A NEW HUNTER:

THE COLLISION

By Legair

Disclaimer: I do not own the Predators, Aliens or Gargoyles concepts. I'm just borrowing them but the characters herein are mine. Nor am I receiving monetary gains of any kind. Reviews, suggestions are welcome, even complaints and criticisms are acceptable if they are constructive, of course. With that said, please read and enjoy.

THE COLLISION

Cro'dei-tha and Kizahra both gasped in horror as they watched the yautja spear the battered and defenseless female through the back with his gauntlet blades. And just carelessly toss her body as if she were a piece of garbage. She took a long look at the yautja male and saw that his mask's clan symbol identified him as a member of the Guan-kre'ta the only clan of bad-bloods. It only took her a moment to scan the female's body to check for life already knowing it was too late even before the murdering honorless scum spoke to insult her. She could see the heart beat but it was starting to slow and the body heat was also slowly fading away. Cro'dei-tha knew that within a handful of minutes this unique human would be dead and there was nothing she could do to stop it.

"The filthy thing is Thei-de you stupid Gru'pkna Lou-dte kalei." Momentarily ignoring him she frantically searched for the egg until she found it.

Realizing that the female must have sensed that the Ve'nde-thwei were somewhere nearby and that they meant her harm she must have hidden the egg. She breathed a sigh of relief when she found it and seeing that it was safe and unharmed she shrieked and strode to the male to confront him in battle and kill him if she could, only to be stopped by the roar from Kizahra.

"Murderer!" he roared after looking at his mate and seeing the blood spreading on her body knowing she was dead.

She was stunned by the speed at which he immediately flung himself at the Ve'nde-thwei, eye's glowing with heat as bright as the sun. Allowing Kizahra to regain his honor she walked to the female and noted the bruised fists of the Ooman and the splashes of yautja blood, on the taloned fingers, obviously coming from the third Thei-de male on the rooftop and the bruises on the body of the yautja she herself had just killed and felt a surge of pride toward the female that not only had she fought back but killed at least one of them and damaged another, even in as small a way as leaving bruises. Cro'dei-tha knew that the female had been no easy prey.

She watched as the Kwei cloaked himself thinking to taunt Kizahra and deliver death quickly while invisible. Only to be shocked when Kizahra caught the attempted strike. And delivering a powerful blow to the facemask denting the metal and sending the invisible attacker flying against the wall, where Kizahra promptly leapt atop the stunned Ve'nde-thwei and promptly crushed the Ki'cti-pa that controlled the cloaking device and bomb. And smashing the shoulder cannon as well.

'Incredible, somehow the glowing heat from his eyes allows him to see through the cloak. I do believe that the Guan-paya will be coming for this Ve'nde-thwei soon.' Thought Cro'dei-tha with grim satisfaction as she watched the two fighters going like Paya and Guan-paya fighting the first war. She winced when the honorless piece of C'jit seemed to have had enough of being pummeled and began to use his arsenal to try and kill the enraged Kizahra.

"Coward!" Kizahra roared as he made no attempt to dodge most of the weapon attacks. "You would use weapons on an unarmed opponent, you have no honor. You are nothing but a coward and a coward's death is what you shall have."

As Kizahra charged he received multiple cuts from the swinging Ki'its-pa. Ignoring the bleeding wounds he threw the Ve'nde-thwei backward who turned the throw into a flip landing on his feet. In the next second the Ve'nde-thwei was swinging the Ki'its-pa at such speeds it was a blur. And again Kizahra rushed him. But when the he thrust forward with deadly accuracy intending to cleave the heart in two, he received a shock. Much to his surprise Kizahra caught it right behind the wickedly barbed tip. He then immediately used his tail to swat the Ve'nde-thwei away. As the Ve'nde-thwei stood he received a second shock as Kizahra tossed the Ki'its-pa at his feet. It was bent in half. Broken! He had broken the Ki'its-pa! Using brute force to do what yautja needed a laser or a smart disc to do.

Snarling in fury the Ve'nde-thwei unsheathed his Ki'cte-pablades and rattled at Kizahra as they ran toward one another until they collided like two juggernauts. He roared and launched himself at the yautja pummeling him heedless of the slicing blades as they carved his flesh and finally the dazed yautja managed to kick Kizahra away. Both the Ve'nde-thwei and Kizahra growled as they ran yet again toward one another until they collided like two youngbloods in a duel to the death. Kizahra and the yautja roared as they grappled, each pitting their strength against the other. Each trying to make thier kill while preventing the other from killing.

