Chapter1

That night I decided to sneak out of the house and go prowling around the abandoned fish factory on the north side of town. That was one of Gnozo's known haunts, and it had plenty of places to remain hidden and watch things from a distance.

While I was on my way, I kept getting the distinct feeling that I was being followed. At first I shook it off as paranoia, but as I crept silently, ever closer to my destination, I was beginning to believe that the feeling I had was more than just a premonition. It was odd, like the presence of something breathing down the back of my neck, but whose breath was so faint it was nothing more than the breeze from a mothwing flutter. I kept looking back to make sure there was no one - or no THING - behind me, and each time I could see nothing but deserted streets. I suddenly felt very vulnerable, out in the open, with nothing but a small dagger to protect myself. I had dressed appropriately for the occasion, my sailor fuku fresh and fragrant with my favorite perfume - something I had hoped would make me an enticing item to Gnozo. My bare legs twitched slightly as I stopped to listen to my surroundings. Something was definitely off. This feeling had to be real. I closed my eyes and concentrated. I was good in sports, and was outgoing and athletic. I was also a member of the kendo club, as well as the club I myself had started - the throwing knife club. It was just such a knife that I clutched in my right hand, listening intently to the world around me.

I had learned that sometimes, it's best not to rely solely on our eyes for the true nature of the world around us. Oftentimes, it was only through the other senses that I was able to understand more deeply how best to approach a target. It was a "technique" of sorts that my grandfather had taught me as a child - one of the few memories I had of him before he died. As I remained perfectly still, listening, I suddenly heard the faintest of sounds - a rustling in the cardboard boxes stacked outside Kisaki's Grocery. For a split second, there was a soft thud, and then a hushed silence, as if whatever had caused the sound had frozen in place, hoping to keep from being heard. Without another thought, I whirled around and let my dagger fly, baring my teeth and snarling. Only when I heard the "THOCK" as it embedded itself into the wooden door frame did I again open my eyes. I hadn't prepared myself for what I was about to see.

"What the blazes?! You damn fool girl! You almost killed me!" Screeched a fox, who was dangling by the odd brown jacket he was wearing, pinned to the door.

"This... this is not right..." I gasped, taking a few cautious steps closer to the fox, who was thrashing his limbs about in an attempt to work free of his jacket. "A fox? And you can talk!"

"Of course I can talk!" He snapped with what was unmistakably a scowl. "Would you kindly unpin me from here! I'm being lynched!"

"Hold on a second!" I cried, tensing as a new thought occurred to me. "Foxes CAN'T talk. You're no fox! You're a sex beast in disguise!" I snatched a second dagger from its hidden sheath beneath the back of my blouse. "You can't escape me now, Gnozo! This is for Miki!" I raised my dagger high and lunged at the fox. He barely had time to let out a strangled cry and point behind me before I felt something soft, sticky, and slimy wrap around my raised wrist, jerking me backward and causing me to fall on my back with a hard thud.

"Oof!" I cried, dropping the dagger as I landed. "What the?!" I stared up in horror as none other than Gnozo hunched his hulking form above me, his lips cracking into a wide grin and his tentacles twitching with excitement.

"You called?" He rumbled at me, his voice frighteningly ethereal, but tinted with wry humor. "It isn't often I find one who's come looking for me!"

Panic threatened to overtake my senses, but I forced myself to remain calm. There was no room for error. I had to use my wits. "You are Gnozo?" I asked, pretending as though I were unconvinced. "I was told Gnozo was as tall as a house, and that his great tentacles were nearly a hundred in number. You don't seem to fit that description."

Instantly he lifted me up by my wrists, a slippery, slimy appendage around each one. He held me high so that I could see him - all of the disgusting details. He was only about half as tall as a small house, and he had closer to sixty tentacles, each of which was undulating and twitching excitedly. "The tales you heard may have been embellished," he chuckled apologetically. "But if they were, it was likely due to the intimidating, flawless nature of my techniques. "Few females can bear the immeasurable pleasure of mating with a magnificent beast such as myself. Some even die of pleasure. It is unfortunate, but perhaps it is best after all. The weaker ones would have difficulty bearing my young."

"I'm still unconvinced that you are Gnozo," I continued, making every effort to keep my voice and body from shaking. "The Gnozo I was told of is said to have immense strength. Your tentacles seem so soft and slippery. They don't seem muscular enough to contain the strength of the rumors."

"Is that so?" He chuckled. "I'll have you know, my frail little delicacy, I am the strongest of the strong. Why, if I so intended, I could snap a full grown tree in half with a proper squeeze from my phallus alone!"

