Chapter 9

Elliot's eyes fluttered open upon hearing her door open. there in the doorway was Luar-ke, coming to wake up the small woman. Elliot groaned and rolled over as she pulled her covers over her head, denying the impending request of the other. a soft chuckle could be heard from luar-ke who marched over and pulled the blankets away from Elliot. the smaller female hissed as she was met with cold air that nipped her skin. "it's time to get up, you have chores to do." Her eyes opened and she sighed. it was the same everyday, wake up early and work to finish a long list of chores, however she hadn't cleaned the house in quite a while after that unfortunate night.

"...he is fully capable of doing this all himself. Lazy fuck…." Elliot said to herself and sat up, stretching her limbs as she did.

Luar-ke walked around the bed and pulled the curtains open to flood the room with light. "It's been awhile since you did your chores. Halkrath wanted me to give you this list, said to use it to your advantage to keep yourself busy and to keep yourself out of this room." Elliot mumbled something under her breath and luar-ke cut in again with,"don't worry, there isn't much to do today so you will finish quickly and afterwards you can do whatever." Luar-ke beamed in an attempt to lighten the mood. Her eyes met Elliot's who gave a cold and annoyed stare, not wanting to do anything. Elliot stood from her bed and got dressed before exiting the room and making her way to the front of the house where she stopped in the kitchen and made breakfast for herself and Luar-ke, who seemed to love her cooking as much as her master. Elliot chose to make an omelette, decorating it with various spices and topping it with what she thought as basil, either way it tasted the same. Luar-ke helped by setting the table, placing fine china ceremoniously in place across from each other before filling two chalices with water. Elliot brought the omelettes over and gently slid them onto the plates from the pan. Luar-ke smiled when the smell hit her. "how did you learn to cook like this?" she asked as she sat in her place across from Elliot.

Elliot sipped on some water before answering with a sort of cold reply, "i used to work in a restaurant. picked up a few things before joining the services." she said as she cut into the steaming eggs that erupted with a delicious aroma. Before taking a bite she looked to Luar-ke and said, "so what did he say last night?" Her tone was harsh, as if expecting to hear the worst of cases.

Looking away the other replied with,"Not much really. However he was not happy with what happened and has decided that you won't be allowed to go out anymore." There was a frown on her face as she stirred her eggs before she began shoveling small portions into her mouth. '...he wasn't just upset….he was worried. There was a look in his eye when I saw him run over to protect you...' she continued in her head knowing the other wouldn't care to hear it. Unknown to her, she was subconsciously fidgeting with a place mat, as if struggling to contain a secret.

"Of course." Elliott said, figuring that was exactly what happen. she didn't expect any less however, it was only reasonable given her encounter with that other male. but then again, Halkrath didn't seem to keen on her going out before luar-ke showed up. in the beginning, he mentioned something about her going outside, telling her that she was not allowed to leave unless he was with her. the way he had said it only made him sound possessive though. Elliot sighed at the thought of never leaving the house again. She had to admit, yesterday was actually a good day and she was thankful to have gone out. Thinking on it, she hated the thought of never leaving the house after yesterday. For a single day she had felt far better than she ever did, and now she hated if that had to end. She had to admit as well, that being confined in her room was getting old. She needed to escape from all signs of him, to clear her head just as she did yesterday, and her room wasn't the best place to do that, no. This was still his house, and even though he was not home, he was still everywhere. Her eyes then fell to Luar-ke's hand that fiddled nervously with the placemat. "what else happen in there? And don't lie to me."

"w-what?" the other choked in surprise before finally processing the question. "nothing happen. We just talked." she then looked away, avoiding Elliot's persistent gaze.

"I don't believe that. You're hiding something, tell me what it is." the smaller ordered as she leaned back in her chair and folded her arms across her chest.

Luar-ke sighed, deciding how she was to continue. She desperately wanted the other to know, but that wasn't her business to share. "we talked about you, that's it." she voiced defensively, earning herself a glare from the other.

"Luar-ke, I don't want to be lied to. You are hiding something from me and I don't like it."

