I wanted to get this out as soon as I could as both a thank you for your support and also an apology for the wait. Every time I get a follow, fav, or review I get so excited. Knowing there are people who enjoy what I write and wait for updates makes me so happy. I am beyond grateful, so thank you.

Enjoy :)


Chapter 9

The following couple of days went very similar, mostly because I slept through most of them. I had been lacking so much sleep and had gone through a lot so I let myself indulge.

Cetanu, for his part, had been doting. His wound had healed over the first night which fascinated me. He left during some periods of the day, mostly when I was asleep, and would come back with food when I woke.

The food was delicious. I had some qualms about eating meat again, but this wasn't Earth. The animals who were hunted for meat were hunted fairly, their death honorable. And at the end of the day surviving on this planet meant adapting to the culture. And hunting was the foundation of it.

Cetanu insisted on feeding me, and at first I refused, even biting his finger once. Which only made my own finger hurt but fuck him.

Eventually I let him, the hunger getting the best of me, and it was surprisingly intimate. He watched me intensely the whole time, growling with satisfaction every time I was full.

I was even able to bathe in a small pool like pit that was connected to the main room. The water was hot and I had to be careful of my wound but otherwise it felt amazing.

My cuts slowly healed, maybe a little faster than I thought normal but I wasn't going to complain. The first morning I woke up, more rested than I had been in a while, I was determined to get out of bed and explore.

Cetanu walked in holding something, and came straight to me. As he came closer, my eyes focused on an ornate band of fabric that was wrapped around a strong piece of leather.

The fabric had intricate blue designs weaved into it, and small bones that were polished to a gem-like shine hung from the black cloth.

I was caught up with how starkly beautiful it was that I failed to recognize just what it was. That's when I noticed Tak walking in behind him.

Her eyes were cast downward, her feet shuffling a bit awkwardly. I hadn't seen her since the fight, Cetanu and I getting by better than I would have thought with the language barrier.

But I was happy to see her for sure.

"Lay-ksa, it is good to see you well again," she said, her eyes meeting mine for a second and a small smile curving on her lips.

"You too Tak, uh, not that I'm not happy to see you but what is this all about?' I warily eyed Cetanu who was just looming to the side, staring down at me and gripping that damn thing.

"Master Cetanu has brought your collar, he asked me to come so that I may explain the reasoning for such a thing. He suspected you would refuse otherwise and-"

"Damn right I refuse, I am not wearing a fucking collar!" I had shot up on the bed, grateful for the clothes I had decided to put on. And by clothes I meant loincloth and matching breast band.

I scooted back as far as I could, my back pressed up against the cold wall, the furthest I could get from them.

I knew they had said something about a collar before but I hadn't actually processed it until now.

"Lay-ksa please let me explain. The collar is for your protection. Yautja value strength and may challenge an unmarked human to test them. With no visual marking of ownership they will have the right to challenge you. With this collar they will know who you belong to and no one will touch you."

"Is that why that bitch attacked me?" I asked, seething.

"Ah, well, something like that yes." My eyes narrowed. Something like that? I would find out what that meant later.

"I'm not wearing a collar, get a wrist band or something. Jesus, it's like I'm a goddamn p-"and then it clicked. And I shuddered in disgust.

"Like I'm a pet," I finished, my shoulders sinking as I realized more about what I was on this planet. Tak looked sympathetic, and as I eyed her own metal collar and cuffs, I knew I had it better than she did. And here I was throwing a tantrum. This isn't how people changed things.

No matter how much I hated this, if I wanted to change anything and live the good life I wanted to, I would need to choose my battles. And this was one that I didn't need to fight.

I nodded, accepting this bullshit. Odds are there were going to be worse things I had to face as a pet, this was just wearing a collar. If I couldn't put up with this how did I expect to deal with anything else?

I huffed and crossed my arms. "If you want to put that damn thing on me you're gonna have to come over here yourself cause I'm sure as shit not gonna come to you."

I ignored any feelings of care I had for Cetanu that had only grown stronger over the past days as he stepped on top of the bed and walked his Godzilla ass over to me.

I had imagined he would have shuffled on his knees, but of course not. He was going to command this just like he did everything else.

The cushion caved with every step of his foot. He stopped right in front of me and held his palm out.

I gritted my teeth and looked away. No way, this was bad enough, I couldn't let him have his way. He made no noise, simply kneeled by me and cupped my jaw.

He tilted his head and let out a short purr, one that confused me but made me feel better.
"Mei-i kit Sain-ja." I may not know what he said but I felt something like admiration through the bond.

