Disclaimer: I don't own Outlaw Star
Authors Note: originally I had a completely different version of this chapter but I would like to thank Isaac for giving me some great ideas. Thank you Isaac for the great suggestions and I hope you continue to enjoy. Also I would like to apologize for the bad spelling and grammar from the previous chapter, I have gone back to try and fix most of them. I usually write these late at night and am pretty tired, so I don't always notice my mistakes. Again thank you to those that read and review this, I really like getting feedback.
Second note (2/5/2017): I reread some of the previous chapters and found Aisha saying her name in the third person so much to be a bit jarring, so I went back and changed a lot of them to have her talk in the first person instead. I think it flows a little better
Third note (2/22/2017): to those reading this, I'm sorry that the next chapter is taking so long, I had a long chapter planned for chapter 5 but due to technical difficulty's it was erased. Don't worry I'm not abandoning this story but it may take another week or two before the next chapter is done. Again thank you to those that read this and I hope you enjoy the next chapter when it's done.
Chapter 4: The Hunt
leafless trees were rooted sporadically across the terrain, with snow covering their long branches. As Aisha walked she could see the land and mountains covered in a white blanket seemingly never-ending with a cold wind bristling her hair and face. Before looking for a meal, Aisha had to try and find some hints as to what had happened to the rest of the crew. Despite the wind, the footprints that Aisha had seen when she had woken up were still there, though slightly faded. She followed them, hoping it would hold the answer to her missing friends' whereabouts, only to be disappointed. The tracks stopped three miles out from where the Outlaw Star had crashed, in front a wooded area.
The level of snow around her was a level lower than the rest. It seemed a strong wind must have blown the snow around taking the footprints along with them. The disappearing of the tracks would mean that she would have to rely on something else.
She tried using her enhanced sense of smell, sniffing the air in order to pick up her friends' scent. While you wouldn't think it at first, Aisha's Ctarl-Ctarl nose gave her great insight into the thoughts, daily lives and patterns of her compatriots, by smelling the pheromones and body odor of her Terran companions.
Suzu always smelt of tea leaves and perfume (almost too much in her opinion), and her emotional state was a bit of mystery to her as it seemed she rarely even sweated. While she sometimes tried to hide it, Suzu was quite the gambler. Aisha had been down on her luck enough times to know what the smell of a casino was like, with Suzu covered in the smell of cheap cigarettes and copper coins it wasn't very hard to figure out where she had been. Gene use to always smell the worst, like used socks and beer. Many times in the early morning, Aisha felt the need to puke from the smell of the cheap women he reeked of when he came back to the shop. Although, she was happy to say that his hygiene and philandering problems were put to an end after he and Melfina became a thing. Due to Melfinas robotic body she rarely smelled like anything except the food she cooked, which initially Aisha didn't mind but after she started dating Gene she eventually just smelled like him, albeit cleaner.
Then there was Jim, you would be surprised what kind of perspective scent gave Aisha when it came to Jim. Back when Jim and her first met she didn't like him, in fact he seemed kind of useless to her. To Aisha, Jim was some errand boy that Gene dragged around because who else was going to? He wasn't really anyone worth paying attention to, just some know-it-all kid that was over his head. He was an annoyance and that feeling seemed to be mutual. That all changed when Aisha began to smell all kinds of different scents from him that showed her things that she would never have expected. Some mornings Jim smelled like motor oil from his retro vehicle that he loved and cherished so much. At the times where he was scared for the well-being of others (including her), his pheromones would be potent with fear although he would try to hide it. But it was actually the simple smell of coffee that showed what kind of person Jim was. Aisha like always got distracted and found herself going down memory lane
…
One night during the second month she had joined Gene and Jim, Aisha got up to use the restroom and on her way she smelled the distinct scent of coffee coming from somewhere in the shop. She knew that Gene was out and that Suzu only drank tea, so it wasn't them. She knew it wasn't really important but she had to see where it was coming from. The Smell lead her all the way to a light coming from Jim's room, whom she wasn't well acquainted with and perhaps thought it would be awkward to barge into his room so late at night. But Aisha was rarely one for subtly and simply walked inside only to see something that simply confused her.
