was covered again, a thought hit me—I didn’t need to only use the robes as a substitute for toilet paper, but could grab a new one and go undercover! Maybe that should have been my first thought when seeing the robes, but come on, I reallllly had to tinkle.

Ducking back and going for the robes, I then donned one and grinned. Sure, I could stay cloaked for a bit, but as much as I liked others to think I was all-powerful and almost invincible, that was hardly the truth. Staying cloaked too long became draining and made using my other powers more difficult.

Hood on, I advanced toward the slowly growing sound of humming and an occasional clanging. Whatever was causing that sound would likely be what I had come here for.

Chapter 4

I continued through halls and to an upper-level promenade, where I was immediately struck by the advanced technology and futuristic amenities that abounded. It was a veritable stronghold of scientific progress and innovation. As I walked through its halls, I couldn’t help but feel a sense of awe and wonder at the incredible sights and sounds that surrounded me. Like outside, glowing purple balls of light continued to pulse and shimmer, casting an ethereal radiance over everything. And, like outside, my energy drained with each step.

To be caught here with my powers diminished would mean significant trouble. With that in mind, I picked up the pace. Clanking and humming grew louder, until finally I was a set of double doors, the sound loud enough to assure me it was coming from the other side of those doors.

Voices came through, muffled, but I used my comms device to adjust for translation. By the time it adjusted for the language, all I managed to pick up was, “Let them believe what they want. Won’t matter when we move in and obliterate them all.”

Pressing up to the door, I considered moving in with a breath of charm and seeing what else I could get out of them. That would raise alarms, though, and until I was ready to come back with the rest of my team, or the “Breaker’s Berserkers,” starting a war wasn’t smart.

Instead, I waited until they were gone, then pressed in slowly. Others were visible off the left along the walkway in their cloaks, but I was cloaked as well so entered. Past the walkway was a room with a dull green glow, loud and without a doubt the source of the noise.

Stepping up next to the ledge, I stared, mouth dry at the sight of robot limbs, claws, heads… and tails. On a long line of factory chains in front of me, the enemy was compiling an entire army of metallic kitsunes! At the end of the line, many of them had canisters of purple liquid inserted into slots on their forearms and backs.

My mind reeled with questions, trying to put the pieces of this puzzle together. More than anything I kept coming back to curiosity over why these people were so obsessed with my kind—what possessed them to want to build an army that represented the kitsunes?

Moving along the catwalk, I found a hint of an answer in the form of a room with a several hovering planets, one figure there swiping between them. My guess was as good as any, but judging by the array of ships displayed as projections on one side and the planets that looked very familiar, I had a feeling that whoever this enemy was meant to make a move on all nearby allies of the Kitsune Planet and, eventually, take over my birthplace as well.

Not on my watch.

Racing back through hallways to find Destiny, my heart was thudding. Sliding doors moved out of my way to reveal a line of robot kitsune warriors. Claws ready, I prepared for a fight. Except I was still wearing the robe. Making my eyes purple and holding back on my instinct to fight, I strolled forward and right past them. They watched me but continued down the hall to wherever they had been headed.

My chest was pounding, tails tucked in around me so that the robe wouldn’t move and reveal my true nature. A clanking sounded behind me and my fists clenched, claws digging into flesh. Picking up my pace, I ducked down a side hall. White walls had their perfection interrupted by cables that carried a purple liquid. I followed those into a room full of those cables and then leaned over to a sunken section where the cables led into lines of metal boxes. Getting a good look at the closest, I saw a resemblance to a sarcophagus. Worse, a resemblance to a type of box where my team and I had rescued a super from getting her powers drained. Shit, did they have people in there right now?

“This way,” my translator picked up, and I realized my cover would be blown if I tried to find an answer right that moment.

To avoid being discovered, I burst through the only other door there into a room of darkness. Hissing sounded and even my glow didn’t give me vision. I stumbled out of there, finding a door and slamming it open with all of my strength. It went flying off and then I was out, wobbly and unable to get my bearings. A rumbling sounded and the walls seemed to shake. Something was off, but I pushed on.

I rounded a corner to see Breaker in front of me, a black outfit on but unzipped down to just below his naval, abs glistening with sweat and ripped as hell. He grinned, one of his hands sliding off the top and showing his broad shoulders.

How was he here?

