A millennia ago, the man who became our god king, Therun Perun Taloc, roamed the world. He crossed the ocean from lands unknown on the back of a lightning serpent. Both have many names, Quetzalcoatl, Kukulkan, the one who parts the bloody sea, and others. I am unsure if their true names are known any longer. Or if they have taken on the names of those they defeated, too much of our history was lost in the great war against Pandora, and in the scouring of Kheresh, when the sky burned and land rose into the aether. Though I suspect that was Taloc''s arrival, for the snakemen fought with him from that battle forward. Taloc accomplished Pandora''s goal, mastery of human form, he forged us to suit his needs. The beast peoples, Lizardmen, and aforementioned snakemen who perished on this continent. Werewolves and felinids as well, crossing the oceans on floating islands. All call Taloc the creator, save the elves who call him the divine master. No, I don''t understand the distinction, but elves are all wishy-pishy and slow worded.


    The werewolves were great warriors, each one of them greater than a dozen knights. Though their race had no magic to speak of. They were His vanguard, fighting alongside Taloc himself, the only mortal beings capable of such a feat. Many died during the war, some say they went extinct, but we sages know the truth. How the werewolves procreate unnaturally, growing in number with blood rituals as Taloc decrees. Most are kept as slaves, for all fear their strength. I believe King Aldric’s Blade is one such creature, for he is a knight of unparalleled prowess, even among the knights of the royal guard.


    But strength and skill was never enough to fight the old gods. Magic was required to match their tempests, and their hordes of shamans could only be matched with greater numbers. To this end, Taloc altered the feline races of his homeland, molding them in the image of elvenkind to father the Eclipsiarchs we know of today.


    They have an inhumanly long lifespan, able to endure this world for centuries. In spite of their endurance he gave them the felinid’s early puberty and litters of four or more children. His aim was clear, drown the enslavers in a tide of magical kittens. Very fearsome.


    Hey, why are you laughing Nyota? I''m trying to tell a story here. Cmon.


    Ahem. It took centuries, but with the immortal Taloc the tide had shifted against the beings that were. As King of Lightning he could slay any man, defeat any army, and even wound the gods themselves. But he still slept, and ate, and fought one battle at a time.


    First he culled humanity, then he occupied their fortresses with his chosen, using their numbers to creep across the world. As they multiplied several distinct lineages split off, Pardanites in the jungles of the distant south, they are a crossbreed of werewolves and Eclipsiarchs, difficult to raise, and slow to age, but peerless warriors. Unlike the common Pantherians who were bred for numbers alone to conquer the land.


    They are the most diverse and adaptable of the feline races, living alongside humanity, and the only acceptable race of slaves. Amongst the forbidden races are the Umbraquinns and Eclipsiarchs, both capable of wielding divine classes.


    Umbraquinns are universally born with the dark affinity, often with a second talent. While Eclipsiarchs may possess any affinity and pass on their magical affinities to their children. Similarly to how human nobles may pass on their powers.


    Under Taloc’s bloody millennia humanity was freed from the old gods and shielded by the feline races. Though there was a grievous cost. For every human saved a dozen pantherians gave their lives. In the end all servants of malice where ground them into submission. Some, like Erebus, fled this continent or mayhaps this world while Pandora was slain; promising vengeance on Taloc. Doing as he did to the others by claiming a portion of his domain. Though she has yet to fulfil that promise.


    Nonetheless he refused to stay, once again ascending into the heavens with his most loyal servants. Never to be seen again. Or so the humans say. Truth is, he was weakened after thousands of years of fighting, his armies were culled, and humanity saw themselves being replaced by felinids. So they betrayed him. Stabbed God himself in the back and killed everything that wasn''t human. Tens of thousands lost their lives that day, ending the bloodlines of nearly all Eclipsiarchs and werewolves. Without their rulers or their champions the felinids broke. Snakemen and lizardmen went extinct, and the Pardanites vanished into the deepest jungles where they do not venture out of. Within fifty years humanity had erected the Fulminonimbus and enslaved all beastial races, purging all magi and neutering the vast majority.


    By royal decree all Felinoids must be castrated or registered as breeding stock. None are to be freed. Any Felinoids showing magical affinity are to be slain and their execution to be confirmed by public vivisection at the royal college of magic.


    The current record is twenty three hours under the surgeon’s knife. Although that is hotly contested since the subject stopped responding after eighteen hours, with only their tears continuing for five more hours.


    —


    Liam listened to the story with growing interest, fascinated by the absurdity of elven cats somehow creating black magic cats. The whole tale seemed a bit fanciful, possessing qualities of being retold a thousand times and growing ever more implausible. Though his mood soured at the ending. Humanity owed everything to this lightning God and his servants. To castrate their liberators seemed downright evil, cartoonishly villainous.


    Except, Baron Green knew it was true. Deep in the wrinkles of Green’s brain he recollected the same tale, this time from a man who drank too freely, and left his bishop’s rainments cloistered.This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.


    Violent dreams sprang to Liam’s mind when he heard of the unthinkable abomination that was vivisection. It was an old Earth custom, from the fledgling days of anatomy when convincted criminals were surgically opened while being poked and prodded. Most recently during WW2 with section 731 and certain internment camp. A tragic outcome that had indeed led to medical advancements. Liam shook his head, rejecting the knowledge, those abominations had been conducted with the finest modern equipment and gained little. These were done with sticks and stones. No justifiable reason, however unethical existed for this barbarism.