Yet again she sighed before finally saying, "that something you need to take up with him. Whether or not he tells you, I don't know."

"like he will ever tell me…." Elliot sighed and shoveled a portion of egg into her mouth.

the two were quiet as they ate until the larger opened her mouth to speak again. "i've been meaning to ask, how are you feeling? i know you were really upset with what happen but you seemed to brush it off yesterday as if it never happen. do all humans do this?" she asked wholeheartedly with concern in her tone.

Elliot swallowed a fork full of food and wiped her mouth with her hand. "...yesterday was the first day I had actually been able to get away from any sign of him, don't get me wrong, I still hate him and I would love to get out of here again. To be honest, I think yesterday was the first time I had actually relaxed while being here. When I was playing with those kids, that was the first time in forever that I had actually felt some tinge of PURE happiness..." she trailed as she turned bits of food over with her fork. Luar-ke watched her with a solemn look, waiting for her to continue. "fuck, i'm waiting for all...this to finally hit me like a freight train. i feel like this is all a dream, hell, maybe i am dead and this is my hell. Every time I fall asleep, I have dreams that I'm back home, dreams that are so vivid that when I wake up I begin questioning if I'm truly awake or if all this is a dream." she continued and glanced up to the woman across from her. luar-ke held the sorrowful gaze of Elliot, peering into her as if to read her. she looked calm and collected, but luar-ke could vaguely see that inside she was still breaking down. it was only a matter of time before the young human would hit her breaking point for real.

luar-ke wanted to speak but could find no words to fill in the blanks.

"you feel sorry for me." Elliot stated obviously and caught the other off guard.

"i just can't fathom how you can be so strong to block out the feelings piling up inside you. I mean, I've seen you cry and I know you are still suffering, but still...I can see that there is still so much more emotion inside. How do you do it?" the other replied, looking into the motionless liquid in her chalice.

Elliot gave a small chuckle before taking a sip from her chalice. "yeah i question my mentality sometimes. you're right. i can feel my thoughts and emotions piling up, soon to break the barrier that was built up during my time in the military. It's a strong barrier, but eventually it too will break..." her voice grew quiet, almost ominous. luar-ke felt anger well up inside herself, not for the inevitable outcome, but rather for the male that brought this upon her. she wasn't the same species as the other, but the fact that she was also a female made it easier to empathize with the other. she could almost feel Elliots emotions and it made her feel queasy as a lump formed in her throat.

halkrath had come to Luar-ke for help with the female. He knew he fucked up and he knew that he couldn't fix this himself. He was screwed up in the head but he couldn't bring himself to get help. the male was to prideful to give in to his emotions, something the female knew all to well. however, he had made it clear that he felt a need, rather an attraction, for the girl and that was one of the reasons he had brought her back. he felt a strange attachment to her that drove his instincts mad to the point he could hardly control himself. he had told her that he wanted to make the girl HIS, and he wanted Luar-ke's help in making the girl less afraid of him, the truth was that he wanted her and no other woman. however after learning more and more about Elliot, Luar-ke understood that she would never give in to him, not after what he did. humans were emotional beings, built off various feelings and emotions. they wouldn't do something unless their feelings drove them to do it. it was part of being human. "Elliot, you are not going to believe me when I say this, but, Halkrath…..he feels something for you, something he never felt for any other female." she said looking the smaller in the eye. "I have known Halkrath for a very long time, long enough to know that he hates showing emotion and even admitting to feeling bad. he has lived to show no mercy to his enemies, and no emotion, yet he seems adamant to keep you close. He truly is an arrogant son of a bitch, which is why he wanted me to find a way to make you forgive him."

Elliot was silent a moment before looking away and saying, "his status is no reason to abandon emotion. i will never forgive him for what he did. he told me that i was to do minor tasks for a while until my debt was repaid, not have sex with him.…."

Luar-ke exhaled before taking a sip of water. "I don't blame you for your decision."

