Yay! A quick update! Thank you for the reviews and the new follows! There's only one more chapter after this one so I hope everyone has enjoyed my story as much as I've enjoyed writing it. You guys are the best and like I said, there is a sequel! So once I get the last chapter to Devotion posted, I won't waste time in getting the sequel's first chapter posted.
Thank you for choosing Devotion!
*Disclaimer: I do not own Predator, Alien or any character pertaining to the AVP franchise!*
Dae'er paced back and forth beside the Yautja trying to break through the pod's control panel. He'd been at it for a few hours and hadn't made any progress. Dae'er was no closer to finding No'elia than this male was to getting the coordinates. His anger flared up and he drove his fist into a nearby panel.
"What is taking so long?!" He snarled and the male flinched from his aggression towards him.
"I'm trying my best, sire, it's just, whoever overrode the code has buried the coordinates so deep into the system that I have to literally sort through thousands of numbers. I'll be honest, Prince Dae'er, when I do make it through the codes, the coordinates will only be partials. The hacker has shredded everything in the system and its been feeding me partials since I started." The male said as Dae'er watched the numbers on the device the male had hooked up to the control panel roll through numbers.
"Define partial." He growled.
"It'll only be half of a set, sire, the quadrant and perhaps the galaxy if we're lucky." The male replied as he wrote down every other set of numbers.
He'd scour every planet in this universe to find No'elia then he'd wring the neck of whoever did this to her. Dae'er looked up to see one of the medical Yautja heading his way. He greeted Dae'er then pulled up a hologram of what he had found.
"The cause of thei-de for the ooman companion was suicide." Dae'er huffed as he watched the hologram reenact the lou-dte kale ooman's death. "The dagger was gripped in both hands then stabbed repeatedly into her abdomen. She died from internal bleeding." The medical Yautja said as the hologram repeated its show.
"The thwei belonged only to the dead ooman lou-dte kale?" Dae'er asked.
"Sei-i, your majesty, none of the thwei belonged to the ju'ha." The male's words were a relief but it still didn't explain why any of what happened, happened.
"Do you know why she took her own life?" Dae'er asked, hoping the medical worker could shed some light on anything.
"H-ko, I do not but from my experience with ooman companions, losing the n'yaka-de is traumatizing for the companions. They become unstable and emotionally compromised. Most end up like our current issue while others are so belligerent, they end up being euthanized anyway." The male turned off the hologram. "I can't stop a n'yaka-de from passing on his companion but I can recommend that it not be done. If you desire information, I'd start by confronting her current n'yaka-de. If anyone knows about a change in her behavior, it's the new n'yaka-de."
Dae'er mulled it over. There was no way in hell he'd ask Talia for anything. She probably wouldn't even answer his questions and his mei-hswei was long gone. He didn't have a choice though, if the lou-dte kale ooman companion had anything to do with Noelia's disappearance or the pod then it was imperative that he knew of it.
"Thank you. If I have any questions I'll send for you." Dae'er said as the worker bowed then dispersed.
He watched the engineer for a moment then headed for Talia's dwellings. He prayed to Paya he didn't regret this. Talia lived amongst several other aristocratic lou-dte kale. The entire wing was full of them and right now, they all peeked outside their doorways, watching him storm his way to Talia's.
He approached the door and tried the keypad, he wasn't surprised when it opened for him. He hoped Talia hadn't already headed back for the citadel as he entered the front room of her dwellings. The putrid h'dui'se of fragrances were stinging his senses as soon as he stepped foot in the home.
He looked around and heard her humming in one of the rooms. He glanced around, looking for any indication that her lou-dte kale ooman companion spent any time in here.
"Prince Dae'er." Her voice said as he turned to see her barely covered.
He chuffed and growled, a sign that he didn't like her blatant lack of coverings. She didn't seem to care about his warning as she swaggered over and leaned against a table, causing her breasts to protrude outwards. He kept his deknas stern and away from her.
"Have you come to apologize?" She asked.
"H-ko, any actions I've had towards you will never be regrettable." He snarled.
"Is that so? I wish I could say I felt the same about my actions towards you." She purred out with a seductive tone, her desperate stench permeated the room worse than her wretched perfume.
