Ghost stood there motionless. Her mouth went dry. She gulped hard. Her mind raced to try to recall where she had seen this face before. "I-I'm sorry...Have we met before? I feel as if I should know you but I seem to fall short. Forgive me if I sound rude." She gave a humble bow. Ghost heard heavy footsteps and then a claw daintily lifted her chin.
The Skeksis' face so close, the smell coming off of him grew stronger. "I guess you wouldn't remember me since you were only two trines old. Barely a childling." He said with a hint of annoyance in his voice. "You used my horn. Then tackled me. I'm SkekMal the Hunter."
Ghost's eyes sparked with realization. "Oh! SkekTek and the others told me all about you. It was just to remind me that I shouldn't touch the horn. It's a little scary, I'll give that." She blushed. Heat radiating off her body. Her heart vibrating in her chest. Only a moment ago, she was scared and sad about what had just happened to her in those small moments. Now those emotions melted away. "It's so nice to meet you. Again." She nearly panicked when he rubbed the blood on her cheek which resulted in her wincing.
SkekMal looked at the blood for a moment. The red liquid in his hand. "You're bleeding… What happened?"
"Well, it was-" Ghost was cut off when the two of them heard a faint hissing noise. She gasped in horror as the Landstrider that attacked was decaying before their very eyes. Her nose crinkled at the horrid stench. Her mouth clenched to keep from heaving. An ill feeling in her stomach. She had never seen anything like this. Not even in her visions. However, it was starting to become unbearable.
The hunter growled in frustration. "Curses. I only hunted that Landstrider because it acted strange. Nearly trampled me near a river." He turned to Ghost. "I was planning to make it a trophy for my collection."
"Your...trophy?" Ghost tilted her head in confusion. "Is that the only reason you hunt?"
"A strong opponent gives me strength during the hard times. I still hunt for food to sustain me." He showed his belt. "What you see before you are my death charms. With each defeated warrior, hunter and creature that are worthy for a hunt have their strength become my own."
"Do...any of them have families?"
"What?"
"Do any of them have families? Anyone that cared about them?" Ghost looked him squarely in the eyes. "Why must you kill them if you've already defeated them? There was no need for it."
"Those things don't matter to me. As long as the hunt is there. I'll never stop until I have my trophy."
Ghost went silent for a moment. Her eyes brimmed with tears. It was sad that those charms belonged to beings that had died at the hands of this brutal hunter. She may not have had her mother but she had seen other Gelfling mourn over the loss of their family members. However, this hunter did save her life even if he lost a trophy in doing so. She pulled out her dagger from her satchel which she had been carrying during her trip to Ha'rar. She grabbed a few strands of her hair and cut them in one smooth movement. She grabbed a nearby flower that had a stem flexible enough move as a rope. She split the stem and tied it around the hair. Ghost held up her hair strands with a blueish-white flower holding it together like a crown. "Here."
SkekMal tilted his head confused. He had never seen a Gelfling act this way before. Not one who would give him something when he's not threatening them. "What's this?"
"A token of my gratitude. You saved me when I had nothing to offer. It might not be close to a trophy but I hope that it might be a charm. A life charm."
"Life charm?" SkekMal raised his eye ridges in amazement. No one had ever thought that before. Then his gaze hardened with sparks of rage ready to be released. "Are you messing with me, Gelfling?"
Ghost let a few tears slip from her eyes before she could answer. "No. I would never be that cruel. You say that dead things give you strength. I merely want to have it to represent the good I see in you. I may not know much about you, but I do know that you would've killed me on the spot if you could. However, you didn't."
At that moment, the Hunter's rage faded. He could feel that her eyes hold so much truth than he originally thought. "Very well then Ghost. I'll take this since you're one of the few that can talk to me in such a way." He reached for her charm and let it nestle in his claws.
"Ghost!"
The duo turned to the direction of the shout to see Ordon stare at them in shock. Behind him was a bewildered Collector and a terrified ScrollKeeper. "Are you alright?" The Captain of the Guard gasped at the sight of Ghost's face. He drew out his sword. "Get away from her!"
"It's ok, Captain. He helped me when I was attacked by a Landstrider." Ghost turned and bowed to SkekMal. "Thank you, Hunter. I do hope we meet again someday. I wish to know more about you." She walked toward the trio in a calm manner. The last thing she needed was to explain what happened to her face. She gazed up at SkekLach and SkekOk. "I'll explain, but it would be best if I told it to the All Maudra as well." Ghost felt relief when the two Skeksis simply nodded. With that, she followed the others back to Ha'rar.
As shadows of the evening crept on the ground and trees, the Hunter looked at his new 'trophy'. The soft texture of the white hair rolled in his claws. The flower dainty as her. What enticed him the most was her scent. He moved the charm closer to his face and took a deep breath. The smell of earth, spring sky, flowers and water danced in his nostrils. An approving rumble escaped his throat. "I hope so too... Ghost."
A brief interaction but hopefully a meaningful one. Like I said, I hope to make their dynamics work in a way that is healthy and not forced. This is just a small start. Also, I'm going to be writing some of this fic for a while because Netflix cancelled the show! And after getting an Emmy Award too! Let's hope the show comes back. It deserves better!