The other sighed and continued speaking. "I just don't understand why it had to be me...Luar-ke, why couldn't he have saved someone else? Why was he the one that saved me? Fuck I should have died in the building collapse, not run into some alien who cut off my leg and saved my life only to then be violated by him. Where is the sense in it?" Her voice began shaking as well as her body and she began tearing up again.

Luar-ke reached out and grasped the others hand. "I can't answer those questions. Those are questions only he can answer. But, I do believe that Paya has a plan for you. Perhaps you were brought here for a reason."

"And what reason is that?" Elliot inquired, looking up to the other as she did.

Luar-ke sighed, shrugging her shoulders as she contemplated her words. "I don't know." She simply said and watched as Elliot gave a sarcastic laugh.

"I just wish he would go die."

Luar-ke's eyes widened in shock. She understood Elliot's anger and she too was mad but not even she would wish death on the most elite male in the clan. Such an act would be treason. "Elliot, I understand that you are angered at halkrath, but death on him is not a solution. He has done you wrong, I know, but he has also saved your life twice now. Not only that but….well, there are things about him that you don't know, but I can't speak of those things..."

"So what. After what he has done, he deserves death. I don't give a shit if he is mentally disabled and mood swings drove him to it. It's still wrong." Elliot voiced, her tone dark and merciless. She absolutely hated the guy and though she was religious, she would damn him to the ninth circle of hell before ever putting her trust in him again. She made that mistake once, and look where she was. " luar-ke, he is a monster...not a saint."

The other bowed her head, accepting Elliot's reasoning. "...let me ask you something, if you were able to kill him, given the chance at least, what would you do after?"

Elliot hesitated, unsure how to answer. She never thought about that before and she knew that she couldn't just return home. No. After what happen and how long she has been gone, she wouldn't be able to return home. "..." she wanted to speak but couldn't find the words and so she remained quiet as she picked up her plate and left the table. "...Luar-ke, I'm sorry for how I treated you at first. I'm glad you are trying to help me, but know that you can only do so much."

Luar-ke remained seated, watching as Elliot then disappeared around the corner to commence her daily chores. A sigh escaped the larger female as she finished her meal and then left to the kitchen.

Elliot did her chores slowly, trying to keep her mind occupied with something more real, yet she couldn't help but think on what the other had said. if she were able to kill the male then she would never have to face him again. if she could kill him then she could return to living her life without worrying that he would return. however, in the back of her mind she knew that killing him would not fix her problems, if anything it would only bring more. her thoughts returned to her chores and In just a few hours she cleared most of her chores but the next on her list was one she didn't feel inclined to do. She stood outside his bedroom and told herself not to enter, but her muscles betrayed her as her feet carried her into the room. It felt strange being in his room after what happen and it almost seemed as though he would walk in any minute. Everything was still in place from the last time she was in here but it felt like she had entered a realm that was frozen in time. Her eyes wandered around and her fingers grazed the dusty surface of his bedside table. For a man of such high status, he was not all that neat. But then again she hasn't noticed him in his room for quite some time. She looked to his bed and swallowed a hard lump in her throat. There stamped into the pelts was the impression of her body. She could see the wrinkles from where her hands had at some point clutched the blankets and a veil of shame fell over her. Without thinking, she yanked the blankets up and tightened them around the bed, erasing the wrinkles that recited the events of that night. Elliot proceeded to work fast to clean his room. She dusted off the horizontal surfaces and straightened up his desk before Collecting articles of clothing from the floor. She was about to leave when she passed by his wardrobe and noticed something sticking out. Stopping, she reached her hand out and tugged on the paper material. It refused to come free and so she dropped the small pile of clothing before pulling the door open. The paper fell out and slowly floated down to the floor. Elliot looked at it, tilting her head to make out the strange upside down letters that were engraved in gold on an off white page with a midnight blue border. Bending over she picked up the paper and read it. The handwriting was surprisingly neat and she was astonished that it was actually written in english. The note was an invitation, and Elliot was shocked by what it said.

'You are hereby invited to a grand banquet hosted by the honorable and elite clan leader. After being away on a hunt for an incredulous amount of time, your noble clan leader has requested your presence among many others who serve to fight the Kiande amedha abominations.

