...And Koda certainly does not appear to fear this evil. He's fighting it. Corner a lynx, and they just get angrier and fight harder. Sword and claws, a snarl of sharp teeth. Sure, the odds are desperate here, but Koda will never surrender, he'll just fight harder!

All the cats of Koda's world have their instincts, they know how to hunt, how to fight, and it will always be a part of them. The domestics...suppress that with their culture and manners. The lynxes embrace it, the inner core of their being that guides their bodies, their claws in their most desperate moments.

Koda can be civilized, but when faced with something like this, when he doesn't need to hold back at all and can let that inner, wild part of his soul fully free in the lightning reflexes and fury of a fighting cat, when he can let that free for a while...he will. And woe to any evil creature before his blade and claws when he does.

This absolutely INCREDIBLE, epic piece that's far better than things I've seen in "best fantasy art of the year" volumes is by sixfoot.

https://www.deviantart.com/sixfoot-ant

They've even got a video showing the process of painting this piece at https://youtu.be/XIETNs-FywU , go watch!

The motion here is just amazing, the dark creatures and their attack, Koda going all but feral in his determined counterattack...I love this piece. Sixfoot, thank you again, you've made Koda look legendary here!