For a moment Cro'dei-tha thought they were evenly locked, but little by little the winged warrior's righteous rage allowed him to exert more force on the yautja pushing and bending him backward. Shrieking in desperate defiance and denial the Ve'nde-thwei suddenly leaned his head back and smashed it forward. Right into the face of Kizahra, who roared but didn't let go. Suddenly the bullwhip like tail snapped around and up between them, smashing the under jaw and bottom of the Ve'nde-thwei's mask up and back. And at that exact moment the Ve'nde-thwei squealed when the force Kizahra was applying wrenched his shoulders out of joint a second before muscles, tendons and the bones themselves gave way and broke with a wet tearing sound. Kizahra dropped the Ve'nde-thwei like so much refuse. But as he turned away he used his bullwhip tail to deliver a blow to the damaged facemask, Cro'dei-tha watched in amazement as it buckled under the pressure with a crack and hot blood began seeping from beneath its metal surface just before it split apart revealing the collapsed cranial plate of the Thei-de yautja just before the body toppled boneless to the floor.

She went and retrieved the basket like container with the egg within it. She saw it and still couldn't believe it, Kizahra defeated and killed the Ve'nde-thwei in a Thei-de Jehdin/Jehdin. The rooftop showed the damage and was littered with the broken or crushed remains of the Ki'its-pa, the Ki'cti-pa, the smart disc, the shredded net and the demolished net gun, even the Naginata was destroyed. She had watched as Kizahra suffered numerous mortal wounds and yet during the heat of battle caught in the grips of maddening rage he had ignored all wounds to achieve his goal, the death of his mate's murderer. And yet she still could not believe it. As she watched him walk back to her and his egg she offered him the egg and her mask so he could see that the baby was fine. She silently watched as he tenderly caressed the egg and used her mask to look at it. The moment he began speaking she began recording. He stopped for a moment so she went to remove the heads of the unknown Ve'nde-thwei.

When she came back she motioned to his wounds knowing that if he didn't get them treated he would die well before sunrise, when his ability to turn into Tjau'ke would heal him. But he snarled at her shaking his head, passing his egg and her mask back to her. He then painfully and gently held his mate then motioned from his mouth to her then from her to his egg. Then wrapped his mate in his tattered wings.

'He wants me to tell his pup something from him when he hatches. He knows he will die soon, he wishes to go with his mate.' She understood needing no translation.

"There are ancient legends passed down through the clans..."He started as he watched the female hunter and hoped that she would honor his request to pass down his message to his unhatched pup. He could see through her strange mask that the child would hatch without wing and tail and part of his heart grieved that his child would never know the joys of gliding in the wind or of winding its tail with that of its mate. But the other half was happy that his child would live on. Cro'dei-thatook the egg and positioned it on her lap as she sat in vigil near the dying Kizahra as she recorded the message he was leaving for his only offspring. Then the moment came she switched her mask back into the dual modes of Ooman and Thermal and watched as Kizahra holding his mate in his arms died with honor.

But what surprised her even more while she recorded the event was that as death slowly took the heat and Kre'ta of life, turning his body from living flesh to Tjau'ke, It was also doing the same to the Ooman who's heart still beat if faintly and who's body still had the glow of life. Finally the thermal side of the eyelet showed nothing but the blackness of Thei-de and cold Tjau'ke.

The next moment Cro'dei-tha activated her communications link to her shuttle and received a microburst communication.

"Greeting's once again Honored Huntress, I received your communications. Your last message intrigued me, I know that you would never be careless as to let prey know before hand that you were there. So this ability of theirs to sense that you are nearby is interesting. The visiting clan leader, his Ooman mate and I are anxious to meet this pair. So I charge you with looking after this mated pair and protecting them from the Ve'nde-thwei until our arrival. Continue to monitor, intervene only if their lives are in danger. His species must somehow be preserved...."

The communications droned on as Cro'dei-tha swore as many epitaphs as she could think of.