"I'm not here to listen to your endless worthless prattle, Talia, I desire information on your ooman companion." He said firmly.
She clicked her tusks together and crossed her arms. "She was always afraid, always crying and sniveling. She was just a waste of space. I feel sorry for Cetanu." She said as she swayed over to a rack that held different flavors of c'nlip and poured herself some in a chalice.
"She didn't change dramatically or become l'ulij-bpe?" Dae'er asked.
"H-ko, like I just said, she was constantly depressed. Cjit, I even avoided her because her quiet crying was so annoying. If anyone knows of any changes, it'd be your mei-hswei." Talia said as she threw back her head and chugged down the contents of the c'nlip.
"My mei-hswei has problems of his own at the moment, they should be your problems as well but it seems you're as carefree as the wind through the trees." Dae'er said as he headed for the door.
Talia quickly moved in front of him, blocking his path and he let out a low steady growl. He didn't feel like dealing with an intoxicated Talia especially not alone. He stepped forward to shove past her and she placed those clammy hands on his chest to keep him from going forward. He looked down at her with a death threat in his deknas.
"Why don't you stay for a little while? Some things about the little ooman are beginning to come to mind." She taunted at him.
He pushed her hands off his chest. "H-ko." He said as he tried to get by, only to be stopped again.
He'd had enough of this desperate lou-dte kale and he roared as he shoved her against the door violently. "You've tested my patience once already today and I won't hesitate to end you here and now. There isn't hard evidence yet but I doubt that you didn't have a hand in my mates disappearance. If you desire h'chak, you will speak of what you know." He said as he pressed his forearm harder against her collarbone, the bones began to cave against his pressure.
She was hissing and whining in pain and her hands were trying to shove him away. He wasn't going to let her go though, not until her collarbone snapped or she told him what she was withholding. He shoved a little harder and she let out a high pitched wail. He couldn't kill her, it was considered dishonorable and he'd end up like his mei-hswei but there was nothing about maiming her.
"I'll tell you!" She cried out and he eased off slightly. "She used to spend a lot of time in my father's library before he died and before they cleared it out, she took a few books." She spoke quickly and with panic.
"What do books have to do with anything?" He asked.
"You questioned whether or not her behavior changed and it did. She used to read them from time to time but after the hunt at the game preserve, she began to write in them. Day and night she'd be scribbling in those books. I thought she was just being an ignorant ooman, I didn't know it was cause for concern." She explained and Dae'er eased up off her chest.
She huffed and straightened herself up trying to compose herself. She sucked in hard breaths and whimpered but he couldn't care less about hurting her. He wanted those books.
"Where are they?" He asked and she nodded towards a leather satchel sitting on the table between the couches.
He walked over and picked up the bag. Inside were several books, one thick one, a few thin ones and a leather bound one. He pulled out one of the thin ones and it was a guide for the Yautja honor code. Interesting. He set it on the table and pulled out the thick one. His heart raced as he read the words on the cover.
It was a manual for the supply pods. He tucked the bag under his arm and opened the book. She had written all over the pages. Every single blank space was filled in with poor drawings of her master and tons of words written in Yautja and her racial language. She had written part of the sentences in Yautja and the other parts in ooman. He saw No'elia's ooman name several times. He couldn't believe what he was reading and he found it even more difficult to believe that No'elia trusted this person.
Her writings were filled with jealousy, rage, hatred and loathing for No'elia. She'd write down what they had discussed and then added reasons as to why she hated her. From him training No'elia, to what she was wearing that day, just pages and pages of how this ooman despised his mate. It saddened and angered him at the same time.
No'elia trusted this piece of rubbish and it seemed the more she put her faith into the female the more she loathed No'elia. He wanted to rip it to shreds, burn it and bury it and pray to Paya that No'elia never laid deknas on it but it was the only hope he had of figuring out where his beloved was.
There were several pages that had bent corners, markers for sections the companion wanted to find again. Talia was looming over him, her presence annoying him more and more. She must've read what he was as she huffed and went over to get a freeze pack for her chest.
