Chapter 3: Knowing thy Partner
Drag'lan came back to consciousness on a ship, but he didn't know that. His eyes were still shut, but he felt that he was in a bed.
Great, he thought, The corps found me.
He opened his eyes and saw that he might be right. He was on a ship, but didn't know if it was human or something else. He felt a tingle on his forehead. So, he reached a hand up and felt his head gingerly. His left side of his forehead was swelling slightly. Although it felt tender, he didn't feel pain.
Where the hell am I? he thought, And who the hell is that person in my dreams?
He tried to recall the figure in his dreams. However, the figure became increasingly blurred with every passing minute.
Well, I might as well get up and look around, he thought, and sat up.
He looked around. The room was somewhat bright, but that was from him being out for so long. He saw the bed he was laying in, a small wardrobe, a desk, and a workbench. He focused on the workbench for a bit and saw that his helmet was on it. Beside it were 3 blades, which could only be his combat knife and short-swords. He saw his claymores on the wall beside the workbench. He was surprised that his captor had removed his swords. He moved to the edge of the bed and reached to his neck, feeling for his dog-tags. He then felt his chest and found a metal latch. The metal latch is what relieved him most. His harness was still on, and it was what gave him the edge in combat, as well as being a gift from his father, so he didn't want to lose it.
At least whoever picked me up didn't know how to work Regollen lock systems, he thought with a chuckle.
He got up and walked to the workbench. He looked at his short-swords and picked them up. They vibrated as they had when he had stuck him in the fire. It was odd, but Drag'lan didn't really care, as they were back in his possession. He then shifted his gaze to his combat knife and spotted a streak of faded green on it. As he knew he hadn't cut anything since he had tempered and sharpened it, it had to be the blood of whoever grabbed him.
He picked it up and sat down at the edge of the bed again. He pulled a ball of what looked like metal shavings from a small bag on his belt and started rubbing the ball over the blade. Within seconds, the blade was cleaned of the blood. Drag'lan stood up, sheathed the blade and was walking back to the workbench to put his helmet on when he heard something open behind him. He whipped around and saw that the predator he had rescued from the hive walking in. She was looking at her wrist bracer and didn't notice him, but after she entered, she looked up and saw him. She froze for a few seconds.
Drag'lan, in a period of about 4 seconds, had her pinned to the wall, his left arm against her neck, applying pressure to make breathing difficult, and had his right arm grabbing her left arm and had that pinned to the wall.
His eyes were Half-black at this point and he said, contempt lacing every word, "YOU! I saved your life, and THIS is how you repay me? Knocking me out?"
Oh crap, the predator thought, He recovers fast. A normal Yautja would've been knocked out for at least 3 more hours with the force I put into that punch.
She struggled for breathe, but said "Hey, I could've left you on that planet for the animals to feed on. Count your blessings."
Drag'lan kept his arm where it was and said "Well, why did you knock me out in the first place?" and increased the pressure.
It's time for answers... he thought.
Her right arm went to his left arm and tried to push it away, but he was too strong. She said "Okay, so I planned on leaving you there but chose not to. You would've died if I hadn't picked you up and carried you in here. Now, if you don't mind, could you please release me? I can't breathe."
Well, I might as well keep her alive. I can't pilot this ship.He thought.
He removed his arm from her neck, let go of her arm and stepped back. She massaged her neck for a bit and said "Thanks. Sorry about your head. Does it hurt at all?"
Drag'lan shrugged and shook his head. "Nope. I don't feel pain too much anymore. Something I inherited from my father."
That may be the reason why he acts the way he does. I might wanna show some kindness if I'm going to get anywhere with him. She thought.
"What was your father like? From what you've shown, he's taught you a lot of things."
Drag'lan looked at her and said "My father was a great man. He taught me how to fight with courage, respect, and honor. On that note, give me a bit."
With that, he closed his eyes and spoke in a language that the predator partly understood. When he finished speaking, he touched his heart and bowed. He opened his eyes.
"Sorry about that. I needed to apologize to my ancestors for my actions." He said
The predator cocked her head to the side in confusion. "What was that language you spoke in? It sounded like Yautja. And what did you say?"