"Oh Pauk-de Cho't! Rjet Ve'nde-thwei. May Tihm-shi birth in the innards of all honorless Ve'nde-thwei." When she finally gained control of herself she realized her mask was still recording and sending to her Mei'hswei.

"Ah C'jit!" she muttered as she made sure the last few hours were sent and shut down the recording devices. Then remembered the last part of the communications before she had blown her top.

"....We begin preparations for their journey to meet you. They will leave in the morning when the triple suns peek over the horizons."

"Paya give me strength." She groaned hissing as she called up her shuttle and input the co-ordinates to her location and returned to stare at the statue. Then as she thought of a message to send she flipped on her recorder sending it to her shuttle to send by microburst to her Mei'hswei.

"Greeting's High Elderess. I have received your communications, unfortunately a trio of Ve'nde-thwei showed up. By the time I arrived the situation was unsalvageable, I was only able to witness as the leader of the trio killed the Ooman female. I brought justice to the second of the group while the Paya-Tjau'ke K'za-rah challenged the leader as was his right. The only thing I managed to save of their legacy from being destroyed was the egg. I found that the Ooman female L'lth had managed to kill one of them before being subdued. Her mate landed on the leader like he was Paya himself and engaged in Jehdin/Jehdin battle. The Ve'nde-thwei being honorless when he discovered that he was going to lose to the enraged Paya-Tjau'ke, inflicted numerous mortal wounds using his entire arsenal. After killing the second Ve'nde-thwei myself, I checked the female and the egg, confirming the bearer was truly Dhi'ki-de and the egg unharmed, K'za-rah was in the process of killing the third and last Kwei piece of honorless C'jit. In the end he chose to reject my assistance, having avenged his mate he chose to die with honor and his mate in his arms. I now have in my possession the egg produced from their mating. I am also securing all evidence of the battle and disposing of the corpses of the Ve'nde-thwei save the heads for identification. I will bring the statue aboard the shuttle and stay cloaked in orbit at these co-ordinates."

She finished and sent the co-ordinates. The first thing she did when the shuttle arrived was secure the egg in her sleeping chamber while she figured out how to get the statues aboard the shuttle. Two hours later sweaty and exhausted, Cro'dei-tha staggered to her sleeping chamber and unsheathed her Ki'cti-pa when for a moment the egg looked like the pod that contain the first stage of Kainde Amedha then shook her head muttering aloud.

"Peace Cro'dei-tha remember it is just the egg of K'za-rah and the L'lth." Moving the egg into the chest at the end of her bed and for the first time, since the murder of her first pup and her cousin, fell into a peaceful sleep. The next day she woke with nausea. None of the medication she took stemmed the illness. Everyday she went out and hunted the most violent Oomans and on occasions she recalled moments of her observation of L'lth who had mated to Kizahra. Like how the first time she went to see them in a Jehdin/Jehdin. Which anyone could have made exact mistake seeing as how there was none of the usual signals indicating that they were having a Jehdin/Jehdin.

As a month went by, her attitude worsened, she was angry all the time she felt bloated for some strange reason. And she began to feel discomfort in her breasts and ankles and her fingers also looked fat as if she were gaining weight. It enraged her when she couldn't figure why she was exhibiting these symptoms. The only time she found herself at peace was when she held the egg.

Finally disgusted with herself and having had enough of her mood swings she sent the ship into orbit and prepared her hibernation pod, with the egg secured in a stasis chamber in the small medi-center, she slept awaiting the time when the others would meet her and perhaps they would help her figure out what was wrong with her.

A Dre'ek later,

Cro'dei-tha woke up enraged. She felt bloated, her ankles felt big, her fingers were fat and she was pissed that someone dared to awaken her. She shrieked and swung a taloned hand at the first yautja she saw not caring who it was. Which luckily for everyone it turned out to be her very own mate and not the physician or the Ooman mate to the clan leader of another clan, who stood beside her. As she levered herself out of the pod the yautja and his ooman mate took a discreet step back while covering their chuckles with fits of coughing, as Cro'dei'tha's mate gave a high pitched warbling designed to soothe but all it did was irritate her.

"Ki'cte!" Growled Cro'dei-tha then turned to the others.

"What the Pauk are you fools laughing at?" she snarled flaring her top mandibles.