Hunters are requested to bring their mates to partake in the celebration and honor their warrior in his victories.

thar'n-da s' yin'tekai'

the last words were ones she didn't understand, yet she figured them to be some form of a traditional closing.

Mate. Is that what she was supposed to be? She knew he didn't have a mate but why would he take her, a slave whom he just happen to fuck? Hell she was nothing to him so why not take Luar-ke instead? At least the other would would look more in place next to the male. Elliot, being shorter and weaker than him would only be a magnet for scrutinizing eyes. There was no way that she could make it through the night without being glared at or even growled at. Every one would only criticize her and surely Halkrath would just find entertainment in criticizing her himself. But that didn't bother nearly as much as that simple word written in pristine calligraphy. Her expression contorted to one of disgust. She was NOT his mate. she would never allow him to call her his. Besides, she didn't belong to anybody. Like him, she was also a living being with a soul and a conscious mind. Elliot did not belong to the male, not as a possession and surely not a mate.

Elliot crumpled the note and tossed it carelessly back into the wardrobe before making her way out of the devils lair with a pile of laundry. Her heels impacted the stone floor with a hard thud, emphasizing her anger with each step. this was something thing that Luar-ke did not mention, and Elliot was not pleased with the matter at all. The other had mentioned that Elliot was to attend, but she never mentioned that Elliot was expected to play the part of his mate. Her hand twitched, feeling the undying urge to take her anger out on something, anything. That was an opportunity she has yet to get the chance to do. She wanted to hit something, punch it with her own fist until her knuckles dripped with blood and her head felt light as her worries drifted away.

A few weeks ago she is in agony, a couple days ago she was lost and confused, and today...today she was angry. It was no lie to say she was suffering from mood swings. her thoughts and emotions lately have been throwing her entire psyche off balance and there was no telling what she was going to feel next. Her entire train of thought was disorganized and she couldn't completely process many of her thoughts. They all seemed to flow in and out of her head with no filter to help organize her thoughts.

Elliot wandered into the laundry room and dropped the pile of clothes to her feet. Her anger only seemed to rise until she couldn't control it any longer. She tried breathing in a slow set rhythm to calm herself, but it was no use as her hand twitched more. a moment passed and then without even thinking she smashed her fist into to stone wall. There was a loud and distinct crack as her knuckles made contact with the surface but she felt nothing as adrenaline coursed through her veins. Suddenly her shoulders and chest felt lighter, as if a weight had been lifted, and she grinned at the blood that now stained the wall. With a low grunt she did it again and again until a sliver of pain found its way to her brain. She hissed and clenched her hand as she inspected the new wound. blood oozed from her knuckles and the skin had been torn to small flaps. Her hand ached and when she tried flexing the muscles she could only feel pain. no time passed until the throbbing came and she had to bite her lip to block the pain as she began whimpering and tears pooled in her eyes. Fuck that hurt. It was probably a stupid decision but It did lift a weight from her shoulders only problem was that it would make for a new scar containing the most memories. People would see it and question what happen, but it would be a story she would dare not tell.

The young woman kicked the pile of clothes to the side before rushing to the bathroom before her hand dripped everywhere. In the lavatory she stuck her hand in the sink and turned on the water. A hiss escaped her as she flinched in pain and watched as the water turned a shade of crimson. The water itself only added to the pain, spilling micro-organisms into her fresh cuts, but after a moment the sting dulled until she felt nothing and a sigh of relief escaped her. The cuts on her knuckles were fairly deep and her hand was already turning a dark shade of purple. It was broken and she cursed herself knowing that it would need medical attention. The wounds however looked the most severe with an endless stream of blood oozing out.

she was rubbing away the blood that stained her skin when the door suddenly opened, slamming into the wall with the sound like that of a distant gunshot. Elliot's head whipped around to meet Luar-ke's shocked expression with a surprised and indecisive look of her own. How was she to explain this one? The yautja female looked horrified at the sight of blood pouring from the others hand. "what did you do?" she asked frantically as she pulled the smaller womans hand away from the water to inspect it. Luar-ke didn't seem at all fazed that her own hand was being covered in the red substance, only she was adamant to get the story. Elliot groaned, reluctant to tell her until the other pressured her more.