Drag'lan smiled and said "Of course it would sound like Pred language, as it is a mix of Yautja and Regollen. I said 'Spirits of ancestors past, forgive my acts of dishonor' because I attacked without warning and without honor. I needed forgiveness from them to keep their strength."
She kept her head cocked to the side as he spoke. The Yautja did pretty much the same thing, just in a different way.
These Regollen sound a lot like us Yautja...Could they be related to us? she thought. I need to learn more.
"Why do you honor your ancestors as you do?" She asked him.
He replied by saying "I honor my ancestors because it is them who give me my strength. If I don't, the strength they give me will be taken away."
She looked at him and said "I see. You honor your ancestors as we Yautja do. I respect that, but I do have a few questions that I must ask."
Drag'lan just looked at her. This was the first time she had shown any tenderness towards him.
Sudden change of heart, he thought, Something isn't right.
He said "Go ahead. Ask."
She said "What is your name? From what I've noticed, you don't have a home, and since we're headed to my home planet, I would like for you to join us. And by 'us' I mean my clan."
Well. That was...interesting... Drag'lan thought.
He couldn't help but be astonished by the Predator's words. She hadn't shown anything neutral, much less kind, before. He felt compelled to return the favor. What was the harm in telling her his name, right?
He sighed and said "My name is Drag'lan Hellanille Sorell. Before you ask," he said as she bent forward as if to ask a question, "When translated, my name means 'Bringer of Death's Fiery Fury' in English. What's your name?"
Let's see where this leads... he thought.
She said "Okay. Since you said your name, I might as well tell you mine. My name is Fral'Drylx. When translate, it means 'Raging Inferno'. Your first name sounds Yautjan. Why is that?"
Drag'lan shrugged and said "I don't know. My mother was the one that gave me that name."
Fral'Drylx looked at his eyes and saw some pain in them. Then she looked at his body structure and her gaze traveled to his hair. It was in spikes sticking straight up with a curve to his back. If they hang down, they would be about shoulder-length from her measurements.
Okay, now THAT'S odd...he must be part Yautja.She thought.
Drag'lan took the time while she was looking him over to look her over too. Before, he hadn't payed too much attention to how she looked. She had Hazel-colored skin with dark green spots, not unlike a Lornashii. When he saw the mask, that was what intrigued him the most. It was covered in minor scratches. He couldn't help but wonder what her true face looked like under that mask.
She seems sincere enough. However, that could be a ploy. he thought. After what she did to me on the planet, she's capable of anything.
He walked to the bed and sat down. He looked at the ground and closed his eyes. In his mind, he rolled thoughts and ideas over. After he thought for a minute, Fral'Drylx walked up to him, crouched to his level and placed a hand on his shoulder. He opened his eyes and looked at her.
She asked something that he knew would come up, but didn't suspect the way he'd react. She asked "What was your family like? From what you said about your father, your family probably kicked ass."
Drag'lan's body tensed up and his eyes started to grow black. In his mind, he saw the bodies of his mother, father and siblings dead in the forest.
Fral'Drylx saw this and knew she had hit a touchy subject. She released her grip on his shoulder, stood up and backed away.
She said "I'm sorry. I didn't know-"
"They were slaughtered by Xenomorphs when I was Seven. My father fought, but they didn't stop coming. They ripped him limb from limb. Then, my mother, my brother, and my two sisters followed him in death." He said, cutting her off.
Damn...I didn't know that he had to endure that kind of trauma. I never saw my parents die...I just saw their bodies. she thought.
Drag'lan's next words cut into her thoughts, saying "They're the reason that I carved this into my arm." Drag'lan pulled up his left sleeve and showed her his left arm. She inspected it and saw a peculiar pair of marks there.
He did that HIMSELF? There is so much detail in it. He really sounds like a Yautja now...OOOWWW... she thought as she clutched her left hand. The knife that Drag'lan had carried had left a wound she had never seen before. The wound had stopped bleeding an hour ago, but the wound was still open.