"Alright, all males out now!" barked another female obviously her clan's newest physician. As she watched the males exit the room leaving only the females.

"Something is wrong with me I am having severe mood swings, I feel bloated though I'm as trim as ever, my ankles and fingers feel fat and I will not go into the parts that ache all the time." she grumbled looking around sullenly. She was slightly mollified when the Ooman female promptly stopped her chuckling.

"Our pardon Honored Huntress Cro'dei-tha, it's just that you are exhibiting signs of pregnancy and yet you are not pregnant. The Honored Huntress Eli'silb-e'th tells me that Oomans call these symptoms sympathetic pregnancy. Your body is reacting as if you were with pup. And progressing through the stages of pup bearing." the physician coughed.

"WHAT?!" shrieked Cro'dei-tha as her eyes widened and all her mandibles flared out of control.

"What the Cho't are you talking about." She snarled.

"It's true Honored Cro'dei-tha, the physician will no doubt find that your hormone levels will match those of when you were truly with pup." Elizabeth answered.

"No. That's not possible there has never been any record of such events occurring to yautja females." Cro'dei-tha vehemently denied. As the physician took blood samples and ran them through the computer.

"Honored Cro'dei-tha, I don't understand it myself, but what Huntress Eli'silb-e'th has spoken is true your hormone levels do match and indicate that you are indeed with pup or at least you seem to be since you have not had any contact with any male yautja in the last half year." The physician confirmed as Cro'dei-tha stared at them speechless. Then seemed to snap out of her trance.

"Of course I've not had any contact with any yautja, much less a male yautja and I would not touch an honorless Ve'nde-thwei any more than you would let one of them get you with pup." She snapped bringing a gasp and a growl to the physician's throat.

"Now tell me more about this sympathetic pregnancy and how to stop it." She demanded as she walked out of the room to her chambers.

"After studying the egg in the medi-center, we found that it is emitting pheromones which are causing chemical and hormonal changes in those exposed to it. Such as feeling's of euphoria and contentment, it also affects aggression, the subject is calm while in contact with the egg but while away the aggression hormone steadily increases." answered the physician eyeing Cro'dei-tha for any signs of threatening behavior.

"Fine. Now tell me how to neutralize the pheromone induced reactions." Cro'dei-tha demanded as she changed her cloth coverings for leather and armor.

"Uh. . . to. . . neutralize. . ." the physician stalled glancing at Elizabeth beside her.

"Well speak up." Barked Cro'dei-tha irritably.

"You will not like what I have to say, but what the esteemed physician is trying to say is that there are three solutions and none of which you will like. There is but only one true way for you to neutralize the pheromones." Elizabeth spoke up for the physician.

"I will determine my options and choices. Now tell me." Cro'dei-tha growled.

Sighing Elizabeth continued

"Option one and the best one and only true choice is for you to care for the egg until it hatches."

"No! Absolutely not have you gone Kwei? I will not play nursemaid for nearly half a score of years to an egg from a crossbreeding species." Snarled Cro'dei-tha.

"I see." Cro'dei-tha could tell the Ooman was getting annoyed but didn't care.

"The second option which is not a choice and is out of the question, is for you to destroy the egg and the unique being within it."

"I can not and will not do that, it would destroy my honor and mean my Thei-de for disobeying the High Elderess." Cro'dei-tha gasped. "What is the third and final option? I will decide my choices." She growled not liking where the conversation was going.

"Well you won't like it but here it is. The third and final option is for someone else to care for the egg and the being inside." Eli'silb-e'th finished grimly and stepped back when Cro'dei-tha immediately popped her Ki'cti-pa blades and growled menacingly at them.

"No one will take that egg from me." She snarled flexing her mandible in threatening gestures.

"Why not? You obviously do not wish to care for it. Why should not another who is willing?" Elizabeth barked aloud frustrated with Cro'dei-tha. Controlling her anger she continued softly admitting something she had no intention of ever speaking about.

"And I would not mind I. . . I am a purposeless mate. I cannot bear the pups Thwei-grat'ka craves. I do not begrudge him yautja mates but he refuses. He acts as it does not matter that should he die his legacy, all his knowledge will die with him. But I do care, and yet I see no way around this trap. Except my death, this would finally free him to have yautja mates. I look upon the other yautja Bearers with envy, for having pups of my own has become an obsession. And even if I were not the mate of Thwei-grat'ka, there are no other Oomans of worth and honor for me to mate with." She stepped closer to Cro'dei-tha invading her space.