My mind reeled as I searched for an answer. He might have realized I was gone and came after me, but that didn’t seem right. Plus, I hadn’t seen him wear anything like this since we first met on that damn prison ship so long ago. As he started to undress, it became even more evident that this couldn’t be real as my surroundings transformed into not only that exact ship, but a shower where the two of us had enjoyed one of our first encounters.

As much as I would have loved to relive that moment, this wasn’t the right time or place. I breathed in and out rapidly, a flurry of colors coming over me and then a white light that glowed brightly. Only then was I able to see it—purple mist hovered near my eye line and then vanished, but I could smell something off in the air, like sweet yams.

“Sorry, Breaker,” I said as he lowered his pants, and yes, I lingered a moment to bite my lower lip and wish he was there and that he would be able to press that gorgeous body against me.

A tingle ran through my body and my hand even moved down to my inner thigh, but I breathed out a deep charm of control. Then it was over, my powers allowing me to see clearly and push past this foreign substance.

Maybe I should have left right then to go back and find Drew and the rest of my team. That would have been the sensible thing to do. But I was too cocky at the time, too full of myself to think I would need help. But I had to warn her, to start the chain that would get her people out of this situation so they could rise up and fight while spreading the news so that others would be prepared as well.

I saw the opening that I’d come through, leaped, and came out the other side ready for anything. To my surprise, nothing stopped me. Considering the level of tech within, I’d half expected to emerge and find that they had picked up my signal and would be ready to trap me.

Instead, I landed on the ground in a sprint, darting between trees and up the small hill to where I had left Destiny, and then finally paused to catch my breath.

She looked at me with wide, sorrow-filled eyes. Before I could ask what was going on in that pretty head of hers, a click sounded, then a hiss as purple gas shot up around us.

My head went woozy and my body lost all strength. The next thing I knew, I was sideways, cheek touching a cold rock. Then… darkness.

Chapter 5

“I honestly didn’t know,” a voice said at my side, and my eyes burst open to see Destiny nearby.

Blinking and then shaking my head to clear my mind, I tried to process what had happened. “You betrayed me?”

“No, no, no…” She inched closer but then hesitated and glanced over her shoulder. “They’ll be back any minute. I don’t know why they’re doing this, but… I’m sorry.”

A quick struggle told me that I wasn’t getting out of this quickly. My body was trapped inside a sort of sarcophagus-looking box, vertical, with only my head sticking out. A breathing mask was over my face—likely to keep me from hitting my enemy with charms. That at least told me they were familiar with what I was capable of, but I wasn’t sure how such knowledge would help me yet.

Unease settled over me as I took in the room. It was dark with a dim light in the halls ahead and flickering torches on the walls barely visible around the bend. They cast long shadows across the rough stone floor. Water dripped in the distance in a steady drip… drip… drip. Stone walls adorned with trinkets and relics made me imagine long-forgotten civilizations. Among them was a human skull, its eye sockets containing rubies that sparkled in the faint torchlight and gazed at me as if in warning.

In the middle of the room a metal table held several canisters of the purple liquid I had seen in the fortress. I couldn’t shake the feeling that I was being watched. I couldn’t help but wonder who or what might be lurking in the shadows, waiting to make their presence known.

Trying to move, I found that I was unable. Sobs told me Destiny was crying. The nerve of her to get me trapped here and then cry!

“What did you use on me?” I asked, hating how muffled my voice sounded through this mask. No matter how much I scrunched my face or contorted my jaw, I couldn’t shake the damned thing.

“I told you, it wasn’t…” Her eyes went wide and she spun, then quickly stepped out of the way.

Two figures stood behind her. How they had entered without me noticing was baffling. Was I this out of it? Trying to struggle proved fruitless, and I could already tell that any sort of charm breath would only affect me. One wore a blue and purple dress with gold lines that gave it the appearance of a military dress uniform, her face completely covered with a fox mask. Only, her mask had digital lines with glowing eyes and covered her face and head completely, only her wavy hair showing at the back where it flowed out.

“Destiny, leave,” this one said, voice harsh and mechanical.

The woman at her side wore a uniform of blue with a white cape and matching white fox mask that, like Destiny, left her mouth uncovered.

Turning to me to mouth, “Sorry,” Destiny quickly ducked out of there, leaving me with these two.

“After so long of ignoring our call, you finally show up,” the first said, stepping up to me and giving me a once-over. “Unfortunately, you’re too late.”

“Too late for what?” I demanded.

