"Blessed be she who is both furious and magnificent."
― Taylor Rhodes, Calloused: a field journal.
Twentieth second Yuga, Yaksa calendar (Circa 1624 C.E.) Saubha's lower hangar
The trio of Yaksa stepped into the cavernous hangar. A shallow layer of water covered the ground in the dimly lit place, but Anu'sha could see a shape in the gloom.
Her chosen mate Rava'an, helped R'sna, who was wounded in the battle against the Raksasa. The old warrior leaned with an arm on the young man's shoulder. His face was twisted into a grumpy scowl, more from, having to receive help than for any injury sustained.
Typical male pride, she thought. Throughout her life she had seen countless fine warriors succumb rather than show the slightest sign of weakness. At least the young male was more flexible about tradition: he was capable of bending the rules if the situation required it.
-"There it is," R'sna exclaimed, pointing with his spear at the ship, "the Ka'thorag."
The Ka'thorag was small for a ne'dtessei-class dropship, but unlike these, it was well-equipped with plasma weaponry and an advanced cloaking system. In fact, the old R'sna had done an excellent job of turning the little utilitarian ship into a stalker-class, just as the ship's name implied.
-"It's old," Rava'an said, "at least a thousand cycles."
-"You have no idea, youngling." the warrior replied proudly.
The elder settled into the controls while Anu'sha and Rava'an sat on the backseats. The ship's thrusters fired up, surprisingly quietly for a dropship. Ka'thorag rose from the ground, aimed her nose at the hangar exit tunnel, and took off. Before heading out into the blue morning sky, R'sna pressed a few commands and the ship disappeared from view.
Through the viewports, Anu'sha saw the citadel in ruins from the attack. She could make out some of its inhabitants moving away from the destroyed city towards the islands, guided safely by Adhi'natha or Mahok'sa, the surviving elders. She wondered if they would both fight to the death for leadership when the Raksasas had been dealt with. Adhi'natha was her father's second in command, but Mahok'sa was well known for his exploits.
The little ship shook, interrupting Anu'sha's thoughts. R'sna was fighting at the controls due to his injuries, but the elder was tough. For a moment, she thought they would be shot down by the drones. The old yaksa seemed to guess her thoughts because he tried to reassure her,
-"Akra'mana can only be used once," the elder coughed, "this is just turbulence."
-"Just once?" Anu'sha couldn't help to surprisely spread her mandibles.
-"Yes," he coughed again, blood sprayed from his mouth, staining one of his shaking hands, "if those raksasa try to activate the weapon again, their own ship will be destroyed." He paused while maneuvering the ship out of the turbulence, and then added, "You don't play with the technology of the devas, and even the damn killers know that."
Anu'sha averted her eyes shamefully. There was so much she hadn't learned yet about the ancient city and the Great Deva war, there were thing don't even her Sire didn't know, but she would do her best to learn.
It was a privilege to be part of R'sna's group. She would take this opportunity to observe and learn from an esteemed elder.
The Ka'thorag continued ascending. Until now they had remained undetected but the problems would begin once they docked with the enemy ship. R'sna steered the craft toward the circular opening below the target.
-"Get ready!" he warned, "Time to make those worms pay."
The Deva ship's main hatch was large enough for a small fighter like the Ka'thorag to enter, so R'sna sped straight for it. Behind him, Rava'an readied his spear and Anu'sha did the same with her cha'kra.
The Raksasas inside the cargo bay were caught off guard when the small ship materialized inside the hangar. The hatch opened, and the three Yaksa leapt out.
-"Aaaarrrrgh", R'sna let out a battle cry as he charged towards the nearest Raksasa, "Die, you animals!"
The Raksasas roared in turn, surprised. One of them dropped the urn he was carrying and quickly drew his spear pistol, but R'sna was faster.
With a sweep of his triple-pointed spear, he ripped through his opponent's belly. The Raksasa fell to the ground spilling pale green insides.
While R'sna was engaged in the fight, the second Raksasa took the opportunity to shoot a plasma ball towards the old Yaksa, hitting his hand and causing him to drop his weapon. However, his victory was short. Anu'sha swiftly beheaded the bastard with her cha'kra.