"Incredible!" I gasped, gaping down at his massive, wiggling sexual organ and trying my best not to gag with disgust. "May... may I touch it?"

"Touch it?" He asked, lowering me so that my eyes were level with his and gazing at me quizzically. "Why? Aren't you afraid?"

"Yes, a little," I admitted, glancing downward demurely. "But I'm kind of... curious too. I wasn't expecting it to be so... large." Again, his lips cracked into a wide grin - this time it was one of pride and delight.

"It is magnificent, isn't it?" He boomed at me. "Very well. Caress it as you like." He lowered me to the ground and slowly released his hold on my wrists, watching me carefully. Knowing I had little opportunity to make my move just yet, I thought it best to continue to play along, in the hopes that I might be able to lower his guard. I had one dagger within reach - one more in the sheath behind my back. Pretending to be awestruck rather than thoroughly disgusted, I tentatively pressed a finger against the pulsing, fleshy organ.

"It's so warm," I commented, cupping my hand around one side and slowly rubbing up and down along the shaft, covering my hand in sticky, gelatinous mucous. Almost immediately, I began to hear a low, rumbling purr from deep within Gnozo. "It can move fluidly like your tentacles?"

"Yes," he growled contentedly, beginning to move it rhythmically beneath my hand, increasing the pressure of my motion. "Impressive, no?"

"Oh yes," I agreed, continuing to caress it with one hand as I carefully watched his expression out of the corner of my eye. For the briefest of moments, his eyes wandered upward, for a reason unknown to me. I thought about reaching for the knife, but he brought his eyes back almost immediately, and I pretended as though nothing had happened.

"I have never had a human female willingly pleasure me," he groaned. "It is luxurious."

It was then that I realized what was going on. I was stimulating him. Seeing an opportunity, I grasped his phallus with both hands and began rubbing with renewed vigor. He groaned again and rolled his eyes skyward. Two tentacles snaked out of the mass and began to gently massage my thighs. At first I nearly jumped in alarm, but I remained remarkably composed and kept my reaction limited to a slight gasp.

"I would bring you pleasure as well," he crooned, coiling his sticky appendages around my legs in an almost tender embrace. "You are unlike any I've ever encountered!"

I didn't reply. I thought it best not to, as it felt as though there was bile in the back of my throat. I would have to strike soon, or I would be too far entangled in his tentacles to break free. I soon got my chance, however. After only a few minutes of vigorous rubbing, his phallus began to tremble and pulse, and the head arched upward. Without any warning, an eruption of hot, frothy white liquid erupted from its end, and Gnozo let out a gutteral roar. I seized my chance. In one lightning-swift movement, I grabbed the dagger from its sheath and sliced through his rapidly softening phallus - within six inches from the base. Instantly, he let go his grip on my legs and lurched backward, his severed phallus falling limply to the ground. He fell backward, screaming the most unearthly, dreadful scream I had ever heard in my life. And suddenly, as if by magic, his body began to drip away, as though it was wax being melted. In only a matter of seconds, Gnozo had been reduced to nothing more than a steaming mass of ooze. I had killed him! In one blow!

"I knew it!" The fox cried, suddenly appearing next to me, my dagger tucked between his teeth. He reared up on his back legs and dropped it in my hand. "You are the one! Come with me. I've been sent to find a girl to receive the forest goddess' blessing. You are to become your people's greatest hero!"

"What?" Was all I could say. None of it made any sense. "What do are you talking about? Who are you?"

"My name's Ozcar," he replied, lowering his head. "There isn't much time to talk now... the other humans are coming. Follow me! If you want to destroy the Sex Beasts, I can help you!" He trotted off toward the abandoned fish factory. At first I hesitated, still not fully comprehending all that had just happened. I'd killed a sex beast. I didn't know how I had managed to do it with one stroke when all the armies of Japan had failed with scores and scores of weapons. One thing was certain, however. I wanted to hear more about what that fox had to say.

"Wait for me!" I called after him, grabbing my third dagger from the ground before I ran up alongside him. "My name is Maus."

"That's a strange name," he laughed, his bright eyes glinting up at me.

"No stranger than yours," I sniffed defensively. "My parents have odd taste, I suppose. Anyway, I'm telling you now, fox. If you do something to betray me, you'll have worse things happen to you than being pinned to a door!"

He only laughed and ran faster in reply. I ran after him, thinking to myself that something big was about to happen in my world - even bigger than I could imagine.