Chapter 9 - The "Calm" Before the Storm
Drag'lan didn't have a vision that night, but he did have a very disturbing dream.
Drag'lan was in the arena, fighting a Yautja. He was holding his own against it, with minimal damage being taken. Then he recognized the Yautja he was fighting and stopped going on the offense. He was fighting Fral. Her blows kept coming, and Drag'lan tried blocking them. He did well at fending off her blows until she extended her wrist-blades. She stabbed him square in the abdomen, driving them up under his ribcage. His blood poured out as she withdrew her blades. His vision faded to black soon after that...
Drag'lan woke up with a start. He looked around, his eyes adjusting to the darkness when he noticed that he was still in Fral's bed. Fral was facing him, her arms around him and purring in a very content way. This somewhat calmed him down. He tried to slide out from underneath her arms, but they increased their grip, and he felt one of her legs move next to him. He decided to let her win this round and closed his eyes, falling asleep again.
~
2 hours later
~
Fral woke up, seeing herself embracing Drag'lan as if in a hug. She quickly let go and got out of bed. She was really embarrassed at what she had done. She knew she felt strangely about Drag'lan, but nothing to this extent. She walked over to her closet and nearly tripped over something on her way. She looked down and saw Drag'lan's fatigues. She neatly folded them and set them at the foot of the bed. She returned to her closet and chose her clothing set for the day: a simple shirt with a matching skirt that went down to the middle of her thighs. She then left the room and walked into the kitchen. After last night, she was sure that Drag'lan would be hungry.
~
Drag'lan woke up to find himself in the bed alone. He slid to the edge of the bed and stood up. He stretched, feeling his muscles relax. He was so tense after last night.
He looked at the foot of the bed and saw his fatigues there. He slid them on and walked into the hall. He smelled something good when he walked out. It was almost sweet, but not really sweet. He walked towards the room that the smell emanated from and walked into the kitchen. Like Fral's ship, the kitchen wasn't very different from a normal human kitchen. He saw Fral cooking something.
Fral turned around and saw Drag'lan. She smiled at him and said "Have a nice sleep? I figure you want something to eat after what happened last night."
Drag'lan nodded and said "I am hungry. Not sure what you Yautja cook for breakfast, so surprise me...again."
Both of them laughed at this. Fral was cooking eggs of a large bird-like creature that was bred specifically to gather these eggs. Fral was also cooking the meat of a boar-like creature. She pulled out a few fruits that looked like plums.
She was nearly done when Drag'lan had walked in, so he turned towards the table. There were 2 plates with eating utensils on it. Fral took the pans holding the meat to the table and split the meat up as evenly as she could. They both sat down and started eating.
Fral noticed that they were eating in silence, and that didn't really surprise her, but something seemed off with Drag'lan.
She looked at Drag'lan and said "What's wrong?"
Drag'lan had been in his own thoughts when Fral asked him what was wrong. He had been thinking about the blur he had seen the previous night. He looked at her.
"What?" He asked. "Oh, it's nothing. I was just wishing I hadn't had to defend myself last night."
Fral nodded and said "Me, too. But you did what came naturally, and there is no way for you to change that."
Drag'lan nodded. He knew she was right, but that didn't change the way he felt about it.
Fral ate a bit more before saying "So, today is the start of your training for the Clan Rites."
Drag'lan nodded and said "Yep. I don't honestly think I need training. I already know my stuff. However, it wouldn't hurt to spar."
Fral nodded and said "I know you don't really need any training, but you need to see which group of initiates you'll be put in. Most likely, you'll be put into a more advanced group, knowing your abilities."
Drag'lan felt some pride at what she said. However, he had another question.
"How long do I have until I have until my first training session?" He asked.
"About 20 minutes, give or take a couple. You'll probably have to run the obstacle course to see your prowess." Fral said through chewing a piece of meat.
"Obstacle course?" Drag'lan said with a raised eyebrow.
"Oh, just a random set of obstacles that you'll have to run through to test your strength and endurance. You'll be timed, so speed is important. I can't tell what the obstacles will be however, as they change every now and then." Fral said.
"Nice. I THRIVE on unpredictability." Drag'lan said with a grin.
They finished their meal in silence. After the dishes were cleaned, the pair left and headed for the training grounds.