"It seems I'm not the only one envious of what your new mate has received." She said as she popped the seal on the pack and laid it against her shoulder. "At least I wasn't afraid to admit it. Scribbling about it in a book?" She huffed again. "S'yuitde."
Dae'er ignored her as he continued to check each folded page, looking for some clue or hint of what she had done to No'elia. Talia walked over and picked up the book he had laid down first and began to flip through the pages.
"Paya, she wrote in this one too. What a deranged little creature." Talia said as she dropped the book back on the table and sat back on the couch indolently.
Dae'er picked up the book and looked through it. More scribbles and useless information. He quickly pulled out more and more books, looking through them for help. When he pulled out the leather bound one, he paused. It was her master's diary, a record of his younger days and feats. It would be disrespectful to open it and read it but he had to if he wanted to find No'elia.
He opened the diary and saw dried ooman thwei over every page. It was even more unsettling than the others. Hand prints, hair and some looked as if they had gotten wet at some point as they were crinkled and wavy. He turned to a page that was separated from the others and he barely got a glimpse of what looked like a small th'syra smashed into the page before it crumbled and fell to the floor. What in Paya was going on?
He read the page where the skull was and it was the most terrifying story he had ever laid eyes on. Apparently him and No'elia and the other females weren't the first to try out Pilo's experiment. The female ooman had conceived multiple times, the th'syra that was now dust on Talia's floor was the last attempt and the best. According to the diary, Seleana had lost twelve pups and eventually was rendered unable to carry the pups anymore so they gave up.
Apparently, the Ancient cared for the female more than he led on. The diary was full of entries of her and how he kept his forbidden admiration for her secret. That explained her jealousy for No'elia, over five hundred years of being with her master and not once had he defended her honor. Then No'elia comes along and Dae'er set her on a pedestal. It must've done quite a number on Seleana, to be told they had to keep quiet of their hearts fondness for one another but then watch as Dae'er and No'elia's was flaunted about.
It was tragic, he had to admit and it was obvious the female companion had done something to the pods. Dae'er imagined she had fooled No'elia into following her, why would she expect deception? She probably cared for Selena as much as she does for him. She probably convinced or shoved No'elia into the supply pod then corrupted the code and sent her off into the universe somewhere.
He got to the back of the diary and his assumption was confirmed when he saw familiar drawings of the pod and several lines of inputs for the control panel. He ripped out the pages of code and planned on taking it to the engineer in hopes he could decipher it.
"Well, why'd the ignorant zabin off herself?" Talia asked as she watched Dae'er shove the books back into the bag.
"She missed your sire." Dae'er replied honestly.
"That makes two of us." Talia said as she stood up when she saw Dae'er going for the door. "Where are you going?" She questioned. "And what do I do with the books?"
"I need to get these to the engineer and burn them. Burn every one of them. They're useless now." Dae'er replied as the door closed behind him.
He still disliked Talia and he wished she would've just cooperated and told him about the books to begin with. He practically had to strangle the information out of her. Thinking about how he almost ended up with her made him appreciate No'elia even more and how respectful she was towards him. She'd never withhold such important information from anyone if it meant saving a life.
His heart sank a little more as he longed for No'elia. Lack of hearing her gentle voice and feeling her soft warm body was like missing limbs, he just couldn't function well without them. Once he found her, he'd never leave her alone again, ever.
His only concern at the moment was that she could be light years away. Time on almost every planet was different. While she had only been missing for several hours here, time could be flying by slowly somewhere else. He thought of No'elia sitting on a planet, watching days, weeks, months maybe, just crawling by, while she waited for him to find her. He gripped the papers in his fist and hoped that she hadn't driven herself mad being without him like the other female companion had.
Dae'er approached the engineer and he stood up abruptly from his crouch, looking like he had news. "My liege! I've managed to get the partials for her location and I've overrode the return command. We can alert the carrier to return to the citadel but there's no guarantee she will be in it." His face went from excited to solemn as he spoke but, Dae'er had hopes, high hopes.
"Do it." He said as he unfolded the papers and held them out to him. "I managed to locate the codes used to hack the supply pods control panel." The male took them and skimmed over the Yautja writing.
