The girl moved like lightning. In a single fluid motion, her tail uncoiled from her neck and her foot hit the ground, fully propelling her forward. The showman didn't know where she had gotten the broken chicken bone, but as he was unable to back out fast enough, he watched in horror as she shoved the makeshift weapon up under his ribs. Then she was over him, off the deck, and into the crowd, who screamed as they tried to get away from the uncaged girl.
She snarled, baring her teeth. The geodesic patterns on the right side of her face warped her visage to look like an angry wolf. The crowd scattered as fast as they could, stumbling over each other. A guard managed to get up on stage. He leveled his crossbow at her, but not quickly enough. She dove back into the crowd. With a curse, he dropped the crossbow and pointed, yelling, "Toward the warehouses!" in a vain attempt to make the guards on the far side of the court hear him and cut the girl off.
***