"Now tell me. Tell me why another cannot care for the egg and the pup in your stead?" she stared at Cro'dei-tha daring her to lie to her and herself.

Realizing that Eli'silb-e'th spoke the truth from her heart, Cro'dei-tha could do no less then show honor by doing the same. Sighing a little and shaking her head. "I do not understand why. All I can say is that I have come to view not only the egg but the pup within as my own. I watched as its true Sire and Bearer birthed it into the world. I have touched it and felt its warmth. I was unable to prevent the deaths of those who gave it life but I can do no less than care for it in their stead. My reactions of dislike are not of the egg and pup but of the fact that events were decided in my stead. That I have no choices."

"I told you, honored Cro'dei-tha, that you would not like what I had to say." Elizabeth's voice challenged and at the same time doused the flames of her aggression.

"I. . . apologize for the reaction. As you said, I really have one choice. And that is to care for the egg and the pup within it." Cro'dei-tha sighed as she retracted the blades. "But that is a burden I am willing to carry."

"We understand and take no offense. At this time your emotions and reactions are not entirely your own." Offered the physician. "Unfortunately I fear for the clan." She muttered quietly.

"What did you say?" Cro'dei-tha demanded sharply looking from one to the other for an explanation.

Seeing that the physician was not going to speak up again, Elizabeth sighed and explained the physician's comment in a better light. "She is just worried about the lives of any yautja who carelessly upsets you, while you are still affected by the pheromones. You may unintentionally kill him or her, including your honored mate Setg'in-kre't."

"Hah. My mate would never be foolish enough to anger me." Cro'dei-tha denied with a bark of derision.

"Oh really? Do you remember what you did when you were awakened? And just who do you think awakened you?" Elizabeth challenged.

"That was Setg'in-kre't?" Cro'dei-tha asked shocked at what she had nearly done.

"Yes that was your mate that you attacked." The physician commented. Feeling uncomfortable with the way the egg was making her behave she sought to change the topic.

"Can we go see the egg?" Cro'dei-tha asked anxiously. Unfortunately the egg seemed to have become a slight obsession.

"Of course Cro'dei-tha but afterward I would like time to study the last microburst communications you sent your high Elderess, she said that she would send it to your shuttle" Elizabeth answered with a grin.

"No need honored Eli'silb-e'th, the shuttle's databanks have a copy of everything I recorded on this peculiar hunting trip." Cro'dei-tha answered absently as she walked into the medi center.

Already in the Medi-center was Thwei-grat'ka and Setg'in-kre't. Reminiscing and having a discussion about the egg and its parentage.

"To think that I dismissed the tales of Paya-deTjau'ke, imagine my shock when as I was talking to your clan's High Elderess about our over abundance of females, she receives an urgent microburst from your mate and behold its thermal footage of a Paya-deTjau'ke as it breaks out of Tjau'ke sleep." Chuckled Thwei-grat'ka. "When I was just a young pup I used to think that when I was older I would find the mightiest of the Paya-deTjau'ke and bring back his head as a trophy."

"Our own clan has just the opposite we are having an over abundance of males. In the next score of years the next Kainde Amedha Chiva will see either plenty of Thei-de youngbloods or plenty of Thei-de blooded warriors." Setg'in-kre't commented before admitting to a similar dream. "And Yes, I also remember the stories my great sire used to tell me his great sire told him. And during the telling I dreamed the same." Setg'in-kre't Sighed.

"Until the end and I found out that they had died out through the Ooman's Kwei exterminations."

"But now they may truly be extinct thanks to those unworthy Pauk-de 'aseigan, Ve'nde-thwei Gru'pkna. And now all we have is the product of a crossbreeding between an exceptional Ooman female and the Paya-Tjau'ke. And the offspring seems more Ooman than it does the Paya-deTjau'ke." Growled Thwei-grat'ka trying to control his anger at the loss of a good and honorable hunting species. "Even if the offspring will have the traits that give it the Paya-deTjau'ke form, I fear that any offspring will be with another Ooman female and they will also be Ooman as the traits for the Paya-deTjau'ke weaken with every generation until they too are extinct."