He slowly wrapped the collar around my neck, pulling my hair out of the way and securing it against my nape with some sort of pin.

The feeling of the weight on my neck felt shockingly intimate yet violating. I was conflicted as Cetanu pulled back and looked at me adoringly.

My fingers drifted upward, tentatively touching the bones with a sick feeling in my gut. I looked up to Tak and her chains, knowing this was better, despite my hang ups about it.

She was giving me a supportive smile and I made a note to hug her later. Cetanu spoke something to her as he dismounted the poor bed.

"Master Cetanu says you are free to wander as you like, so long as I accompany you." Tak seemed genuinely happy about this and I felt myself getting exciting about to prospect as well. Finally, I was going to learn more about this place.

I nodded, watching as Cetanu turned, shooting me one last glance as he himself left. Probably to go roar at some people, I mused.

"Ok well let's get going," I mumbled, feeling instantly different when he left. Like something was missing.

I ignored the feeling and slid off the bed, heading to the door. Tak immediately steeped in front of me, putting her arms up to stop me.

"Forgive me Lay-ksa, but you need to change. Those are fine for sleep but as a pet you will need to wear more elegant cloth out, as a symbol of your status."

"You know for a race so focused on realistic effectiveness, Yautja have a lot of hang-ups about their hierarchy," I said, rolling my eyes.

Tak only smiled, "They place great value on their traditions." I scoffed but dropped the subject, anxious to get moving.

"Actually, where are the clothes? Cetanu had brought me some but I was never awake to see where he went."

"Follow me, Lay-ksa. I've spent some time memorizing the layout of the house as to assist you." She turned and led me out the door.

I eyed the giant tree trunk wrapping around the door, the one Cetanu had been sitting on when I awoke. Turns out the branch came from the monster size tree that was holding up the house.

We walked out onto a balcony that encircled the entire tree. I honestly didn't know where to look. So I choose up.

The canopy of the trees was a lot closer than it had been when I first got here, less than a hundred feet up. Which made me thing, how high up were we?

I tip-toed to the edge, and peered down.

"Oh my god."

We were up hundreds of feet, maybe even higher, so high I couldn't even begin to estimate. From this view, the braches that served as bridges and ladders looked like a massive web, stretching from tree to tree, connecting the structures that hugged the trunks.

Tak stood next to me, patiently waiting for me to get my fill.

"Magnificent, isn't it?" Wonder dripped from her voice, and I looked up at her. Her red eyes were sparkling, a soft smile playing at her lips.

"I used to feel ashamed because I thought this planet was more beautiful than my own home. I had been young, of course, when I was taken here. All slaves are. But I remember my home was covered in mountains. I had never seen anything like this, and I quickly fell in love with it. I know you are struggling Lay-ksa, and I do not blame you. But please understand that this place is not as bad as it may seem. It is certainly different from the place you knew, and it has its own problems, but it is not the worst place to be." She looked down at me now, her eyes meeting mine. "You will be cherished here, and I hope you find some sort of happiness in that."

Her words ringed in my mind, over and over again as she took me up more winding branches and inside to another room.

I let my thoughts drift from my mind, left for another time, as I looked up. We were in a medium sized room with two distinct sides.

On one end, were armor and weapons. All were polished to perfection, to the point that even the dents and gashes in the metal looked to be intended decoration. Only serving to make the pieces more complete.

The opposite side held cloths of all colors and designs. At the front sat very basic black and brown pieces and I knew they belonged to Cetanu.

The others however, were vibrant and highly decorated. I instinctively walked forward, my hand reaching out to glide against the delicate fabrics.

I was drawn forward toward a beautiful midnight blue pair with silver stones woven into the threads. Tak came from behind me and reached up to pull it down. She was a good foot taller than me now that I noticed.

"A wonderful choice Lay-ksa," Tak commented as she handed them to me. I looked up at her lamely until she seemed to snap and turn around. "My apologies, I forget the modesty of humans."

"Don't worry about it, I should probably be getting more used to it." I slipped off the clothes I was already wearing and quickly pulled on the blue pair, shivering at the silky feel of them.

The top was simple and bare but the loin cloth was really something. The stones created a very elegant design and would glint in any sunlight it caught. It was also much longer, reaching all the way to my ankles.

Obviously not for labor of any kind, I knew what Tak had meant by this being a symbol of rank. I was property after all, and I needed to look like a very important piece at that.

The loincloth allowed for generous amounts of my thighs to show and I felt myself feeling a bit self-conscious.

Which was ridiculous honestly, but the fabric, along with its décor, made me feel more exposed than being naked. Because people were going to look at me and know exactly what I was.