Drag'lan noticed the silence that fell as he walked by some of the Yautja. Apparently, word about what he had done in the dining hall had spread.
The pair entered the training grounds. Fral left Drag'lan's side and stood near the wall.
Drag'lan fell in with the batches of other new recruits, for lack of a better term. The instructor walked up and said "So, this is the group I have to cull? This is gonna be easy. Get ready to know hell intimately."
The instructor then gestured towards the course. "This is the first test you will face."
Within minutes, Drag'lan had read the obstacle course like a book, He knew he have to take hits, but he figured he'd clear it in 2 minutes at the most.
The instructor looked at their faces and saw some nervousness. All except for the one that was about 6in shorter than the shortest initiate there. His face was impossible to read.
Interesting… He thought. The Ooman is unreadable. Normally, they're the easiest to read. This one is special.
"So, who's gonna be the brave volunteer and take their chance at the course?" He asked, somewhat already knowing the first one.
Drag'lan stepped out of line and stood in front of the instructor.
I knew it. We might need a body bag... the instructor thought. But let's give him a shot at it. He might just be good at the course.
Drag'lan stepped to the starting line. He waited, standing straight. The instructor raised a stopwatch and said "Okay. Your target time to beat is 3 minutes. GO!"
At the signal, Drag'lan shot out. He was like a bullet, flying towards the first target: a 30ft rock wall. The wall had small ledges and hand-holds. The target of this obstacle was to test the climber's grip and persistence.
Drag'lan was about 10 feet away from the wall when he leaped at it. He cleared not only 10 ft in length, but got 7 feet cut off of the height he had to clear. He was right next to a ledge and grabbed onto it. He let most of his weight become dead and used the strength in his arms and chest to send himself up another 10 feet. He repeated this until he was at the top. He then simply jumped down to the ground.
Drag'lan bent his knees on impact in order to absorb most of the shock. He then started running towards the next area of the obstacle course: The sets of swinging bags.
This had been the place that he knew he would have to take hits. The bags came at him in three areas: his head, his abdomen and his feet. He assumed that they were more set up for Yautjan body structures, which led to the ones on his head and abdomen be more set up for a Yautja's chest and abdomen. He got hit by every other bag, but used the force of the blow to spin and dodge the next one. Once he had made it through, he ran and slid across a mud ditch before jumping up onto the dirt again. He made a grab at a rope and starting climbing up. He hit the top and saw two ways of getting to the finish line: A) Zip line or B) ramp. Drag'lan chose the ramp, as the incline allowed for increased speed. He went shooting past the finish mark, skidding to a halt about an inch from crashing into the wall of a building.
The instructor looked at the stopwatch, blinked a bit, and his eyes widened. "I don't believe it. Your target time was 3 minutes, but your actual time: 1 minute 20 seconds! Aside from the Slayer, no Ooman has completed this course to my knowledge, much less beating a Yautja."
Drag'lan smirked. "Well, one learns fast that speed and endurance are essential for survival. If you don't have those, you die. Simple as that." He said.
~
Fral had watched as Drag'lan ran the course. She couldn't help but marvel at how fast he moved through it. She had heard of only one person move through it faster than him. She had heard of Alaric the Slayer. She had heard that he had completed the course in only 30 seconds. She wondered what would have happened had Drag'lan finished the course even faster.
An odd silence had fallen over the training grounds. Everybody that had been talking before Drag'lan had run the obstacle course fell silent as they saw him run it. The males couldn't stop their jaws from dropping. Many of them hadn't seen anything quite like what Drag'lan had done.
The females were a different story, however. Many of them, like the males, hadn't seen a performance like Drag'lan's, unless they had seen Alaric the Slayers. However, their actions differed from the males as the females started panting slightly. Fral was included in this, but she didn't care; It would be nearly impossible for anyone to tell that she was in with the group's actions.
Drag'lan walked back to the line with the other, fully aware that all eyes were on him. This time he didn't mind. He just laughed in his mind.
Hopefully they finally see my abilities. He thought.
One of the larger initiates, the top student in fact, had watched Drag'lan run the obstacle course. He had been second since Syl'vex had gotten his skull pretty much fractured by Alaric. His fastest time had been 2 minutes flat. Once he had effectively been declared beaten, he somewhat glared at Drag'lan. He stood up and started walking towards him, intent on vengeance.
