Helena and founding of the Guild of the Black Cats (Patreon)

Helena was genuinely proud of herself. And this pride intensified every time she got into human cities. The girl looked at the clumsy relatives, who in flexibility, mobility or subtlety of feelings could compete with the claw point deck, and only laughed out loud.

- Remember, the desert cat is always silent. He is a weightless feather, a moonbeam, a piece of fur that has fallen from the back of a kitten. - The old gray cat liked to say when he drove Helena around the training ground.

A thorny branch of a desert tree in his paws more than once or twice got the girl in the most sensitive parts of the body if the teacher did not like something. But Helena was grateful to him for the science anyway. Him and others from the tribe that picked up the crying orphan lost in the sands. The only survivor from the village destroyed by the monsters, the girl well understood the value of life.

And why the wanderers who had nothing superfluous accepted into their caravan children left on the road and orphans no longer needed by anyone.

For peasants and city dwellers, money and land had value. For wanderers - life and freedom.

The years spent among wanderers in the harsh desert taught Helena a lot - to move silently, to wield various weapons, to show miracles of acrobatics. The desert cats also taught her how to brew potions that improve her sense of smell and vision, and told her about the intricacies of the anatomy of various creatures inhabiting Signum. Helena greedily absorbed all this knowledge for a single purpose.

Although many years have passed since the destruction of her native village, Helena carefully carried the memory of this event through all these years, like a traveler carefully carrying a supply of water through the sands. And now an adult girl with a springy gait went to the nearest city - to look for information. She asked about the events of that year, found out about the attacks of similar monsters in different places, put marks on the map, and, in the end, went to the lair of monsters.

The fight was short but bloody. Accustomed to killing helpless people, the monsters obviously did not expect such agility from the bipedal. Helena killed the first two with precise blows to the back, helped by knowledge of the location of vital organs. Then she deftly jumped over a huge hulk, simultaneously sticking a dagger in his eye socket, slipped between his comrade's legs, slashing her sword along the femoral artery. From the outside, her movements seemed like a dance, a game, a song of steel. A casual observer might even decide that the girl is playing with the monsters, deliberately letting them close to her at a bite or paw distance, but then gracefully increases the distance.

There were observers. But by no means random.

- What this chick is doing! - The seasoned monster hunter tugged at his mustache and stood up a little from behind the boulder, watching Helena deal with another monster.

- I wonder if she's as flexible in bed? - The look of the youngest of the hunters clearly indicated that he was not averse to testing his guess in practice.

- Look, no matter how she cuts you something. - The third man chuckled.

The men were hired by the mayor of the city to deal with the annoying monsters. But those, seeing that someone was already doing their work, decided not to interfere, but to watch from the sidelines. And after that, to figure it out - to finish off the impudent one or to agree in an amicable way. But the longer the hunters looked at how the girl dealt with the monsters, the more clearly they understood that the first option was no longer valid. The eldest of the men even caught himself in something like respect when he watched the next deft dodge or beautiful feint.

- It seems to me that our money was crying, - the youngest of the hunters turned to his colleagues and waved his hand behind his back. - The girl will do just fine not only without us, but also with us, if we decide to twitch at her.

- Oh, well, she's newbie, we'll agree.

- By the way, that newbie is behind you. - Helena really stood on a boulder, behind which the hunters were hiding. - And by the way, you, handsome, need to lean less on lamb, I smelled your ulcer from a mile away. - The girl nodded towards the elder. Then she deftly jumped off the rock, did a somersault in the air, and landed silently on her feet in front of the men.

- I… weeeell… that’s… weeeee… - The hunters were clearly embarrassed at being scolded by a girl.

- Yeah, that's it. Hunters. They smell hungry. Judging by the movements, tired. You wanted to discuss something with me. So why don't we do it at the nearest inn?

The discussion dragged on until morning. The men talked about the benefits of membership in the Guild, Helena listened, nodding and stroking the cat's head medallion that hung around her neck.

In the morning a new Guild was born. A guild for people like her, students of the desert cats and those to whom they will pass on their knowledge. Monster hunters and wanderers. Her symbol, as a matter of course, was a free black cat.