Her companion moved to my side, making adjustments on the tank that held me in place. “Our dear leader, Naya, is telling you that we had no choice. Our gods abandoned us, so now we have done what’s necessary for survival.”

“All because you couldn’t bother to respond,” Naya added, staring at me through her glowing, mechanical eyes. “You couldn’t follow through on your promises.”

“There were no messages. Nothing got through… at least that I’m aware of.”

“Lies!”

“Go crawl up the ass of an armadillo and die slowly!” I screamed amid struggles, and there she was with a cup of what I had to assume was my blood. My fur stood on end as she took a sip.

“Reyen, begin extraction,” Naya said, apparently addressing the woman in white.

A click sounded and I tried to turn what Reyen was up to, but found that my mobility didn’t allow for it as she was to my side and behind. Movement registered, but not much more before a flood of purple and pink hit me—all within the tank. At first it came as a burst of liquid through the tube. I thought my end would come from drowning on this muck, then mist poured in from around me and the tube, filled with gas.

As I gasped for air, I consumed the gas and found my head spinning. The last thing I saw before the visions took me was a glistening of what looked like a tear from the one called Reyen.

Having visions while trapped on an alien planet wasn’t optimal, but at least they were pleasant visions. Not at first, when I found myself in a similar situation, trapped on the prison ship. I was back in those first few days, rattling my bars, kicking and punching walls, trying to remember why I had been put there. Even in my memory days flew by, maybe months or years, I couldn’t be sure. Fights and horrible interactions with other inmates, sleepless nights spent staring at the ceiling, wishing I could be gone from that terrible place.

Then the day came when cells opened and powers returned. Then came the good visions. That first day when I had been sneaking around, cloaked as I tried to figure out why my powers were starting to return and what this meant for the rest of the villains. I had just started down one of the main halls after exiting a room of cheering and howling supervillains, when I saw this guy standing there talking to himself. Naturally, I assumed he was insane.

This was of course the man that became known to me as Breaker. Visions of the two of us navigating that space prison, then of my hands navigating his flesh... I imagine a moment of ecstasy escaped my lips as I sat trapped in that dungeon prison, envisioning this. What would the strange fox colt people think? I didn’t care. I was occupied with my imagination, focused on the first time Breaker’s hand had slid down my pants, the way his lips felt as they pressed against my neck or his tongue elsewhere.

Then I was flashing forward, Breaker and the rest of our team at my side as we fought enemies. My power was increasing. I could feel it now as I had then, watching myself as if from afar as new tales appeared from my rear.

It hit me then that somehow this fox cult was causing me to relive the memories of my progression. In doing so, they might have been somehow trying to use that against me.

The visions needed to stop.

I diverted my thoughts with deep breaths, focusing instead on the mundane and the emotional. I was taken back to a day spent on the hillside overlooking Supralines superhero academy. Then to the moment I had wed Breaker, and skipping forward to the moment that I met my father.

A small metallic fox took over my vision, pink energy swirling around it. That was it. My answer to escaping this situation.

All I needed to do was wake up and put my new plan into action. While I had never actually transformed my body, it wasn’t as if I would be the first to do so. When I was awake, the best way to fall asleep was to find complete satisfaction, so I decided that while pretty much asleep, the best way to wake up was to do the same.

My entire focus turned to moments with Breaker and the others, to my hand stroking him, to his tongue flicking across mine. At one moment, I had his head between my legs, my hands burning through his hair and pulling his head down, pressing harder and harder, then I was on all fours with my tails in the air, him taking me from behind. Others from our team joined, and as real as these memories were, I soon found myself huffing and puffing as if I were about to blow the whole ship down. Climax came with the power of a raging storm, and as bliss took hold and I lost track of all thoughts, darkness came over me until my eyes opened.

Waking up, I grinned. It felt good to be awake again, even if I was already missing those moments from my visions.

These members of the fox cult were discussing how they would use my powers—how stealing my blood and essence would give them extraordinary powers. But that wasn’t why I felt a sense of hope and excitement—no, my visions had given me a way out.

“She’s awake,” the shorter of the two said, and stepped over to check on the machinery and likely up my dosage. Big mistake.

With a quick breath and focus on all of the colors at once, I morphed the image of those colors in my head into a tight ball. It appeared like metal swirling, expanding and shaping in various ways like liquid, and then I said, “I am the fox.”