"Paya..this." He paused as he looked over it some more. "I've never seen such well made codes. I've got the reputation to prove my skills in engineering but this, this exceeds anything I've ever laid deknas on. Whoever wrote this.." He began but Dae'er had heard enough of No'elia's deceptive friend.
"She's dead and let's stay focused on the here and now." Dae'er said sternly and the male nodded.
"Sei-i, forgive me. I'll put in the command for return then try to restore the control panel to its original state with these codes." The male said as he held up the papers and turned to immediately start working.
The control panel let out a loud alarm sound then a red light began to blink. The male put in more code via the item he had hooked up earlier to the control panel and the red light blinked faster.
"I've increased its speed. I can't determine the eta though, as where it is is still unknown. It could be here in five minutes or five hours." The engineer said as he went to work with the codes he gave them from the diary.
"What of the codes? How long do you think it will be until you determine its location?" Dae'er asked as he loomed over the male, anxious to see what he was doing.
"Not too long, whoever wrote this was good but I'm good as well." He boasted as he punched in numbers and the panel chirped. The male picked up the device he was using to gather codes and watched it for a moment. "We've got the first coordinate your highness." He said as he immediately wrote down the number.
He handed the glass tablet to Dae'er and he practically snatched it from his hand he was so eager to find No'elia. Coordinates for ships and supply carriers worked the same, the first set of numbers and letters ranged from one to the thousands. Anything less than five hundred meant it was really old, five hundred to a thousand meant somewhat new. A first coordinate with a lot of letters instead of numbers indicated the planet had a low population and vice versa.
The second and third set, which Dae'er lacked, were the most important. The second set was the galaxy and quadrant and the third set was the number of the planet. Yautja Prime's coordinates are: 215.j6754, 523-4, 7563d. The numbers could be incredibly long, especially with a new planet. Yautja prime's coordinates is considered one of the shortest ones in existence.
As Dae'er looked at the first set of the coordinates, he knew the planet was fairly new and overpopulated. Some planets immediately came to mind but he couldn't just spring into action and check them. Without a quadrant or at least a planet number, he'd be wasting his time. He also didn't want to leave in case No'elia arrived in the supply pod.
He handed the tablet back to the engineer and he immediately began to scribble on it. "The next code is a little more tricky. It might not make sense but shorter numbers tend to take longer to solve as the system likes to start at the top and work itself down." The engineer explained.
"Why is that?" Dae'er asked, a little perturbed he couldn't fix the problem.
"Well, if you think about it, there are millions and millions of planets, new planets everyday which means new coordinates. As a new planet comes into existence the system creates a new set of numbers. It's basically going from newest to oldest because the newest was what the system most recently read." The engineer explained.
"Sei-i, the planet No'elia's on is fairly new so perhaps it won't take as long." Dae'er stated.
"Unless it's a planet that was born recently but in an old Galaxy and quadrant. In which case, it could take quite a while." The males words had Dae'er's anger flaring up again.
He was always so pessimistic, it was bothering Dae'er beyond belief. Why couldn't he just let Dae'er enjoy the hope of No'elia being returned to him sooner than later? He had no choice but to deal with him, he was the best engineer Yautja Prime had. If he requested someone else, they could take twice as long and that's twice as long in finding his mate. He'd have to just find patience around the male, the patience to not rip his head off.
"My liege." His servants voice distracted his daydream of beheading the engineer and had him turning on his heel. The servant lowered his shoulders to show obedience and Dae'er nodded at him to continue. "Your sire has requested your attention. He's waiting in your dwellings."
Dae'er looked back at the engineer and he seemed hard at work with the diary entries. He stared at the little red blinking light over the empty hole where the supply pod would go. He really didn't want to leave this spot unless it was to retrieve No'elia. He growled out of aggravation. What could his sire possibly want?
"I'll be back. Notify me immediately if anything changes." He instructed and the engineer nodded at him.
He stormed passed his servant and the small male fast walked behind him to keep up. His father had already increased the cursed day Dae'er was experiencing, what else could he possibly have to say.
He entered his dwellings and a thought occurred to him. He turned to his servant and pointed back down the hall. "Go to the engineer and wait there. Watch him and if anything happens, alert me." His servant nodded then took off in a run back down the hall.