"i punched a wall." she simply said as she yanked her hand back and held it close to her chest. Luar-ke watched the other as she began to suck the blood from her hand. What a strange thing to do to a wound. She acted much like a dog the way she licked the wound and the sucked on it.

"Why would you do such a thing?"

"I just...needed the release. I've been aching to do that and now I actually feel so much better I think." She stated and returned her hand to the water, hissing at the returning sting.

Luar-ke sighed and rubbed her forehead with her fingertips. "...this is not going to look good tonight..." her voice was quiet as she spoke more to herself than to Elliot. "I will call Jehdin and have him come look at it. Please, don't hurt yourself more. Halkrath will not be pleased if you are bleeding everywhere during the party"

Elliott said nothing as she clenched her teeth at the thought. It was that very event that frustrated her into doing this. The thought of standing so close to the one that hurt her made Elliot feel even more irate. There was no way out of this. She could tell them that she was not going, but that would only make things worse. In the end he would force her, again, therefore the only thing she could do was appease the male and go willingly.

When the other left, Elliot released a long held breath in the form of a sigh. She shut off the water and looked at herself in the mirror and took note of her features. Her anger had forced the blood to rush to her face, turning her skin a shade of pink, and her eyes looked fatigued like she had just pulled an all nighter. Her hair was frizzy and there was even some dirt that discolored her skin after her fall yesterday. She looked like crap, and she felt like crap. Another sigh escaped her and she turned away from the mirror and stripped of her clothes, careful not to irritate her injured hand. Her current state convinced her that she needed a moment to relax in a tub of hot water. Back on earth, when her body begged for relaxation, she would happily fill her jacuzzi to the brim, turn on the jets, and take a bubble bath as incense burned and surrounded her in a soothing aroma. Yet here she did not have that luxury. Instead, she stepped into the pool, sat down, and pulled her knees to her chest in a tight embrace. Her chin rested on her knees as she closed her eyes for a moment and allowed the steam from the water to engulf her into relaxation. Elliots thoughts drifted from one topic to another as she breathed slow deep breaths.

some weeks ago she had been venturing through the scorching heat of afghanistan, and then out of the blue her entire life flashed before her eyes as that building collapsed. she was done for, until HE came along. when she assumed all hope was lost, he had come and freed her. this alien had saved her life and for a moment she thought it was God who sent him to her. however, that all changed when he told her she was to be his slave. what she thought was God, was in fact the work of the devil. this man was the devil. after reading Dante's Inferno one year in english class, she now believed that she was in fact in the ninth circle of hell and now she waited for virgil to come guide her out. Elliot wondered how and why she ended up here, if maybe all the years of prayer didn't pay off or maybe God hated her for the things she had to do in the military. perhaps the deity was punishing her, but for what she did not know. she felt betrayed, like all the trust she put into someone was just thrown out the door. for her entire life she had known her God to be gentle and kind and that he would never send someone to hell when they believed in him. but why her? why was she sent to this hell with this devil? like everyone, she too has sinned but at the end of the day she had repented and asked for forgiveness. but was it enough? did she miss something? she hadn't been to church for sometime so perhaps that was it. no it couldn't be. when she couldn't make it to church she would spend her Sunday praying and worshipping the one that died for her sins. she just could not fathom the whys and hows.

When she first encountered the male he had mentioned honor. he had said something about humans having none, implying that HE had more honor than her species. the thought irked her. how could someone who claimed to have so much honor do such a bad thing. then it hit her. this man, this thing, he dressed the part as one that had honor but she knew….she KNEW that what honor he actually had was far below what he initially implied. in fact, she believed that he had NONE. what he thought was honor was just him being a badass, arrogant, sonofabitch. he may have a collection that tells of all the things he had seen and all the beasts he had slain, hell it probably showed the women he was the strongest and most worthy to mate, it even showed that if need be he was capable of protecting his mate and offspring. but in the end it did not prove that he had honor. if that was what honor looked like, then the yautjas version of honor was at low standards.