Drag'lan noticed her clutching her hand and pulled out his knife. He looked from the knife to the wound. As he did so, the stain he had seen on the knife earlier flashed though his mind. He looked at her in shock.
"You cut your hand on the blade, didn't you?" he asked
She replied by saying "Yes. How sharp is that thing?"
Drag'lan shrugged and said "I don't know. I wasn't done sharpening it back on the planet, but apparently, it's sharp enough now. But here, this will help."
He pulled a vial out of the pouch on his right thigh and handed it to her. He said "Re-open the wound. Trust me,"; Fral'Drylx had given him a doubtful look, "It will help. Re-open the wound and apply a small amount of this stuff to it. It'll help it heal properly and reduce the scarring that will form."
Fral'Drylx looked at him as if he was crazy, but re-opened the wound and applied the stuff to it. It smelled really strong, but she felt better after it was spread over the wound.
"Thank you. That stuff, what is it?" she asked, after handing back the vial.
Drag'lan took it, held it up and said "No Problem. This is a sanitizing salve that seals the wound as it dries. It's also water-proof, meaning it doesn't wash off. I make the stuff myself. It's an old family recipe my mother taught me. Now, I'm just wondering, but how long was I out?"
Fral'Drylx shrugged and said "From my timers, it says about 7 hours. That's three hours earlier than others I've hit with the same amount of force."
Drag'lan chuckled and said "Yeah. I've always had a knack for recovering fast. Father could too, so I think it came from him as well."
I need to see his abilities in combat, Fral'Drylx thought, but she looked at her hair and armor and saw all the grime in/on it. But first, I need to clean up. I HATE hunting on that planet. Too much muck, dirt and dust is in the air.
She looked at Drag'lan and said "I don't know about you, but I'm gonna go take a bath. That planet had too much ambient junk."
Drag'lan nodded and said "I need to do that as well, but I'll wait for you to finish first. In the meantime, I'll clean off my armor."
Fral'Drylx said "Okay. I'll be back in a bit." as she walked to the closet and chose her outfit before leaving.
Drag'lan sat down and looked at his armor. His greaves were covered with the grime as well as his leggings. He bent down to undo the latches on his graves. He took them off and pulled out the same ball of metal shavings and got to work on the greaves. Even though it took the better part of an hour to clean off the grime, Drag'lan was happy. He started to set his greaves down when his hair started to itch. Even though his hair stood up like it did, it was covered in a grease paste that Drag'lan had made. Apparently, it had gotten too old and was now starting to break down into his scalp, causing it to itch. He scratched his head for a bit, and pulled his hand away with a light layer of paste stuck to it.
Damn it,he thought. The paste I use on my spikes is breaking down. Now I'll have to wash the paste out and let my hair go down. I hate having my hair down. It gets in the way too often. Well, it is what it is.
He didn't wait long until Fral'Drylx walked back in. She wore a simple dress that covered her shoulders, chest, front of her legs and back, from the look of things, leaving her belly exposed. That dress blew Drag'lan's mind; He had expected her to wear more male-oriented clothing. Her face was what drew his sight though. Her eyes were a golden yellow and she had Hazel colored hair. Compared to her mask, her face looked peaceful. He noted a few scars on her face, but disregarded them, as she looked nice either way.
Fral'Drylx looked at him and said "The bathroom is open. Go down the hall and it will be the fifth door on your left."
Drag'lan nodded, said "Thanks," grabbed his greaves and walked out.
He walked down the hall and past an open room. It was filled with weapons and on the wall, there were skulls of various creatures, mostly Xenos. He spotted some human skulls, but kept moving to the room she had spoken about.
The bathroom was as modest as the bedroom had been. He saw that the bathtub was just a hollow in the floor of the room. He set his greaves against the wall, took off his harness and set it next to the greaves. He then took off his leggings, his shirt and his boxers, and put a towel next to the tub before lowering himself into it. He found the controls and quickly learned how to change the temperature of the water. Once he had it to his liking, he waited for it to reach his upper abdomen before turning to water off.