-"Watch out!" Anu'sha heard Rava'an shout in warning.
Anu'sha reacted and ducked just as a silvery projectile whistled past her head, narrowly missing her. She readied her cha'kra but another arrow tore it from her hand, the weapon slid on the floor.
From a walkway not far above them, the gigantic Raksasa drew another arrow from his quiver into his dha'nu, aiming directly at the Yaksi's chest. Rava'an hurled his spear at the attacker with force, but the assassin spotted him and dodged it easily.
Ganok' changed his aim and fired at Rava'an. The young warrior growled when the bolt grazed his shoulder. The albino jumped off the walkway, landing with a heavy thud. He hung the dha'nu on his back and spread out his arms in defiance.
-"What do we have here? The old relic," he taunted with excitement, laying his reddish eyes on elder R'sna. "Had enough of living that long?"
-"You never get too old to collect the skull of a Raksasa." R'sna replied, flaring his arms and mandibles, accepting the challenge.
-"Ujesh', we have vermin on board." Ganok' reported to his commander, "the elder, that Je'kainde youngling from the trial and the female. " Ganok' used special emphasis on the word female.
-"Take care of them," Ujesh's voice rumbled through his comlink. "But leave the female alive. She's mine."
-"Very good, Elder," Ganok' splayed his mandibles at R'sna. "This will be your last hunt." The giant unslung a staff hanging from his back, pressed a button, and four sharp spikes sprouted from one end while the other became a mace shaped like a skull. He quickly turned to address Rava'an, "and as for you… I'll crush your head with my ga'da."
Anu'sha growled utterly offended, that brute acted as if she was not there, the elder threw himself into the fight against the monstrous Raksasa, ignoring her as well.
It had always been like this for the Yaksi, even before she had completed her first ritual hunt. She was her Sire's favorite, perhaps because she looked so much like her bearer, but the elder rarely came to see her fight in the kehrite.
Despite being furious at them for letting her out, Anu'sha couldn't interrupt the fight. The strictest rules of engagement were still ingrained in her mind and it was considered dishonorable to fight two against one.
The real reason for this was much simpler, it would be difficult to distinguish who had struck the killing blow and therefore who had the right to claim the trophy, which could lead to infighting and revenge amongst the warriors.
R'sna attacked Ganok' first, charging forward. Ganok' raised the heavy mace above his head and swung it toward the old warrior. He narrowly dodged the blow, which ended up wedged into a wall. Rava'an stood beside Anu'sha, he too unwilling to enter the fight without a proper challenge. The choice was taken from him as the giant withdrew his weapon effortlessly from the hull and in a large sweep, hit the young warrior in the abdomen, throwing him backwards.
The Raksasa laughed deeply, visibly satisfied. R'sna counterattacked, but his triple spear was deflected by Ganok's mace. In one bold move, R'sna pierced Ganok's shoulder.
The giant roared and reacted by sweeping upwards with the blunt weapon, right at the old man's lower jaw. R'sna fell knocked to the ground, spitting greenish blood.
-"Age has made you weak," Ganok' mocked him, "you should have made your last hunt while you were still strong."
While R'sna was on the ground, beaten unconscious, It was Rava'an's turn to fight the giant but as he recovered from his blow, he was instead attacked by another killer, so Anu'sha saw her chance to enter the fight.
-"Yabh' v'rta!" The albino roared furiously as Anu'sha lunged at him so fast that it looked like bluish lightning.
Ganok' barely had time to turn around to stop the attack. Sparks leaped as her cha'kra clashed with the ga'da's metal handle.
She unsheathed the blades from her wrist and sliced through Ganok's belly. The giant Raksasa roared in fury and recoiled, laying a hand on the wound.
-"Ujesh' wants you alive , female," he wheezed, and then added maliciously, "but he didn't say under what conditions."
Anu'sha detected an increase of the bitter smell of pheromones and understood the meaning of that last sentence. She grunted in disgust, Quite predictable, she told herself, males always think with their ze'pha.
Ganok' didn't charge forward this time, but moved in circles, sizing up the female. Anu'sha did the same, the giant was cautious, he knew she was more agile, he would let her make the first move.