Drag'lan both heard and felt the heavy footfalls approaching him. He turned to face whoever was walking towards him and saw a Yautja that was about 7ft 8in and pretty dang balanced for muscle.
The Yautja looked at Drag'lan in the eyes, and Drag'lan saw the fire behind the Yautja's eye. Thus, he knew what action the Yautja would take before it even started. Before the Yautja could raise his fist too high, Drag'lan had already charged up a haymaker blow and sent it into the side of the initiate.
His victim fell to the ground, winded, but otherwise unharmed. Drag'lan had wanted this. This was because he didn't want to be responsible for any permanent damage to the Yautja. Drag'lan backed up about 10 steps as the initiate got up. He was still intent on vengeance, and pulled out a combi-stave. He extended it and charged at Drag'lan, raising it.
Son of a... Drag'lan thought. Looks like he'll need to be taught why not to attack me like this the hard way.
The initiate swung the stave at Drag'lan's head, but the staff met Drag'lan's arms before it could impact his head. He had used the same tactic as he had done when blocking Fral's swing in their sparring match: Using his forearms to block the swing. The staff bounced off, stunning the attacker for a couple of seconds.
That was all Drag'lan needed. He grabbed a hold of the combi-stave and twisted, watching as the initiate's grip was broken. Drag'lan then pulled the stave towards himself and swung it low, sweeping the Yautja's legs out from underneath them. He backed up, holding the stave behind his back at the ready, in case he needed to defend himself again.
The initiate returned to his feet and looked at Drag'lan with hatred. Drag'lan read his opponent like a book again, knowing what action he would take. As Drag'lan had predicted, the initiate charged at Drag'lan. Drag'lan watched as the initiate approached and abruptly swung the stave. There was a loud crack as metal connected with the bone of the initiate's head, sending him face-first to the ground, where he stayed, knocked clean out.
The instructor looked at this turn of events with wide eyes. Drag'lan had just taken down the top student after Syl'vex without even batting an eye! What WAS this guy? The instructor then stepped in and said "That is enough. You, and you," He pointed to two of the new recruits. "Take him to the infirmary. And you," He looked at Drag'lan, "I can tell that you have more skill than these others. There is nothing I can teach you. I will put word in for you to be advanced into a higher-level group. You may take today off to rest or observe. It's your choice."
Drag'lan set the combi-stave down on the ground and got back into the line. He felt a hand on his shoulder. He also heard someone whisper "That is a good way to bring someone down. You're going to make a great hunter."
Drag'lan turned around and saw Fral there. She had a look of joy in her eyes.
Drag'lan said "Yes, it is. I honestly wish it hadn't had to come to that, though. Also, you enjoyed the sight of me running the obstacle course didn't you? I heard panting in the background."
How did he know? Fral thought. Does he just have that honed of instincts?
"I couldn't help it. Your movements show such grace." Fral said.
Drag'lan laughed a bit and said "Well, I do that inadvertently. Something I get from my mother. Well, anyway, let's head back home. There's nothing left for me to do here."
Fral nodded and Drag'lan saw even more joy in her eyes. He was now one step closer to joining her clan.
They both went back to Fral's house. Time had flown apparently, because it was already mid-day. Fral walked into the kitchen, most likely to cook up lunch, so Drag'lan stayed in the living area. He pulled out Regoll. He then pulled out the box of whetstones and retrieved the finest-grain stone from the box.
Regoll was the first target for sharpening. His swords needed sharpening every day. It was as if they grew dull as the day wore on. He had just finished sharpening Regoll when he heard footsteps. He looked up to see Fral looking at him.
"I might need assistance with lunch." She said "It's a creature I haven't cooked before."
Drag'lan set Regoll down and stood up. "Okay. Let's see what you've got."
Drag'lan followed her into the kitchen. On the counter was the creature Fral was talking about. The creature she was speaking of was covered from head to tail in a segmented shell. He had seen this kind of creature before.
"Looks like you've got yourself a Pygmy Anklyosaur. I know why you haven't cooked with it. Watch this." Drag'lan said as he walked to the counter, drawing his secondary combat knife.
He hit the creature all over the body, but his knife kept bouncing off.