He washed his hair thoroughly and watched as the water became somewhat brown. His hair became sleek with the water and as he wrung it out, it formed the spikes he was well-known for in the USCMC as well as turned back to it's normal jet-black coloring; the paste made his hair a very dark shade of brown. After his hair was cleaned out, he started washing his body and face. As he did so, he felt the warmth of the water start to seep into his body. He sighed with relief; His muscles were as sore as ever, so he had needed the heat to relax them.
He closed his eyes and started to think of everything that had happened.
Okay, you start out in a Xeno hive and end in a Pred's ship...big change. For all you know, Fral'Drylx, or whatever her true name is, could just kill you and mount your head on her wall. he thought. But then again, she did save you from that planet as you saved her from that hive, so she could be sincere about giving you a new place to live.
As his thoughts traveled from one point to another, he heard the door of the bathroom open. He turned around and opened his eyes. Fral'Drylx was standing in the room, looking at him.
She said "Sorry. I didn't know you weren't done washing. Would you like me to leave?"
Yeah right. Drag'lan thought. I doubt that excuse very highly...
He said "Nah. I'm finished as it so happens."
He grabbed the towel and lifted himself out of the tub, covering himself as he climbed out. He wrapped the towel around his waist and tied it at his hip. He grabbed his leggings and asked Fral'Drylx "Do you have a basin I can wash my leggings in by any chance?"
She nodded, filled a large bowl about the width of his shoulder span with hot water, and handed it to him. He set it down on the ground, sat down, slid his boxers and leggings to him, removed all the accessories on the leggings and started cleaning his leggings. He put the leggings into the water for a few seconds, then took them out and wrung them out. After doing that for a few times and a close inspection, he deemed that they were clean. He wrung them out very thoroughly and turned to Fral'Drylx and said "Fral'Drylx, do you mind if I call you Fral for short?"
Fral'Drylx nodded and said "I don't mind. If it helps you call me by name, go ahead."
Drag'lan said "Okay. Now, Fral, Do you have a drying room I can use?"
She gestured to a sliding door near the tub. He went to it carrying his leggings and boxers and entered it. He set the leggings and his boxers on the chairs before going to the controls. He tried the controls, but apparently was hitting the wrong buttons. He first felt a chilling blast of wind.
He said "Oh Groegno...wrong button." and tried another.
He felt the warm air come in and said "Much better."
He heard Fral giggle outside and said "Yea...Laugh it up, Fral...I don't understand most of these controls."
He checked his leggings and found that they dried rather fast. His hair hang loosely at his shoulders, and he himself was dry, so he put his boxers and leggings on. He then exited the drying room.
Fral'Drylx watched as he re-entered the bathroom. She saw that he had a large scar spanning his chest. She also saw that she was right in her measurements of his hair, but the color had changed. It was dark brown when she had taken off his helmet, but now it matched his eyes in color. In an odd way, she felt attracted to him. She started to pant ever so quietly.
Whoa, now girl...calm yourself down. she told herself.
When Drag'lan walked in, he saw that she had picked up his harness before dropping it when he had walked in,
Fral'Drylx said "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have touched your harness without permission."
Drag'lan shook his head and said "It's alright. You tried to get it off me when you put me in the bed didn't you?"
Fral'Drylx nodded "I couldn't work the latch on it, so I left it on you."
Drag'lan laughed a bit. He said "Well, it's simple really. Bring it here." and gestured for her to come to him. She obliged and brought him his harness. He popped the latch out of place using as small push together and a quick pull in opposite directions. She was amazed at how simple it was.
He saw the look on her face and smirked. He said "So...you wanna see how this baby works while in combat?"
She nodded and said "Yes, as much as I want to see your combat skills."
He said "Okay, I will meet in in your sparring room, which I assume is the one with your trophy wall."
She nodded and said "Let me go get my gear...my only rule is that you don't use your combat knife, for an obvious reason."
Drag'lan knew what that reason was, so he nodded and watched as she left. He put his shirt on as well as his harness and went to the sparring room and sat down cross-legged on the floor, waiting for his partner. He closed his eyes, and the visions came again...