His sire was seated on the couch and was sipping c'nlip from a chalice. When he saw Dae'er enter the room he set his cup down and stood abruptly.
"My son, have you found No'elia yet?" He asked with a look of sincerity in his eyes.
"The engineer is still working on getting the coordinates from the supply carrier." He explained.
His tusks loosened and a look of sadness came over him as he sat back down. It was difficult for Dae'er to see his father so emotional lately. All his life his father had been a stern calloused sain'ja but now, he acted as if it was his own mate that was missing.
He knew his father cherished No'elia like his own kin but he'd never thought he'd see his father so concerned for her. Especially after he had thrown her into the game preserve. He was pretty lenient when it came to situations dealing with her though, like the mating and the training and also how he flaunted her around like she wasn't a companion or ooman at all.
Dae'er knew it was because No'elia reminded his sire of his long lost ooman but to be this sad for No'elia..it was a bit alarming. Dae'er walked over and peered into his father's chalice. It was still relatively full, so he wasn't intoxicated. He stepped back from his sire and watched attentively as he buried his face in his palms and rubbed his temples.
"What is wrong with you?" Dae'er questioned suspiciously.
His father looked up at him and shook his head. "Nothing Dae'er, it's just with your brother and now your mate, it is all very overwhelming on an old soul like mine." He replied.
Dae'er stepped back further and nearly tripped from being startled. His father had just admitted his frailty? Just like that? No torture or persuasion, just announced it before Dae'er like it wasn't a big deal.
He stared at his father, still in shock of what he admitted. Yautja Warriors, especially the King, never admit their weaknesses nor show it for that matter. To hear his father say it and look it meant only one thing..
"H-ko, you aren't putting this on my shoulders right now! I've got too much as it is!" Dae'er barked.
His father's colorful bands shined as he stood up slowly from his seat again. His tresses slowly cascading over his shoulders as he stiffened them, standing up tall. He approached Dae'er and laid a hand upon his shoulder firmly then he looked him in the eyes.
"I can not lead our people any longer. It is time for.." His father began but Dae'er wouldn't hear it.
"H-ko! It is I who can not lead!" Dae'er shouted as he knocked his father's arm from his shoulder and turned away. "You must wait until Jae'dar returns." He said more calmly.
"I saw in your deknas that you know what I must do, what I've known for the past month." His father said and Dae'er snarled and moved further from his father, not daring to even glance back at him. "Look at me, son! My heart is heavy for the loss of my first born and your missing mate. A heart this easily moved can not lead our kind, they need a firm hand and it pains me to say that mine is no longer steady."
Dae'er couldn't do this, not now, not with his pup heavy mate missing. He couldn't make kingly decisions when he had his own troubles to worry about. He didn't have the training or the experience like Jae'dar had from the time he was born. He was being tossed into the fire, covered in fuel, destined to burn alive.
"I can't do it, father, I've been taught and raised to fight, not lead." Dae'er said as he still kept his eyes away from his father.
"You are a natural born leader. I saw it the moment your mother birthed you and you were put into my claws." His father said as he approached Dae'er from behind. "You were small and frail but you looked up at me with the fire of a hardened sain'ja and the color to prove it."
Dae'er turned to look at his father, interested in what he had to say. He had never heard the story of his birth nor of his mother. He never got to see his mother as she greeted Cetanu on the day of his birth. He had only seen images of her and his father still had her image all over the citadel. So she was gone but never forgotten and hearing his father speak of the last memory of her, well, Dae'er had to at least look at the male.
His father turned his tusks up into an Yautja smile. "The feel of your heart against my palms, strong and vibrant so full of life! It was the heart of a king." His father opened his hand wide then closed it into a fist to lay it across his chest. "When your mother left to join Cetanu and Paya, the Ancients were all moved, for only strong, prodigal warriors are born at the death of their mother. It was whispers amongst the loud, that you should've been my heir, but the laws were as strong as you were. Hearing of Jae'dar's natural cause for being outcasted was a hardship for me but it also seems Paya has set your path in the right direction." His father said as he approached Dae'er and lifted his hand up.