Having never transformed like this before it was a strange sensation. My entire body shifted and shook, then sunk in on itself. But it wasn’t painful. Instead, it was like I was becoming aware in a way I hadn’t been before. Before I knew it, my body had changed shape—not quite the metallic being I had in mind and no longer fully corporeal, like somewhere between a spirit and the metal fox I’d had in mind. While not free of the glass tank, I was free of all other constraints.

I charged forward and, in spite of the slight push the glass gave me, managed to pass through it, flying through the air on explosive bursts of light. Free.

Chapter 6

My new form allowed for an escape from the contraption they had locked me in, but now I was having a tough time. I didn’t have experience in this form that seemed to be somewhere between teleportation, sliding through the air and through the nearby table.

A gasp escaped from Naya, her companion Reyen lunging for me but hands going right through. Both went into lockdown mode, but I continued to float without control. My mind was like a cloud, barely able to process my next move and entirely focused on simply maintaining some semblance of form—for all I knew, my escape would be my downfall, resulting in the particles that made up my being to continue to separate until I was no more.

With a deep breath, I refocused barely aware of the wall I was passing through or the chanting from Naya. She had taken tubes from the tank that had been my prison and plugged them into her suit, purple mist rising up around her.

Then I was in another section of the cave, or maybe it was a storage room—I couldn’t be sure, my vision nearly overtaken by bright light.

“It’s only you,” a voice said. I tried to turn, but was too non-existent to do so. Another forced breath helped me to regain my focus and realize that the words hadn’t been spoken by anyone, but were merely my thoughts. “You are doing this… and it’s time to pull yourself together.”

More breaths, focusing on my inner core, I imagined a ball of light forming. As it spun, energy formed around it until that energy took shape and was me again.

“How the hell did she do that?” a muffled voice resonated through the walls.

I felt cold stone beneath my fingertips and looked down to see the light fading. My hands were solid, but a glance back showed my tails moving through the air with light flowing, still not taking their normal form. Again I focused on my internal ball of energy, envisioning myself whole, and finally the tails too took shape. My body was complete.

A brief glance around revealed that I was in a narrow tunnel with metal boxes to one side. Weapons, most likely. Each had an orange symbol that reminded me of those fox masks. I rose to approach one, then pulled back the lid to see it wasn’t only weapons, but metallic bits of fox armor like those I had seen in the fortress. Someone—Naya by my bet—was trying to create an army of these things. And considering that the fortress had been producing the tech, I had a feeling Naya and her fox cult were working with them.

Destiny’s betrayal made sense, but I couldn’t wrap my head around why she had pretended to befriend me and shown me the enemy fortress in the first place. Had that been part of the trap all along, or was there more to this picture?

Clanking of doors sounded, followed by shouting in the distance. Still a bit uneasy from my latest experiment with my powers, I staggered to the back of the hall and crouched, thinking I would hide and wait them out. Except, from this angle I could make out a narrow crawl space. Judging by the sound of water, this led to an underground river that I figured connected to the river I’d traversed alongside Destiny before.

A quick roll brought me into the darkness below, but I managed a glow of my eyes to see better. Even that took a lot out of me in my exhausted state. I told myself to be careful when to use that spirit power in the future.

I was able to find the river and then follow it upstream. The walk was tough with the low ceiling, to the extent that I had to move on all fours at some points, tails pressed down behind me. Rocks blocked my path so that more than once I had to move along the slick rocks bordering the river.

At a bend in the river, I came upon a line of light shining down from above. Seeing the light gave me hope, so I quickened my pace toward it. A rock crunched beneath my feet.

My mind didn’t comprehend why the rock would crunch like that until I looked down to see the “rocks” in my path. They weren’t rocks at all, but bones. And beneath me, a broken skull. I would have ignored this, except that I noticed the pointy teeth. Kneeling to investigate, I found other signs, including long claws and tail bones, that indicated these weren’t normal skeletons, but those of kitsune like myself.

Someone had been luring kitsune here and draining them of their powers!

Rage built up inside of me and I felt my energy returning, light swirling through this chamber and lighting it entirely.

“Down there,” a voice said from above.

Instead of being worried that they had found me, I was filled with excitement and a thirst for blood. These motherfuckers deserved what they were about to get.

I charged forward and leaped up, tails waving behind me and giving me the extra burst to clear the opening and land directly in the path of a woman with a half-mask of the fox and black robe. She struck me as a lower-level guard, but an alarm blared behind her and more were incoming.

