Bastet stood on the temple steps, sistrum in hand. Behind her, the hearth fire burned. Around her, a thousand cats arched their backs.
Cernunnos stepped from the tree line. Vines and moss hung from his antlers.
"The fire is nice," the Horned God said. "But the trees were here first."
Domestic vs Wild
Bastet shook her sistrum. Sistrum's Harmony. The air shimmered with protection. She signaled her cats to attack. Call of the Cat-Host.
The wave of felines surged forward.
Cernunnos smiled beneath his beard. He raised his heavy antlers. Antlered Dominion.
He didn't fight the cats; he spoke to the wildness inside them.
"You are not pets," Cernunnos whispered. "You are hunters."
The cats stopped. Their eyes dilated. They looked at Bastet, then at the forest. The wild call was stronger than the domestic bond. They scattered into the woods.
Bastet stood alone. Her army had defected.
Cernunnos walked up the steps. Vines grew over the stone, cracking the pavement. The temple roof collapsed, letting in the sunlight and the rain.
"Everything returns to me eventually," he said.