"She has been watching over you, gave you precious gifts like your ooman mate and pup, held your life above all others just so you could be where you are now, my son." His father placed the First Born medallion in Dae'er's palm and closed his fingers around the warm metal, heated by his father's hands.
His sire's words were inspirational. Paya, choosing his fate from the day he was born, the death of his mother, a sign that he was supposed to be where he was now but he couldn't help but to wonder why Jae'dar had to suffer and why No'elia had to be taken from him. Was this Paya's plan as well and if it was, what did it mean?
He tightened his hand around the medallion, clutching it firmly, showing he was accepting his new position. If it was true that he was chosen by a deity to lead, then there was no way he could fail. He wasn't just accepting the role of First Born and heir, but as it stood, his father was also stepping down from the throne. After today, Dae'er would be king, No'elia Queen and their pup would be the next heir to the throne.
They were changing history, never had a First Born been found guilty of anything. Never had an ooman had power such as No'elia's, over Yautja and never had an ooman born pup be destined to rule over Yautja.
Dae'er looked at his father and he nodded at him. "I accept your role, sire. I'll lead our kind to the best of my ability and if Paya is truly watching over me, then my ability will be even greater." Dae'er said as he bowed to his father.
"H-ko, it is I who should bow to you." His father said as he dropped to one knee and bowed to Dae'er, a sight he never thought he would see, not in a million years.
"What happens now?" Dae'er asked.
"I've already notified the Ancients of my resignation. I've declared you my heir and I've already signed the proclamation. A coronation will be held for you as soon as you find No'elia of course. After that, you will pick up where I left off." His father said as he stood and sat back down in the chair, continuing to sip his c'nlip.
"What of you? What will become of you?" Dae'er questioned.
"The same thing that happens to all old kings, I'll join the Ancients when I'm ready but until then I think I'll lavish that new pup of yours." He said as he trilled softly and relaxed into the chair more.
Dae'er enjoyed hearing his father speak of his pup so highly. His sire cared about it and the gender was still unknown. He placed the medallion around his neck and the sound of the door opening drew his attention.
His servant was out of breath as he panted out his news. "The pod, it's arrived!" He exclaimed and Dae'er bolted out of his dwellings.
The only thought on his mind as he ran was of No'elia. Was she in there? Was she injured? Perhaps the journey was too much for her and she had moved on to battle Cetanu. That thought had him moving faster, zooming by people as they watched him go.
The engineer was securing the pods arrival when Dae'er approached the port. He immediately went to the window and what he saw wasn't his beloved. The engineer opened the pod door and its new passenger scrambled to the back of the pod and stared at Dae'er like he was Cetanu himself.
"Where am I?" The ooman male asked as he pressed his body against the back of the pod.
"Where did you come from?" Dae'er asked and the male looked even more afraid.
Pauk, he didn't have his bio mask on. He squatted down and motioned with his hand for the ooman to come to him but of course he didn't obey. It was no effort whatsoever to reach in and drag the screaming male out by his strange white coverings. He tossed him to the floor and the smell of defecation filled the air.
His servant bristled from the stench and the engineer backed away from the writhing male. He tried to scramble away but Dae'er planted a foot firmly on his chest, holding him in place. He looked at his servant.
"Retrieve my bio mask." He ordered and the servant made a beeline down the hall towards his quarters.
The male was begging for his life, sniveling and whimpering. There was no way of knowing which ooman planet he came from, not without his mask. Dae'er looked down and saw a tag hanging from his coverings. He quickly ripped it from the white cloth and examined it. There was a picture of the male, as well as a giant letter that resembled peaks of a mountain.
No'elia had offered to teach him her native tongue but he had denied since it was such a useless language. She spoke Yautja so there was no need for learning her language. She'd often spout obscenities if she were upset or when she hurt herself during training. Those words he knew all too well but outside of curses, he knew not one syllable. He made a mental note to take No'elia up on her offer of teaching him the language.
His servant didn't take very long and when he came within reach, Dae'er grabbed his mask and placed it on. It immediately did a reading on the male, he had a mass the size of a jelly fruit in his gut and it was fatal. The male would perish within the next few years so if he happened to die on Dae'er's watch, it would be considered mercy.
