The fox ascended slowly in the grinding iron lift. All around metal rusted in time, while steam fought for escape from its decayed bowls.

He stood, bathing in the demonic energy of his newly acquired amulet, caressing it carefully. The center jewel glowed red with pleasure. It echoed from the fox’s eyes, pulsing and glowing. His claws squeezed slowly out. The energy flowed through him, through his arteries and veins, all around his bloodstream. He enjoyed every second of it.

At roughly the middle floor the rusty lift ground to a screeching, shuddering hat. Creaking, it slipped a couple of feet grinding against the sidewalls. This left the exit only half visible. The fox climbed athletically out, landing on two legs with one front paw on the ground, as if about to pounce. But, the pounce never came.

Slowly the fox walked along the dim chamber. Once past a certain point he dithered, stopping to lean against the earthen wall. Caressing the amulet’s chain, he relished a few seconds more of its magic power before snapping the energy flow. Only a slow, weak channel persisted, which the fox seemed happy with. The reason was obvious…

After quite a while the fox reached a more active region. He continued to walk calmly, feeling slightly freer from the disappearance of his cloak. Along the lit chambers now lay plants of indescribable variety. He paused to remove a pod-like bean from one plant, biting into it experimentally. His face showed approval on tasting, and he therefore took time to finish the rest of the bean. Afterwards, he took care to scatter the bean’s seeds into the undergrowth. More plants like that were no bad thing…

As he took a step towards the un-trodden distance his foot was stopped by a creeper continuing to curl itself round it. Slightly annoyed, the fox turned round to face the mother plant. It screeched at him violently, but where the sound came from specifically he did not know.

The fox hardened his brow further as the creeper tightened its grip. He took care to stamp hard on the most delicate part of the plant’s anatomy, giving a good kick and claw stab to its stalk to drive his point home. The plant screeched again, seemingly in agony, and retracted its creepers.

One quick triumphant nod and the fox continued back on his journey. The plant shook its tentacles at him as his back turned, screeching with rage.

Further along, the chambers opened out and became largely hollowed out to one or both sides. In some of these, stretched out, lay other foxes, both male and female. The old vixens stared at him with withering, silent anger and part suspicion. The older dog foxes had a similar attitude towards him.

The further on he went, the younger the foxes became. Young vixens eyed him cautiously, some trying vaguely to attract him. He ignored them, keeping his eyes narrowed onto the path ahead. The amulet glowed in a vague sort of way. The young males lingered, ‘guarding’ the young vixens from him. Many of the vixens themselves disagreed with this, but few bothered to argue.

One chamber he came into contained a group of young vixens, a wizened old one and three males. One of the males, ho looked physically tougher than the others, was busy trying to impress the resident vixens. He wasn’t getting very far, as they seemed more concerned with sleep.

Seeing a decidedly less muscly dog fox enter his ‘territory’, he seized the opportunity to impress the vixens. The amulet the fox carried looked valuable too…

The male stepped out from the relaxing vixens, making for the fox. Behind him, the wizened old vixen shook her head sadly. She could detect the magic pulsing from the amulet. Meanwhile, the vixens sat up and watched the strong male, their eyes flicking between him and the amulet bearing fox.

The strong, dominant male stood a few meters from the fox, in his path, arms folded. The amulet bearing fox stopped in front of him, his progress blocked. He showed no sweat, no fear, no distaste, nothing. Slowly he raised a single eyebrow, as if to question what he was seeing. The vixens looked a little surprised that he hadn’t crumbled.

The dominant male raised his fists, preparing to strike. But, the amulet bearing fox used hi advantages first. Summoning massive power from the amulet, he extended his claws to many times their normal length and strength and slashed at the male’s arm muscle, ripping it and drawing blood in a split second.

The dominant male screamed with pain, retracting his arms. The fox drew in his claws and executed a winding kick to the male’s groin. Quickly he slammed his adversary’s body to the wall, his hand grasped firmly around his neck. Drawing his knife at lighting speed, the amulet bearing fox dug it sufficiently into the soft skin around his adversary’s neck to make his eyes dilute with terror, and to cause him to squeal. The vixens looked on, shocked.

The amulet bearing fox spoke harshly.
“You aren’t going to try to attack me again, are you?” her growled, seething with rage, and digging the knife a little deeper.
“Are you?” He growled, pushing further.
“ARE YOU?” He almost shouted, putting increased pressure on his adversary’s throat.
“No!” His adversary squeaked, choking.

The fox dug the knife a little deeper to enhance the severity of his point before letting go of the choking male fox. The male fox dropped to the ground, coughing and choking up blood. Satisfied, the victorious fox put his knife back into his belt before turning to leave.

The vixens stared, horrified at what they had just witnessed, and as soon as the amulet bearing fox returned to his steady walk most of them rushed to the defeated fox’s aid. The wizened fox stared, with a look of grim expectation.