"Honored Clan leader Thwei-grat'ka no insult meant to your chosen mate but what do you mean exceptional Ooman female? Surely an earth bound Ooman female is still an Ooman." Setg'in-kre't asked in slight puzzlement and continued when the elder didn't take insult. "They are weaker than the males, unlike our females, who can beat even the best of us, and should she be enraged then I wouldn't place a wager that the idiot would last five minutes."

"What you say is true for most Ooman females but this one." Thwei-grat'ka tilted his head looking for the words to his thoughts. "This one was powerful, incredibly violent and resilient. The female and her mate would have violent Jehdin/Jehdin that lasted for hours on end, no mats or padding, unlike the other Jehdin/Jehdin I have seen Oomans participate in. This Ooman used nothing of that kind, preferred nothing but hard Tjau'ke to break her falls. I saw the last transmission of recording's your mate sent and. . ." he shook his head with a rattling sigh unable to find the right words. "To try to explain or describe, would do this female an injustice you need to see the footage. Then you will believe when I say that I doubt that even my mate could have bested the execptional female of the Paya-deTjau'ke. The more I view the footage the more I begin to think that she would have been a good Jehdin/Jehdin opponent for our females"

"Surely your joking?" gasped Setg'in-kre't in shock that any yautja would admit to such a thing. Right then he decided to view the footage and see if perhaps he could spot a flaw in the elder's thinking. "What do you think it feels like? Is it as soft as it looks?" he asked focusing for the moment on the slightly moving egg.

"I am unsure, I haven't touched it the only ones to know for sure are our mate's and the physician, and they were the only ones to handle it. I admit my curiosity." Thwei-grat'ka stepped closer to the egg as it stopped its slow undulations.

"Might as well find out now before they arrive to kick us out. Surely if they could touch it without harm so can we." He clicked in humor as he reached out to touch it and the doors shushed open.

Just as Cro'dei-tha entered the room Thwei-grat'ka was reaching out to touch the egg. And for a split second froze as she heard him speaking.

"Surely if they could touch it without harm so can we"

In that same moment she was across the room shoving the clan leader's arm to the side and snarling in his face.

"Do not dare to touch my egg." Then turned to make sure that it was undisturbed.

Everyone was in shock.

'HER EGG?!' Thought Thwei-grat'ka and Setg'in-kre't. While Elizabeth and the physician just stared at her as if she had gone H'ulij, even though they already knew how she felt about the egg.

"What do your mean your egg?" barked Setg'in-kre't the first to get over his shock and of course he chose the wrong thing to say. "You speak as if you birthed this, this thing." He pointed to the egg as it bulged on one side.

Aware that it was the damn pheromones doing its job she was unable to help herself as with her eyes flaring Cro'dei-tha stepped in front of her mate and snarled.

"Do you challenge my claim on this egg? For I do claim this egg and the pup within as my own." she flared her mandible at her shocked mate. Setg'in-kre't thought frantically for a way out of the challenge but he was trapped. His honor was at stake, for speaking against his mate like she was a 'Aseigan and not a female of honor. It was at stake again, if he withdrew his own challenge when she forced him to acknowledge his words. All yautja knew that to step away from your own challenge was a large blow to that yautja's honor. Girding himself he tried to choose words that would remind her of the reason she was acting the way she was. And allow the trap to ease so he could release himself without losing honor. But seeing the furious expression on her face and the way she stood to block them from the egg wiped away the words that would let him escape the trap his brashness had created.

"Yes I challenge your claim." He growled. The words rushed out with a life of their own. He tried to recover what he knew to be a lost cause. "I know about the pheromones it produces and the effect it is having on you. These reactions are not your own reasoned actions."

Ignoring everything else he said she growled. "Then Jehdin/jehdin it is, don your 'Awu'asa' for you will need it. I do not wish for your Thei-de, I will take no joy in it nor will I mourn your passing if it comes." And with that she stripped herself of her armament.

While the mates prepared, Thwei-grat'ka gathered his mate and the physician.

"Gather what you will need." He told the physician. "She has already warned him how badly she will hurt him."

The physician nodded clicked sadly as she rushed to get her equipment and the other things she didn't have.