The male's pleas and cries for help became understandable. Dae'er wasn't interested in helping him but how he could help Dae'er. He kept his foot firmly on the males body.
"Where did you come from?" Dae'er repeated.
The male stuttered out of fear and Dae'er roared from impatience.
"Earth! I'm from Earth." He cried.
"You were in this pod when it left from Earth?" Dae'er clarified.
"Yes!" The male shouted. "Please don't kill me."
"When you found the pod, was there anything inside?" Dae'er continued with his interrogation.
"I wasn't there. I was only told to strip it down and find out how it works." The male explained.
"You know nothing of a passenger?" Dae'er asked.
"There was mentioning of a girl but like I said I was only assigned to the spacecraft! I know nothing about her." The males eyes were lit up with fear.
"I show you a map of your planet, you show me where you came from, where the pod took off." He said as he opened his wrist gauntlet and revealed the spinning blue planet of Earth.
The male was shaking as he pointed at the land where he found No'elia. Dae'er zoomed in, showing the separate territories. The male pointed again but where he selected was no where near where he found his mate. It was more to the west and slightly south.
"Again." Dae'er ordered and the male pointed a smaller area. "This is where you were when the pod took off?" Dae'er confirmed.
"Yes. Please don't kill me. I had nothing to do with what happened to the girl. I was only told to strip the craft." He sobbed.
The males words were like fuel on the fire, he crouched down and yanked him violently up off the floor. "What happened to the girl?" He growled out.
"I've only heard rumors from the department in charge of her. They spoke of experimentations and discovering how she doesn't age." The male was spewing information like a busted dam.
"What was the last rumor you heard?" Dae'er bellowed.
The ooman male winced and cowered before speaking. "They had tried to remove that strange flower from her head but it released a poisonous gas and killed about six people." He spoke fast and Dae'er shook him and he went back to begging. "Please don't kill me, that's all I know, I swear. Please!"
The male was of no use to him anymore. The area he had pointed at was small enough for No'elia's tag to light up and direct him to where she was. This male had a hand in whatever was done to his mate, even if it was just taking apart the carrier. If No'elia had managed to get away she couldn't leave because this male would've taken apart her only vessel. So to Dae'er, he was just as guilty as anyone who had laid a hand on her.
Dae'er pulled a dagger from a sheath on his belt. The male eyed it and began to panic underneath his hold, begging and pleading even more than before. Dae'er ignored his cries and drove the blade up his abdomen, shoving it hard when he hit the heart. The males mouth drooped open as his eyes stayed wide and focused on nothing.
Dae'er retrieved his dagger and sheathed the blood covered blade. The engineer was speechless and his servant began to drag the body off. Dae'er looked at the engineer and growled.
"Fix the control panel then return to your normal duties. Your services are no longer required." He stated as he immediately went to his dwellings.
His father was still waiting, eager to hear any news of No'elia. He stood from his seat and followed Dae'er into his room.
"Well? What of No'elia?" He questioned as Dae'er quickly put his awu'asa on.
"I've located her, she's on her home planet. They've been experimenting on her so I must get to her quickly." Dae'er said as he locked his wrist blades into place.
"Experimenting? What kind of experiments?!" His father exclaimed.
"It's unclear what they've done to her but as Paya as my witness, I'll skin everyone that laid so much as a glare on her." Dae'er said firmly as he placed his polearm on his back.
"I'm coming with you." His father stated.
"H-ko. It is my job as her male to rescue her. A bunch of civilian oomans are roaches compared to the foes I've encountered and they'll be just as easy to kill as well." He replied as he sheathed a plasma gun on his belt. "I want you to prepare for her arrival. She may be injured so have the medical bay ready to go." Dae'er said as he fastened the last piece of his awu'asa on then headed for the door.
"I'll be waiting." His father replied and Dae'er nodded at him before exiting and making his way to the port.
Here, on Yautja Prime, No'elia had only been gone about seven hours but on Earth, she'd been there almost a month. There was no telling what she'd been through. There was one thing he could guarantee, it was that whoever decided to harm No'elia, would rue the day. He'd make sure each and every ooman experienced as much torture as No'elia had.