Only one vixen remained on her sear. She looked open mouthed at the departing fox, shocked, but with a hint of being impressed. Her eyes suddenly gleamed…
A while after the victorious fox left the chamber, she stood up.

Quickly she walked out of the chamber after him.

The wizened old vixen shook her head sadly once more, seeing her head in the same direction as the victorious fox. Standing over the nursing vixens, she knew that someone was about to get their heart broken, perhaps in more ways than one…

The fox continued ever deeper into the bedazzling array of low lit tunnels. Around his neck the amulet glowed, as if to approve of his previous actions. A smile rising from the fox’s lips at this caused it to glow warmly, harmony seemed to exist.

Of course, it was inevitable that this would not last. Gaining an orange tint, the glowing jewels of the amulet alerted the fox to another presence. One thought appeared in his mind –
“A vixen is following you.”
And, oddly, he immediately knew the vixen was twenty meters behind him.
The amulet glowed smugly….

Closing his eyes the fox breathed in deeply, causing the musty smell of darkness to envelop him. Summoning a little power, he converted this force into invisibility…

At a fast pace the vixen continued after the fox – seeing him turn a corner she rounded it only to find the tunnel empty.
“Huh…?” she whispered softly, eyes widening.
Slowing her pace she walked down the tunnel, eyes fixed ahead. She didn’t see the fox silently step out from the shadows behind her.

A few meters on she felt her fur prickle up on end. Shakily turning her head slowly round, she caught sight of whom she was seeking – the fox stood, arms crossed, anger silently painted on his face. The amulet glowed menacingly with rage.

“What gives you the need to follow me?” he said coolly.
“I…I...I was wondering…” the vixen stuttered.
“Wondering what, pray tell?”
The vixen was numb with the moment.

Staring at her, the fox guessed her reason. Putting one paw on his face, he shook his head.
“Let me guess. You are attracted to me?”
“You could say that…” the vixen said with an air of mystery, having gained some confidence.
“Don’t you find me at all attractive?” She said pluckily.

Seeing the fox’s frown harden, she shrank back.

“Why are you trying? I am an agent, and by those terms I cannot enter into any personal relationships. Even you know that.”, He said assertively.

The fox turned to leave. Shortly afterwards the vixen called to him.
“But do you find me attractive at all?”

The fox turned round and said, calmly, “You are one of the most beautiful vixens I have ever seen. And I mean that. You should be going – I expect that spiteful male will want your attention.”

Finally the fox reached the end of his long journey. Another door, carved of sapwood stood imposingly over him. Slowly he reached for the chain of the amulet, reassuring it before silently removing it from around his neck. Weakened slightly by the loss of its power, his head drooped.

He now adopted his well-worn stance. Kneeling with one back leg stood on the floor, he put his left hand to his heart and outstretched the other.

Gradually, deep green magics passed into the palm of his hand, illuminating his chestnut fur. And, slowly, the door in front of him opened.

The room the fox emerged into was oddly made up. Not unlike the green magics that opened the large wooden door, an eerie green glow prevailed. Trees grew overbearingly, not seeming to ever meet the ceiling, while the walls of the room itself were hewn out of the bare earth itself. Thick doors, presumably made of oak, led off to either side, and glowing gems shaped like mushrooms were set into the floor.

The fox seemed undaunted, and proceeded confidently, further into the large room, further into the darkness, which was occasionally muffled by an eerie glowing light. Floating, glowing spheres glided past lazily, leaving a trail of light, and almost audible music of an enchanting nature. The trees drifted slightly. But why were they drifting? No wind penetrated the earth walls.

After a few twists in the glowing path, a mass of greenery presented itself, and in front stood a large high backed chair, almost a throne, made of wood. Branches grew out of it, which did not surprise the fox in the least. Neither did the occupant of the chair surprise him, who was an oddly attractive vixen.

She looked like an ordinary vixen, but for a reason that escapes capture, she didn’t seem to be. Her fur had an odd quality, almost a faint green glow. There was no noise in the room, yet the air seemed to be humming. The fox’s fur prickled as he came within about 20 feet of her, which seemed to confirm that this was no ordinary vixen. As before, the fox was oddly composed.

He stopped within 15 to 10 feet of the vixen. His training told him to do so.

The vixen seemed enthralled in carefully stroking a fox cub, which lay gently asleep on her lap. It was wholly unnatural, sleeping in this place, and indeed there was an almost magical air to its quiet slumber. The vixen did not seem to notice the fox, until she caressed the cub’s fur a final time, before slowly turning her head to look at him.

“Do not flinch. Your life depends on it.” Shot instantly through the fox’s mind. He instantly froze. “Good…” a drawling voice seemed to echo through him. The fox knew he was in a place that was hazardous with little compare.

The vixen’s gaze was steady and mildly harsh, but this soon turned to a more calm and thoughtful one. She awoke the cub by lightly stroking it behind the ear, and smiled at its affectionate gaze as it looked up at her. She indicated a direction for it to take, and it trotted off, seemingly content.