Jim was sitting in his chair head back asleep while his computer ran, coffee to the side of him and jacket to floor. She got closer to see that the area around his eyes were baggy and his mouth open. What surprised her was the contents on his desk, spread around it were nothing but papers dealing with taxes, fees, and finances while plans on how to improve the ship were in a stack. She couldn't believe someone so young had taken upon himself to do these things for the entire crew. He was just a kid and he was willing to work himself to the point of exhaustion for them. He suddenly began shaking due to the cold in the air, which caused Aisha to do something without really thinking about it, as if her body was moving on it's own. She turned off the monitor to his computer, placed his arms and head onto the table so he was a little more comfortable, and then laid his jacket onto his back to keep him warm. As she walked out she looked at him one more time and turned off the light. It was here that Aisha was beginning to wonder what was wrong with her? Ctarl-Ctarl were not known for such sentimentality but for some reason it felt natural to her. Maybe she saw a little of herself in him, all of Aisha's childhood was focused on adult things. She was the daughter of a prestigious general of the Ctarl-Ctarl empire, great things were expected of her. In the end though, all it had amounted to was a lonely career, a disappointed family and a life cast adrift. She couldn't stand the thought of someone his age already living the same kind of life as her.
"Goodnight Jim" she whispered as she closed the door. She couldn't explain it but she knew this moment was the beginning of their friendship.
…
Hard to believe that she would become responsible for the young man's survival now. Suddenly Aisha realized she had become lost in thought and shook her head to bring her back to her current reality, which was not as sugary sweet as her memories. She had been sniffing for about 10 minutes to no avail their scent was simply lost, but she did catch a whiff of something else. In front of one the trees she found small drops of blood littered in the snow and then looked at the tree itself. Near the bottom was a small hole with something stuck in it, causing her to pry it out with her fingers. It was a bullet, Aisha put together that there was probably a skirmish and the blood was from one of its victims. As Aisha placed the bullet closer to her face, the scent of the blood wafted into her nose. At that moment her eyes dilated, she had gone into hunting mode.
Aisha remembered childhood hunting trips and what this sensation felt like back then. It almost scared her when she tasted her first kill. Her father had told her that her people were not only "born predators" but that "THE CTARL-CTARL ARE THE APEX PREDATORS OF THE GALAXY!" he would exclaim proudly. Due to the sweetness in the smell, she knew the blood wasn't Terran. After how gross Jim's had smelt, that's a relief she thought. She knew it wasn't from Gene or Suzu, and found it to be similar from other planets game.
Aisha quickly followed the scent of the animal for another three miles, the drops of blood soon began to get bigger, the closer she closed in on her prey. As she reached the base of a mountain, she caught a view of it. Puffy blue fur and red eyes were what caught her attention the most. The creature had an appearance similar to that of a Terran wolf, but was two to three times the size with a white mane similar to a lion. Aisha quickly noticed its gashed leg, the blood leaking out created a contrast in the surrounding snow. Her prey was not harmed fatally but certainly enough to put it at a disadvantage. Aisha closed in on it, gaining leverage by climbing onto a perch near striking distance. She extended her claws in preparation for her kill, this needed to be quick, to make it suffer would only be cruel. Right when she was about to jump, her shifting leg causes a rock the size of a fist to fall from the perch.
The animal looks up to see her and growls ready to fight, while she goes in for the kill. The creature bites into Aisha's arm, causing her to yell in pain but that wasn't going to stop her. She takes her other arm and gashes at one of her preys' eyes. Her claw draws blood and takes its eyesight along with it. The creature tosses her away from itself in order to prevent her from causing it pain.
Aisha feels slightly stunned, due to not being prepared for a fight and expected a quick kill. She wipes the snow from her face, seeing her prey preparing itself to charge at her. Suddenly the world seems to be more quiet then it already was, Aisha's mind goes blank as instincts take over. She made a mistake thinking this was simple game, this was two predators fighting for dominance. They zeroed in on each other, in a standoff that seemed to last forever as the blood from their wounds dropped onto the snow.
The two charge each other like gladiators, inside an icy colosseum. Aisha wrestles her prey to the ground until she finally gets it into a headlock. The creature struggles, limbs flailing attempting to free itself. Soon the air leaves its chest and body goes limp. Finally, a loud snap echoes through the open air, the hunt is over. At that moment Aisha allows the fruit of her labor to fall to the ground, and kneels in front it, breath ragged. Right now the world seems dead to Aisha and nothing mattered, until voices seemed to bombard her head.
"BUT NEVER FORGET MY DAUGHTER, WE HUNT TO FEED NOT ONLY OURSELVES BUT THOSE IMPORTANT TO US!"
"oh come on dad, why would I ever hunt for anybody but Aisha?"
"Jim, no matter what happens Aisha will be here"
Suddenly she inhales sharply and her eyes return to normal, It's like she had woken up from a dream. She sees the aftermath of her actions and remembers why she had been here in the first place.
"Don't worry Jim, I haven't forgotten" she had regained her sense and her purpose. After all she had someone important to feed.
Her stomach sounds, as if to remind her as well
"I haven't forgotten that either"