"Okay. Now that you've seen what I meant by 'I know why you haven't cooked with it.' Now watch this."
Drag'lan then felt along the plates until he found what he was looking for: The very thin gap between the 2 plates that met at the base of its neck. He slid his knife into the gap until it lodged.
"If I'm right, then once I hit the butt of the knife, the plate the knife is under should go flying off." Drag'lan said.
Without any warning, he hit the knife. The plate popped off with a thump and went flying into the air. He caught it and set it down on the table. "Come take a look at this." he said.
Fral walked up to him and looked at the inner part of the shell. Within the shell was a honeycomb network of bone in alignment with the animal's spine.
"That explains why whoever caught it had to shoot it in the head with their plasma caster. That bone must absorb the shock of impacts." She said.
Drag'lan nodded and said "Also explains why my blades did little damage. I've run into one of these before, but it was larger. Tore through one of the walls at the USCMC compound I was in. Everyone fired at it, but the bullets kept bouncing off. Then I hit it in the one place where It didn't have armor: Its eye. Man, was there a mess. I had hit it with my pistol."
"Either way, there's one plate down. The rest should be easy." He said, sheathing his combat knife. "Just use the tactic I had used and it should be done in no time."
He walked back into the living room and pulled out Toxin. He sharpened it just like he had Regoll.
He had just finished sharpening Toxin when Fral called him, saying lunch was ready. Drag'lan got up and walked into the kitchen. He saw that Fral was using the Anklyosaur's bone plates as makeshift serving plates. They were cleaned of all bone, which was good.
The meal was very tasty, which wasn't surprising one bit. They ate in silence, which was unnerving; Normally they would be chatting. Afterwords, Drag'lan suggested that they spar for a bit. Fral agreed and they walked out.
The pair walked quite a distance to a grassy field. They bowed to each other after reaching a reasonable distance apart. They then entered their combat stances. Once the signal was given to start, they charged at each other. Drag'lan decided to match Fral's speed this time, forcing her to fight him head-on as opposed to being able to out-maneuver him.
The pair were evenly matched, and Drag'lan won the first round, but called for a rematch. They repeated this for a few hours. During one match, Drag'lan felt the same sensation that he had at the dining hall; He felt like he was being watched. He glanced around, searching for the cause, and that action would cause his defeat.
Fral noticed that his attention was focused elsewhere, and decided to tackle him. Drag'lan was caught off-guard, which allowed Fral to pin him. He yielded, not affected by the loss. The pair got up and bowed to each 'lan then resumed his search of the surroundings. He caught the same blurred form. The form disappeared just as fast as it had last time, leaving Drag'lan uneasy.
Okay, two times in two days...not a coincidence He thought. Something is in motion...
Fral looked at Drag'lan, knowing something was wrong. She walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder. "What's wrong. I can tell something is wrong."
"Oh, it's nothing." Drag'lan replied. "Thought I saw something. My eyes are playing tricks on me."
The pair then started walking home. They chatted slightly while walking, but Drag'lan never brought up the blur he had now seen twice, as he didn't want to cause Fral to worry.
By the time they arrived at Fral's house, it was about time for dinner. Since Fral hadn't used all of the Anklyosaur meat, she cooked the leftovers. Drag'lan, not wanting to end up getting in the way, walked to the living room to finish what he had started. He picked up Physique and sharpened it. He then moved onto Ethereal. After he was finished, he walked into the bathroom.
When he walked into the bathroom, he walked to the sink and rubbed cold water over his face. he then held his hands there for a few seconds before lowering them. He looked into the mirror at his face. He wondered what was going on with him.
I feel really odd whenever I'm around Fral, He thought. Why is that...wait...No. It CAN'T be that...
Can't be what? The voice of his father said.
It can't be that I'm interested in Fral. Drag'lan thought.
And why can't that be? His father asked.
Because we're two different species He thought. It wouldn't work out.
Your mother was part Yautja, so how could you and Fral not work? His father replied.
Wait a bit...back up...You KNEW my mother was part Yautja? He asked his father.
Not in life, but when I died, I met your Yautja ancestor, and found out your mother's heritage. His father replied.
So, you're sure that if Fral and I end up together, that we'll work? Drag'lan asked.
Yes, I do. But that begs the question, how will you proceed with this information? His father said.