Not who, but what. And I realized the clothes I had chosen matched my collar perfectly.

Tak startled me as she came up behind me and began combing my hair. I let myself relax, my anxiety slowly floating away as I breathed.

When she finished, she placed something on top of my head and I reached up to feel it. A bone dangled against my forehead and I traced two small chains that clung to my hair.

Along with the head piece, Tak gave me one silver wrist cuff and another for my ankle. I turned to see her and she gave me a bright smile.

"You look stunning."

I wasn't used to attention like this, and shifted my feet awkwardly.

"Thank you. Shall we go?" I asked and she nodded, still satisfied with her decorating of me.

She led me outside to the balcony again and back down. There were many winding tree branches that helped you reach upper levels of the structure we were on but only one main one to get down to the rest of the settlement.

As we walked across the stone I let my eyes wander. The structure had three levels, each smaller than the one before but the top one caught my attention. It was painted black, unlike the gray of the other two levels.

It was menacing. I wanted to see whatever was inside. Tak turned to see me starring up and the third level and shook her head.

"If you wish to see what is up there, you must ask Master Cetanu. None are allowed in the trophy rooms unless invited by the hunter."

Trophy rooms? My interest was piques as I continued walking forward. Maybe I would do some sneaking later.

We came to a large spiraling branch and began descending. Tak fell back and let me take the lead. It felt wrong but I stayed silent.

"Where can we go Tak?"

"Wherever you wish Lay-ksa so long as it is no one's living quarters and not the elder towers. We may walk until you find a place you wish to visit or we can go to the baths or to the market if you'd like? There are also many training areas and park like platforms with beautiful views."

"We can just walk for now until we find some place." I was already pretty overwhelmed as we hit the next landing. Cetanu's house was very isolated in comparison to the other structures.

And we immediately ran into what I could only describe as traffic. All manner of species walked back and forth, crisscrossing each other to get to their destinations.

Yautja were most prominent among them, their sizes and coloring all different. None were as striking as Cetanu. Not even close.

In between them walked, well, aliens. Creatures I had obviously never seen but similar to Tak, they carried attaching chains.

The clanging of the metal as they walked made every nerve in my body freeze. I was deeply disturbed as I watched them.

None of them looked the least bit worse for wear though. The Yautja made room for all of them, even those that stood much higher.

As far as I could tell, slaves here were treated well. Tak seemed to like it here too. As I looked closer I saw that not all had chains, in fact, most didn't. Some wore just the collar and cuffs. They must be labor slaves, I thought, the chains would get in the way.

"Tak, why do you have chains?" I asked her, the both of us still standing on the platform that led into the mass of aliens.

"Because I choose to Lay-ksa. I have the keys to the locks and I can remove them whenever I wish."

I looked at her then, utterly confused.

"Why would you willingly choose to wear the chains if you don't have to?"

She smiled, her eyes looking off into the distance at those passing bye.

"Like everything else, they are a symbol. This may seem strange to you, but the chains represent my value as a slave. Those that are servants, workers, and the like, do not wear chains due to their work. If I didn't wear them I would be recognized as they are. Which isn't inherently a bad thing. But these show others that I have earned a higher position and do not have to work as they do. I have been educated and now I get to accompany and assist an Elder's precious ke-da. You don't know how privileged I am Lay-ksa." She looked at me, her eyes burning with sincerity. "I wear my chains with pride just as a human would wear a medal.

I was at a loss for words. A part of me wanted to disagree, but that was just the human part of me that saw the chains as nothing but a symbol of inferiority. A reason to hate their life.

But here Tak was, someone who had been kinder to me than most humans I had known, and she adored them. I may not understand, I don't know if I ever would honestly, but I felt a deep respect for her sentiment.

She earned her chains, and I had no right to say she shouldn't wear them.

So instead of speaking, I hugged her.

Her whole body jolted and I quickly stepped back. "Thank you Tak. I am still confused about everything here. But I can't begin to tell you how grateful I am that I have your help. And that you don't see helping me as a burden. Just…thank you." And I smiled at her, a real smile, to covey my feelings.

Her eyes were wide and now it was her turn to be speechless. She slowly came back to herself and smiled in return.

"Always."

"Now," I said turning toward the crowd, some of whom were eyeing us, "how about those markets you mentioned?"


Yautja Translations

Mei-i kit Sain-ja – My little warrior

Lay'ksa – a respectful term for a pet

I hope you liked this chapter! The next one features more of home planet so get excited! Leave a review and let me know what you all want to read and I'll see what I can do!