“Did you kill my sisters and brothers?” I asked, claws unfurled and ready to exact justice.

“I did as ordered,” the woman said, voice breaking as she took a step back.

“Then you made a horrible mistake…” I took a step toward her, but the figure who came running in from a side tunnel gave her pause. It was Destiny, hands up in surrender.

“Charm, wait… please,” Destiny said. “It wasn’t her fault.”

“So it was yours?” I turned on her, rising into the air.

“I—I didn’t want them to get to you. I’m sorry!”

“Sorry won’t cut it.”

“I know.” Destiny knelt, hands out at her side. “I tried to lead you to the enemy, truly hoping you would be able to put a stop to it. But they found out and then got to you.”

“‘They’ meaning the enemy?”

“‘They’ meaning us,” another voice said, and there was Naya with Reyen behind her, more guards with them with their black cloaks. “The Order of the Fox has a new mission—when the Kitsune Planet abandoned us, a sect of our group decided it was time to take power for ourselves, to be able to stand with the Nihilists and Supreme Leader to be powerful in our own right. You and your people now serve us—not in the traditional sense, but in the sense that we feed upon your powers, create technology that will propel us into the future and help our Order to stand on our own.”

The woman stepped forward so that my light glistened on her armor. Naya was tall and imposing, metal tails thrust up behind her. Her suit began to whir and hum, metal plates shifting and rearranging to reveal long claws, each like a dagger. Her tails elongated and more blades emerged, becoming powerful metal appendages that could slice through even the most rigid materials.

With a fierce cry, Naya launched herself into action, her metal tails whipping through the air with her sights set on me. Pushing through my lingering exhaustion, I charged forward to meet this woman in battle. Metal tails sliced, Naya’s attacks coming quicker than seemed natural. I found myself more on the defensive than I would have liked.

This was the power of her kitsune people used against her. Not only others, but my own energy stolen and used against her. As one tail missed, another came from the left, so I had to use a burst of my remaining energy to teleport back and away. My next move was strained, energy nearly spent. Worse, when panels opened at Naya’s shoulders and two blasts of purple energy shot out.

I threw herself sideways, arms up in defense, but one of the blasts hit! I felt instantly drained, and I collapsed to the floor. A line of white light escaped my mouth, floating up and around my head like smoke.

“Take her,” Naya commanded.

Guards strolled forward, but as soon as the closest bent over to lift me to my feet, I spun and grabbed, pulling him close to sink my teeth into his neck. He screamed and pulled back, blood gushing. The others hesitated, eyeing me with concern.

“You all have a choice,” I said, pushing herself to stand despite my lack of strength. “I stand before you, a true kitsune and member of Breaker’s Berserkers. My name is Charm, and I can and will bring the power of my people to attack our enemy. Don’t let that enemy be you.”

Naya scoffed, but the guards weren’t advancing. Instead, they looked between her and me, waiting.

“Fine,” Naya said with a growl, “I’ll finish this myself.”

“

Chapter 7

I was ready for whatever Naya would throw at me. Even without my full strength, I was Charm, the nine-tailed kitsune. There was no way in hell this energy sucker would take me down. My team was counting on me, and I had a crucial role to play in saving the universe. This lady’s days were numbered.

The battle that ensued was not one of powers and super senses, but rather one of pure fighting skill. I dodged and weaved, flipping and rolling across the floor as I launched my attacks. My opponent was fast, but I was faster, landing a leg sweep before springing back up to deliver a punch. She retaliated with a whip of her metal tails, sending me flying across the room to crash into the wall. In an instant, she was upon me, her tails slashing and hacking as my blood flowed. But I had her right where I wanted her. With her close, I smashed my forehead into her mask, cracking it. Again and again, I struck until the mask fell away, revealing her face. Without giving her a chance to react, I pulled her in, pressed my lips to hers, and inhaled deeply. She had my energy within her, and as I kissed this crazy bitch, I felt my energy restored.

Light glowed from my chest and my tails began to flow in circles, the two of us rising off the ground. Then my eyes took her in, and I froze before dropping her to the ground. The woman before me was not a normal one like destiny, but a kitsune. Her fox ears were purple to match her eyes, and the skin around her eyes showed dark lines of strain or over-reliance on the powers she had been stealing from other kitsune.

“You… you’re one of us?” I asked in horror.