Well, I plan on holding it secret until I'm sure that Fral is interested in me as well. Drag'lan said.
Wise decision, but I believe she is interested in you. It is shown through her actions and her emotions when around you. His father replied.
And with that, Drag'lan's father retreated from his mind once again.
Drag'lan came back to reality with a pair of arms over his shoulders and a pair of breasts, clothed but still breasts nonetheless, resting against his back. He then heard someone whisper "Dinner is ready."
Drag'lan heard her step back and said "Okay, I'll be out in a bit."
Fral left and Drag'lan stood there, shocked. How had she been able to sneak up on him!
Ehh, whatever. Drag'lan thought. Shit happens
Drag'lan walked out of the bathroom and headed into the kitchen. Fral was already setting the table. The meal smelled exquisite. He sat down at the table next to Fral and started eating. Fral noticed that Drag'lan's mind was elsewhere and decided to push the issue she had seen in the field.
"Drag'lan, what's wrong? You seem...distant." She asked.
Drag'lan looked at her. He might as well say it now. "When you tackled me in the field when we were sparring, something made me uneasy. When we had gone out with your family, I felt as if I was being watched, and the same feeling presented itself. I had seen a blur then, and I could've sworn I had seen a blur when we last sparred. I believe someone or something is watching me."
Fral looked at him with wide eyes. She hadn't expected something like this to come up.
"Drag, why didn't you bring this up earlier? I could have helped you." She said.
"I didn't want to worry you. Besides," He said. "This is my problem. I prefer to deal with my problems on my own."
"That isn't the way hunters normally work. Sure, they work alone, but will accept help when it is needed, and I think you need as much help as you can get." She said.
"That may be, but I plan on mixing Regollen traditions with Yautjan ones as well. Regollen Brutes, which is the type I stem from, often work alone. Their strike teams are 3-man groups with 5-man squads. I also work better alone to a point, as it reduces the the chances of friendly fire." He replied.
"Either way, we need to take out this person watching you. It wouldn't do to have you die before you join the clan." She said.
"Yes, it wouldn't. However, if they attack, stay out of it. I fight my battles alone unless otherwise needed." Drag'lan said, serious.
Fral nodded. "Okay." She said.
~
The next day
~
Fral woke up the next morning with Drag'lan missing from the bed. She got dressed quickly and walked into the bathroom. Upon not finding him there, she walked into the living room. He wasn't there, and his harness wasn't there either. She walked outside.
It was nearly pitch-black. She could barely make out Drag'lan's shape in the darkness. He was holding a sword with glowing jade-green runes on it. The glow was so bright that she could see his face. It looked as determined as ever. As she watched, Drag'lan began swinging the blade in large arcs, the runes leaving faint green trails in the darkness. His swings were graceful as could be.
She continued watching, shocked. How could he swing such a large blade with such grace?
Drag'lan continued swinging his blade, removing one hand from it and drawing his other great-sword, not breaking the swing and began to swing his other great-sword with the same amount of grace. He then started speeding up, creating what looked like great trails of green in the swords' wake.
Fral couldn't stop her jaw from dropping. HOW can he do that!
Drag'lan eventually slowed down, and eventually stopped entirely. The environment was getting lighter. Fral thought that the planet was slowly beginning to start this areas cycle of day.
Drag'lan just stood there breathing deeply for a bit, just staring forward, before noticing that he was being watched. He turned to Fral and smiled.
"Did you enjoy that little show I put on for you?" He asked.
Fral regained her composure and said "Not intentionally. How can you swing such large blades with such skill!"
Drag'lan shrugged. "I don't know. It just comes naturally to me." He said.
Fral looked at him and said "You wanna come back inside? You'll need to have all your energy today."
Drag'lan nodded. "Right. Let's head back inside. I don't wanna stay in the dark too long, even though I feel more at home here in the darkness."
Fral looked at him, confused. "Why do you feel at home in the darkness?"
Drag'lan shrugged "It just feels more natural for me to be in darkness than light."
"Well, either way, it will be better if you come back inside. You don't want to give the person watching you more information, right?"
"Right." Drag'lan said.
The pair headed inside. Fral walked into the kitchen, going to prepare breakfast. Drag'lan sat on the couch. He leaned back, wondering what would go on during the day.