Once again the vixen turned her gaze on the fox, and with a lazy, cold look, she indicated that she was ready to begin.

The fox bent low in a full bow, with one front limb forward, one behind. He uttered one word before returning to stand. That word was ‘mistress ‘.

The vixen smiled a little. Her eyes turned warm again, and she began to speak.
“I trust you were successful?” she said, with an air of regular expectancy.
“Yes.” The fox said, cautiously. He reached into his cloak, and drew out a rectangular object wrapped in paper, similar to the one that he had taken to the dark lord earlier. However, this one was smaller, and the paper was turquoise in colour.
He placed upon it the amulet, which seemed to glow pleadingly at the fox. He ignored it, and stepped up to the vixen, handing the two over to her.

She picked up the amulet by its chain, letting it hang, where she looked at it with curiosity, before putting it to one side.

The vixen unwrapped the object partially from its paper cover, revealing it to be a square of greenish powder. She dipped a claw into it, nodding slightly. She re-wrapped the square, and, with a cool composure, set it down in mid-air, before spinning it with a wave of her paw. It revolved with high speed before vanishing promptly.

“It is good quality.” she mused casually. “ I would ask you to thank…” she paused for a second, considering.
The fox wanted to be curious at this point, but of course his training stopped him. Being curious was not a good idea in his present situation.

“I see you have acquired a magical object.” The vixen continued. “From whom, and why?” She said, giving the fox a colder look.
“It is a gift to me from the dark one. He claims it to be for faithful service.”
The vixen smiled once more. “He has beaten me to saying it, as he intended.”

The fox very narrowly avoided pulling a suspicious face. Being complimented by the vixen that stood before him was the first step on the road to death. He had the distinct impression at that point that his mind was being read, but he dismissed it as folly.

“Well, it is quite appropriate that he should give you such a gift.” she said, getting up out of her seat. “For you will make use of it shortly. However, I think it requires my touch as well.” She said, looking sideways at him with a slightly odd look, as the amulet dangled in front of her.

Much as she had done with the powder square, the vixen set the amulet down in mid air. She bid the fox come forward. He guessed what was coming. After he did as she bid him, he adopted the required stance: half kneeled, one paw over his heart, the other stretched out in front of him.

The vixen slid a single claw down a part of the fox’s lower limb, piercing the skin with ease. The fox wore a horrible grimace, as blood rapidly seeped out from the wound. The vixen took a small quantity of his blood, and suspended it over the amulet. She then conjured with some gestures a larger quantity of her own, and suspended it near the amulet as well.

Instantly the fox’s wound healed. His face showed surprise, but this was short-lived. The vixen began to conjure magic, deep green from around her. The fox’s pupils in the fox’s eyes dilated. Slowly, through the control of her hand gestures she used it to cover the amulet in the deep red blood of her own, and then, surging the magic forward, she shot the fox’s blood straight into the center jewel, where it threw out red light in all directions. With a movement of her front limbs out and then sharply in, the vixen caused her blood to combine with the amulet. This created a large flash of red light, fading into green.

The amulet, still suspended in the air, was now different. It had an equal mixture of red and green jewels surrounding the center, and the center jewel itself pulsated red and green in turn.

The fox, now standing up, stared at it in disbelief. The vixen, however, saw the ritual as a formality.
“Fox, for a while now I have considered you to be one of my most able underground agents. Few have survived the Devil’s run for as long as you have, which is why I am giving you a surface world mission to carry out.” She said.

The fox was openly shocked. “The… surface world? Hardly any agents manage to survive up there!”
“Which is why you will do this mission. You may be one of the few.” The vixen said, with a tone of finality.

“I will do my duty.” The fox said.
The vixen smiled deeply.

“Now, your mission is to find a Keeper. The only one you may be able to get at is a rebel named Garrett. He will be tricky to get hold of, as he is a shadow thief. The other Keepers are not to be underestimated, as they also have shadow abilities. I will supply you with the equipment you will need, and your amulet will be useful to you. You leave when the moon reaches its full height.”
She handed the fox the glowing amulet.
“And one more thing…”
Completely unexpectedly, she put her head to his, and rubbed her muzzle across his, in an expression of affection.
“Good luck” She said, in almost a whisper, before walking away to a side door, her bushy tail swinging from side to side.

The fox walked slowly back through the mass of trees, once rubbing his muzzle, not quite believing what had just happened. But his suspicions were on red alert once more. Receiving affection from her was rather like being condemned to execution: it resulted in death before the next nightfall. He gulped rather heavily.

The amulet reminded him with irritation that it was still around, and so the fox promptly put it the chain around his neck once more. The surge of magic through him seemed stronger now. The amulet itself seemed fairly content.

As he walked out of the doorway and back into the tunnels, the fox smiled deeply. His suspicions didn’t stop him remembering how much he enjoyed the feeling of the unreal vixen’s muzzle against his.