Fear Element Class

Shenmi Kyofu padded into the area that the Kurayami Kingdom used to train the next generation, how to use the elements. She sat down in her in-between form. She flapped her dragon-like wings a few times, before cleaning her left paw, as she waited for her only class member, Ryu to appear. Her eyes were closed as she washed her paw, but the rest of her senses were still completely alert.

"Hello Teacher" Ryu bowed her head in respect. "Can we start? i can't wait to crush my enemies with heir own fear" she snarled, even getting a vicious glint to appear in her eyes.

"Just call me Shenmi." replied the teacher of Fear, opening her piercing amber eyes as she stopped washing her paw.

Shenmi turned to the young heir, her eyes showing just how serious she was about her lessons. Then she began.
"To find the power of fear within you, you must first face your own fears. I will not wait for you to prepare.. as you have asked me to start."
She swiftly got to her feet and opened her jaws. A pulsating beam made up of varying colours of red sped towards Ryu, accompanied by a loud shrieking sound.
"Describe to me what you see."

Ryu's claws dug into the earth as she was confronted by her worst nightmare. "Its a war. Cats are dying. All my fault. All my fault" she whimpered

"Confront it." she hissed. "You cannot control fear if you cannot face it."
Her gaze hardened as she watched the Kurayami heir. Shenmi didn't go easy on anyone, not even the king's daughter.

Ryu hissed violently, black shadowy wings unfolding from her back. She struggled to face this issue, the words 'all my fault' bounded along her mind. She suppressed these thoughts, opening her eyes to this fear. "I'm not afraid of you" she hissed "I decide what happens in my kingdom" a growl escaped her throat, chasing off the cats in the clearing who were attacking one another. With a sharp inhale Ryu's wings disappeared and she collapsed, shaking ever so slightly

Shenmi narrowed her eyes. "Dont think you are in the clear. Even when you have conquered one fear, the element will play on another."
She opened her mouth again and breathed another blast of the red fear element over Ryu.
"You will know that you are doing it right, when you feel an odd surge of power that lasts for only a few seconds. It will take a few tries though."

Ryu shuddered as the next fear swept over her. Kanari lay battered and bloodied at her feet. Her claws were full of the Heiwana heir's luxurious fur. "no no no no no" Ryu whispered, backing up. "N-no! this is not true!"

[:O Nice one]

Shenmi's eyes glinted maliciously as she flexed her wings. "What do you see?"

"U-uh its m-my Father. He's dead" she lied hoping her acting skills were good since she acted every day of her life. She faced the fear again. "I didn't do it." she growled, gritting her teeth. "She died some other way" Ryu whispered fiercely "THIS IS NOT MY FAULT" she yowled, a hiss escaping her throat as she confronted the body. Panting, she would've let out a yowl of relief if she could, as the image disappeared, Kanari jumping up laughing and padding away. "B-bring on the next one" she grunted, digging her claws into the ground, now more for support then out of fear.

She? wondered Shenmi as she watched her student tackle her fears. Something told her she wasn't telling her everything. She shrugged it off then smiled as Ryu conquered the fear and asked for the next one.
The teacher fired another screeching beam of fear at Ryu, and it once again surrounded her in its lies. From the outside, it looked as though Ryu was just surrounded by a swirling red light.

Ryu let out an agonized yowl. She sat on the highest part of the camp, looking down upon her family and friends. They all lay, slain, in the middle of the clearing, eyes stretched open wide in terror. She saw that he was the only survivor. A Heiwana cat smirked from the entrance of the camp. "You led these cats into the war. Way to be a terrible leader" it sneered, leaving the camp with a swish of undergrowth. This was her worst fear. Being a terrible leader, leading her family and friends into death. She shook her head. No. this is not true. This fear lies! she snarled in her thoughts. "No. These cats are alive and well" she meowed calmly, each of the cats springing to their paws and milling about as usual. "I decide what i dream.Me. You cannot hurt me" a strange surge pulled her to her paws, as she looked across the place, triumphant, the feeling faded.

"I think i've got it" Ryu meowed, the fear fading away

Shenmi's expression spread into a genuine smile. "Then we can begin your proper training. First, I will teach you how to breathe the simple breath that I was using on you..."

Ryu nodded "Please help me learn" she meowed eagerly

"To start with.. you need to concentrate on your own fears. Whilst using the element, your must feed it your fears to keep it going." she explained, "Any one of the three you saw before will do the trick, since they are what you fear the most."

Ryu nodded "May i try it out?" she asked. Suddenly scenting the air, her eyes narrowed. "What was my father doing here?" she asked, her tail tip flickering

"If you like. And he asked whether i knew anything about you sneaking out."
Shenmi shrugged and flicked her tail, brushing off the conversation she'd had with Ryu's father as if it was of no more importance than an ant.

Ryu's eyes smoldered with the fire of a blazing wild flame. Calming down she decided to try her hand in her fear element powers. Closing her eyes she brought back the memories of Kanari laying by her feet, mangled, every Kurayami cat led to their death by her, and finally the war she caused. Using these as fuel for her benefit she unleashed a shadowy gas out of her mouth, spreading it around her teacher.

Shenmi stayed still and silent. Her face seemed to show no emotions, until suddenly, a small smile cracked upon her face. "You did well to get something to happen on you're first try. But for it to have any effect, it must be red in colour. Not a wispy shadow."

Ryu pinned her ears back. "I'm terrible at this" she muttered "I guess this isn't my specialty" she let out a sigh. "I guess i'll try again" she murmured. Focusing harder this time Ryu tried to focus solely on one memory, she stuck with the one of her secret friend, dead. Honing in on every tiny detail she let out another elemental attack. This time the cloud was red in hue but Ryu didnt stop to see if it was working. She continued to look at each detail, painstakingly.

Shenmi grinned. "That was much better. As long as the colour is reddish, it has some effect."
The teacher ignored the faint picture of her fears that surrounded her, and the cloud soon faded away.

Ryu growled "I'm terrible at this! I think this may be my worst element" she was easily frustrated

"Calm down Ryu. Fear is one of the hardest elements to master, even if it is the one that a dragon is bound to. You should be proud that you managed to progress this far already."
The jet black she-dragoncat knew that students often got frustrated with the fear element, so she was used to dealing with situations just like this.

"Whatever" the she-cat growled through her teeth. "What next?"

"All you can do is keep practicing that until you get it perfect, Ryu. Then, and only then, will I move on."
With a dismissive flick of her tail, Shenmi's body turned completely dark and black before elongating and growing as she transformed into her dragon form. The Fear Element Tutor then proceeded to clean one of the claws on her left paw.