Naya nodded, pushing herself up and showing that she knew I was a threat and that, at least for now, she wouldn’t attack.

“I stand before you today as the leader of the Order of the Fox, but it wasn’t always this way,” she said. “Once, I was a loyal member of the Kitsune Planet, dedicated to protecting the universe and fighting for justice. As time passed, I began to see the flaws in our system. The Kitsune Planet was too slow, too hesitant to act. We were always one step behind the true threats to the universe – the alien overlords who sought to conquer and enslave us all.

“So I made a choice. I turned my back on the Kitsune Planet and came here to start a new chapter of this universe. Here I used my powers to become their leader, and with their help, I transformed the Order of the Fox into a powerful force. Soon no one will be able to stop us… not even you. But you can join us. The Supreme Leader is too powerful to stand against, but if we’re with her, we can survive. Choose the side of survival, Charm.”

There wasn’t a chance in hell I would side with the Supreme Leader, but I had to wonder if this woman could be turned.

“My people stand together against the Supreme Leader,” I told her. “The Kitsune planet is back in business. We are ready to make a stand, and if you admit your crimes, you will have a fair trial.”

“I would sooner die,” she replied, then threw herself at me again.

“So be it,” I replied as one strike after another of hers came at me. Now, however, I was recharged. With my powers at the ready, I breathed in deep and created an energy shield around me that absorbed strike after strike of hers, then let it fade except for bubbles of energy around my fists which I used to pummel her. I let them fade and then grabbed her by the cloak and wrapped it around her neck, power surging and pulling us into the air so that I slammed her head into the ceiling, then let her fall.

“Last chance,” I said, standing over her with my light creating rainbows that glistened on the walls.

Naya’s eyes looked distant as she lifted her head to glare my way, and with what little energy she had left, she mouthed, “Fuck you,” and then tried to launch for one last attack. I stepped back And slammed the side of my fist into the back of her head. Her face collided with the stone of the ground beneath us with a horrible crunch. Metal tails during my way, but I slid back, grabbing the closest and using it to put the woman out of her pain.

It was over. Her body lifeless.

All eyes went to the corpse of Naya. It wasn’t a moment of glory or victory, however. This was one of my people, a kitsune… dead at my doing.

A shudder ran through me at the thought, and I knelt, hand on her chest. “Rest in peace, sister.”

Following a moment of silence, I stood and turned to face the crowd of women in their robes and fox masks.

Reyen stepped forward from the group, then went down to both knees. She bowed her head as she said, “I can’t even begin to explain how sorry I am, Charm. I never wanted to betray you, but I was so desperate. I thought I had no other choice. The Cult of the Fox had promised me so much - power, wealth, a place at the top. And I was so tired of feeling small and insignificant. I wanted to be someone who mattered, and I thought that joining forces with the cult would give me that chance.

“But I was wrong. I see that now. I see how misguided I was and how much harm I’ve caused. I never meant to hurt you, Charm. You’ve always been a hero to me, someone I’ve looked up to and admired. And to think that I’ve caused you pain... it breaks my heart. I know I can’t take back what I’ve done, but I want to make it right. I want to help you defeat the cult and bring them down once and for all. I know it won’t be easy, and I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness. But please, Charm - let me make amends. Let me be a hero, too. Let me stand by your side and fight alongside you like the true kitsune we are meant to be.”

Destiny did the same at her side, kneeling with hands out, head bowed. The rest followed suit, and I knew that the rest would listen to reason with Naya gone.

“I stand with you,” I told them. “We will figure this out—together.”

I would have to return to my team and let them know what had happened, return here, and take down the enemy infrastructure blocking this planet’s communications with the Kitsune Planet.

Until that day, Destiny and Reyen would have to lead the others in defense against the enemy, staying hidden as much as possible and preparing for my return.

I told them as much, but Reyen raised her eyes, full of concern. “Will that be enough? This is only the beginning. There are so many fortresses out there. Too many, I reckon. And if what Naya told us is true, they serve as a staging ground. The true enemy is preparing for a massive assault.”

“It will be up to you, then, to stand as the first line of defense,” I told her. “But you won’t be alone.”

Destiny stood then, motioning the others to do the same as she said, “We will prepare and eagerly await your return.”

With a nod of approval, I turned to find my portal and way back to my team. We had work to do, and if these ladies were correct, our days of adventuring and forging allies were over.

The true and final war was about to begin.