    The origins of surgery began there as well, with the removal of organs to test salves and treatments. Worse, Liam was intimately familiar with the process, having worked in a disection lab where he was party to human dissections. Generally sourcing cadavers from alumni who donated their bodies after passing on. To further the study of medicine in a way few people could. Dissection was the scientific disassembly of a corpse. Whereas a vivisection was the scientific disassembly of a living, breathing, screaming human being.


    “I’m going to end this world.” Swore Liam.


    Rhendal looked to Nyota, then back to Liam.


    “Will you leave us behind in the ashes?” He asked, tone strikingly neutral.


    “Oh, uh. That’s not what I meant. Vivisections are evil, uh slavery too ya know, so I uh.-” Stuttered Liam, mind racing as he tried to find the words to convey his actual intent.


    Nyota chose that exact moment to pounce, dropping herself into his lap with the delicate grace of a cat. Pinning him to the wall with her hips.


    “Take me-ow with you lord!”


    Did she just actually meow? That’s kinda cute- if she weren''t breaking my hips!


    “-I didn’t mean I would literally destroy the world! I meant that this kingdom is super screwed up! You can’t be performing vivisections on people just because they were born! That shit is pure god damned evil! A twenty three hour record? Tell me what was learned during that torture? Nothing, because you have no cellular theory or microscopes! Internal organs are less understandable than literal bloody magic!” Liam shouted.


    “You are a single man. A lone baron. Do not speak of treason when you have more enemies than you can manage.” Advised Rhendal.


    Liam covered his face and screamed into his hands, startling Rhendal and Nyota. The later making herself as small as possible without leaving his lap.


    “Feck!” He shouted, falling silent as Nyota’s fear tamed his rage.


    Slavery began with strength of arms, it can only end the same way. Rhendal is right. If I want to change things for the better I need to be careful about my actions. Survival should be my first priority, a landless Baron can’t do anything, but a Baron with a thousand soldiers… No, I can’t even get a hundred soldiers! Where am I going to find a thousand— Wait, he said they have kittens— I mean, kids, quickly. I am having a crisis of not enough people, could I purchase enough of the cat people to repopulate and build an army? Damnitall! I’m already forty. Fifty is about as long as people live in this world, I’ll die before I can change anything…


    Nyota’s tail flicked nervously, fluffing Liam’s face. He caught it low, stroking the limb as you might a cat''s.


    No. I can’t think like that. A civilization endures when old men plant trees whose shade they will never see. I have to leave this world better than I left it, which I can do. My lightning can be a force of change.


    “How do they have so many kids?” Asked Liam, swatting at Nyota’s tail.


    She kept using it to tickle his face. Just like a cat who decided your keyboard was the perfect place for a nap.


    “We aren’t like you humans. Six is average, but my largest litter was twelve.” Said Nyota.


    “Huh? Nyota you’re a MILF? I mean a MOM! Holy crap twelve kids?”


    Nyota flicked her ears, giving him a proud grin. Rhendal chuckled knowingly, somehow already in on the joke, and drawing a glare from Liam. Whose jaw hit the floor. Nyota looked younger than Liam''s original body, appearing as a college freshman to him. For her to have dozens of kids was a sort of unthinkable disassociation.


    "You really aren’t the baron are you.” Giggled Nyota. “My kids are why all my fur has gone gray. Stressed the color right out of my coat, lost track after the sixth litter.”


    Liam’s eyes bugged out of his skull. Six litters? No, she had lost track after six so at least seven litters and her record was twelve. Nyota was putting the Mormons to shame on having a big family. Thirty six kids was beyond human ability but she had well over forty kids.


    He would have fallen off the wall if Nyota didn''t have him trapped.


    Nyota had never appeared as a teen or a girl, but her hair was platinum white. Not speckled gray like an aged woman. Her face was weathered, and the faintest hint of wrinkles were beginning to form at the corner of her eyes and mouth. Unusually sharp teeth stood in perfect alignment, giving a certain alluring quality. Especially since having all your teeth was above average here.


    “I thought you were a maiden to be honest.” Blabbed Liam, sticking his foot in his mouth without realizing.


    Rhendal lost it, laughing so hard he rolled off the trunk and fell into the bushes, howling like a hellhound with laughter. Nyota’s ears flicked back and her face fell.


    “Oh. I see. Uhm. Sorry that I’m not what you wanted mew lord.” Said Nyota softly.


    “Ah! No, uhm, ah! That’s not what I meant. You are a lovely woman-”


    Rhendal’s laughter redoubled.


    “Am I not what you want?”


    “What I want? Nyota, you’re amazing, its’- I’m engaged.”


    “Oh. If that’s all, Felinarians can’t have human children, nothing to worry about.” She said matter-of-factly, as if marriage or engagements meant nothing to her.


    Rhendal was gasping for air now, struggling to breathe between his howls of mirth. Tears were flowing as he waved to Liam, trying to catch his eye.


    “I know Baron Green was a scumbag, but I promised my fiance- Sarah. I’m not— I can’t cheat on her.”


    Nyota’s face went blank. No anger or joy, just a neutral blankness. As enigmatic as the sphynx of egypt.


    She stood abruptly, retrieving Rhendal from the bush he was entangled in, and patting him on the back until he caught his breath. Then she made herself scarce, scrupulously avoiding Liam’s gaze.


    “We should be on our way now m’lord. I hear shouting in Petra.”


    Aw hell. Why do I feel like I just broke up with her?