"Thwei-grat'ka? Will she try to kill him?" asked Elizabeth.

"I am sure that he will wish she had killed him. But she will leave him alive, I think." He sighed looking at the pair.

"But as far as I can tell, their status as mates, that I truly believe is Thei-de. Their personal honor will not allow for anything less at this time." He clicked to his mate as everyone signaled they were ready and he led them to the Kehrite of the larger hunting ship.

When they arrived in the Kehrite and everyone was ready, Thwei-grat'ka as the elder there, approached the combatants.

"Cro'dei-tha has accepted the challenge given by her mate Setg'in-kre't. Cro'dei-tha has added that it be unarmed to armed Jehdin/Jehdin. This Jehdin/Jehdin will cease when one is either unable to go on, gets knocked from the platform or calls for H'chak. No matter the outcome do you each agree to abide by the victor's decision?" Cro'dei-tha and Setg'in-kre't both inclined their head in agreement.

"Very well" Thwei-grat'ka sighed as he turned and left the platform. As he stood between his mate and the physician he raised his hand and barked

"Begin!"

Everyone froze when Setg'in-kre't knelt down with his head bowed and spoke.

"Honorable huntress Cro'dei-tha as I prepared for combat, I found that I could not make my limbs do as they must. Even now my body refuses to strike out against yours." He gestured towards the trio of watchers. "Before the huntress and physician, the Honorable Thwei-grat'ka leader of Clan Guan'Gaa'tah and his mate the Honorable Huntress Eli'silb-e'th. I retract my challenge and accept the lessening of my honor. I ask for H'chak or if you cannot grant that, I ask that you do as you must." And with that he removed his facemask and undid his chest 'Awu'asa' and handed Cro'dei-tha the sheathed Kainde Amedha bone blade at his leg.

Cro'dei-tha accepted the blade as he left the option unvoiced. She could kill him if she wanted to, he had left himself vulnerable. Now she had to decide if her honor demanded that she kill him or accept his withdrawal of the challenge. She decided as she unsheathed the blade and adjusted her fingers around the handle as she looked at it.

"This is a good killing blade." She said then sheathed it again.

"I accept your withdrawal of the challenge and I grant H'chak." She sighed. "But until the time the egg hatches I will not live in your dwelling as your mate. Once we arrive back home I will return to my dwelling which I have kept. I will mate with no yautja during this time. At the end of the egg's hatching I will return this blade and if you are still the worthy and honorable warrior that won my favor the first time, I will give you a chance to win it again." And she walked off the platform ignoring the trio of stunned watchers and headed to her shuttle and undeniably the egg.

"That was unexpected." murmured Elizabeth to the physician and Thwei-grat'ka clicked in agreement, as they watched Setg'in-kre't redon his armor as he left the room.

"The outcome was similar to what I had thought. But she gave him a chance to win her back if he so chooses." He said to his mate.

"Then now her problems will begin when we arrive at her clan, the males will begin to attempt to court her and she will undoubtedly kill some of them if not most." The physician added as Elizabeth nodded

"Yes." Sighed Thwei-grat'ka, shaking his head.

"Perhaps I had better send the High Elderess a microburst communications about this to keep the deaths caused by idiocy down to a minimal.

"Why?" Elizabeth continued as both her mate and the physician looked at her.

"If they are so dimwitted as to continue to pursue her after she has made it clear she is not interested, then they deserve their just rewards. We certainly do not want that particular trait to be passed on to future generations." Commented Elizabeth bringing a clicking laughter to her mate and the physician.

After a moment they settled down. "I agree with your Honored mate Eli'silb-e'th, Honored Thwei-grat'ka let them learn the hard way. If the High Elderess warns them away they will only try much harder and in secret." The physician nodded her head respectfully to Elizabeth.

"I will think on it" Thwei-grat'ka nodded. "Come we have preparations to conduct before we make our way home." He added as they left the Kehrite.

To Be Continued… in A New Hunter: The Hatching Years.

P.S : For all of you that wanted a knock down drag out between Cro'dei-tha and her mate Setg'in-kre't, just message me and I'll repost with a revision.

Reviews, suggestions are welcome, even complaints and criticisms are acceptable if they are constructive, of course.

And remember, "Payas leitjin-de . . . Hma'mi-de".