For almost an hour Elliot let her thoughts roam until she found herself dozing off. Every once in awhile she would catch her eyelids falling victim to gravity and she would snap them open wide to wake herself up. She had become to comfortable there, and as a result she was falling asleep. It wasn't until a knock on the door pulled her back to reality and she scrambled to get out of the tub. The knocking came again and she said, "one moment please!"

"My apologies, I was just coming to tell you the doctor is here." Luar-ke's voice came from behind the solid slab of wood.

Elliot scrambled to get dressed before she opened the door to be met by the larger female waiting to guide her to the living room. He hair still dripped with water and retained a curly yet messy look as she walked out of step next to the other.

As she entered, there sitting on the couch was Jehdin, the gentle doctor that helped her days ago. his eyes met hers and a smile formed on his face. he looked pleased that the female was actually walking without pain. Elliot returned his smile as she approached and sat in front of him. "Elliot, it's nice to see you again. i'm sorry i haven't been by earlier. things get pretty chaotic at the clinic."

Elliot waved her hand and said, "its ok. that gel helped a lot so thank you." her tone was soft and lacking in effort.

the other nodded and said "i'm pleased to hear that. now, what's going on today? luar-ke mentioned that you hurt your hand and need me to look at it."

Elliot looked at her hand before showing him. the wound wasn't bleeding anymore, thankfully, but it had swelled more. she winced as he took her hand and began inspecting it before looking at her with a questioning gaze. she knew exactly what he was about to ask and so she answered before he could speak. "i punched the wall." she declared as she cocked her head with sarcasm as if he should have known.

jehdin's eyes widened in shock. "why in the name of paya would you do that?" he questioned as he pulled out a container of the same gel from last time. She eyed him as he twisted the cap off and motioned for her hand.

"i got mad and needed to take my anger out on something." she stated as he applied the ointment. her fingers twitched at the sting that came next. when he was done he continued to look at her hand. it was almost completely purple and it had swelled to double the size of her other.

"well," he began, "it's broken, but it should heal so long as you DON'T go punching stone again." He then pulled out a brace and a wrap and said, "this will help it heal properly but you will have to elevate your hand so the swelling can go down."

Elliot nodded as he wrapped her hand tightly. the pressure and movements caused her hand to throb in pain but she soon grew accustomed to it after a moment. when he finished, Elliot lifted her hand to view his handy work, flexing her fingers to make sure they could still move. "how long till its healed?" she asked and Jehdin hesitated as he thought for a moment.

"should be a few weeks if you don't hurt it again." he replied and then began digging into a pouch. he pulled out a small container filled with capsules of some sort and handed them to Elliot who eyed them skeptically. "it's the birth control that i gave you. take one each morning to prevent yourself from getting pregnant if he continues to mate with you."

the thought made Elliots anger return. the way he used the word "mate" made it seem so sensitive when in fact he did not mate with her. he raped her. how was it so hard to see the difference in that? Elliot sighed in an attempt to calm herself as she took the pills. at least he was nice enough to help her not get knocked up. "thank you" she said and held her hand out for him to shake.

he looked at her questioningly before taking her hand and shaking it. the act felt strange but then again humans did some strange things. "not a problem. i only wish to help you if you need it." he said and stood before collecting his things. "well, if that is all then i should get back to my patients. have a good day, Elliot." he said as luar-ke escorted him to the door. Elliot watched the two click some words before finally separating.

"well that was fast." luar-ke voiced after closing the door. "now if you can make it through tonight without hurting yourself that will be great."

"tonight?" Elliot tilted her head to the side, not understanding what the other meant.

"oh thats right i forgot to tell you. tonight is the party and i need you to look good." she informed and Elliot tensed some before releasing a quiet sigh of disapproval.

"...God help me…" Elliot voiced to herself as she looked away from the other woman. this was going to be the worst night of her life and she honestly thought this would be more painful to sit through than when he had amputated her leg.