She looked for an entry point, but his size made any frontal attack almost impossible.
-"Come on, Brute. Attack!" Anu'sha taunted him, with her cha'kra in one hand and the blades in the other, her long dreadlocks fluttered over her shoulders.
Flustered from her gauding and tantalizing scent, Ganok' jumped, holding the ga'da with both hands above his head. The albino landed hard but Anu'sha dodged him by vaulting to the side as she threw the disc at the giant's legs.
The sharp edge of the weapon sliced through Ganok's right thigh, and he fell to his side, roaring in fury. All courtesy disappeared in that moment, as Ganok' fired up his vaj'ra cannon wildly at the female.
Hot plasma bolts impacted on the spot where Anu'sha stood moments before. Another burst flew through the hangar and struck down near a storage area, packed with silver urns.
R'sna's eyes widened, and Anu'sha understood why when S'harva's voice echoed over the communicators.
-"Enough!" he ordered growling, "Mur'kha, You will kill us all!"
Some of the cylindrical containers fell to the ground and rolled with a metallic sound, but fortunately none of the urns exploded, releasing their lethal payload. Ganok' deactivated his cannon. That was the opportunity Anu'sha was waiting for.
She threw her cha'kra at the giant albino. The weapon whistled through the air to bury its sharp edge in Ganok's chest. He staggered and fell backward onto a pile of nearby urns, gurgling. Life escaped him through the wound in his chest but he still had a last surprise under his arm.
-"The fight that has begun will not end until the end." Ganok' recited in the ancient language.
He pointed his arm at the female and a metallic, silvery net shot out from his bracelet, capturing Anu'sha between the sharp fibers.
The net contracted on itself. Anu'sha struggled to free herself but the net was stronger, leaving a diamond pattern drawn on her bluish skin. Anu'sha roared in pain when some of her dreadlocks were cut off.
Unlike human hair, dreadlocks were not made of collagen fibers, but were an integral part of the body, with their own blood vessels and nerves. They were a sensitive organ that helped hunters to detect changes in the current and air pressure, similar to a cat's whiskers.
The long appendages were a pride for the Yaksa, especially the females. Used to attract males by flooding the appendages with blood, coloring them in various shades, not only in visible light but also in other spectra such as infrared.
Rava'an severed the neck of his last foe with his wrist blades, stood up and saw his mate struggle for her life. According to tradition, he could not intervene or he would deny the Yaksi an honorable death. But the female was in a state of su'hnom, she carried with her the promise of new life, and letting her die was also forbidden. He approached and sliced through the net with the same blades made from the claws of the dawon and helped Anu'sha stand.
-"What a surprise, the youngling himself..." Ujesh' exclaimed as he stepped out onto the gangway, remarking Rava'an's age with disdain, "and here I thought it would be Adi'natha or Mahok'sa who would come to challenge us."
-"They… they thought you were not worth the challenge," Rava'an responded.
Ujesh' clicked and growled furiously. That young male was not only stupid, but daring as well. Nothing would give him more pleasure than cutting off the tadpole's head in that instant, but he had something better in mind.
-"Dying in combat is a courtesy they don't deserve." he said in a mocking tone while turning to his subordinates, "prepare for the attack."
Unbeknownst to everyone, one of the urns had cracked, and the black liquid inside it seeped out and dripped across the floor until it reached Ganok's still-alive body. It reached the giant's head and a sip of the ooze trickled into his open mouth.
- o -
Welcome back! Finally this chapter is done after a short holiday hiatus. Special thanks to iterations for her extensive editing.
This is the first of the two part finale, It's written from Anu'sha's POV because I haven't done much justice to the character and I have delegated her to a trophy female (how dishonorable of me).
In fact, female Predator are awesome, they could be larger than males and far more deadly, cunning and agile.
Anyway, I hope you enjoy this one and see you soon! Oh, and don't forget to comment. Here's the glossary.
adhi'natha: Chieftain.
akrama'na: Defensive/offensive weapon.
-'an: Who, referring back to a person and starting a relative clause.
anu'sha: Beautiful, pleasing the senses or mind aesthetically. Attractive, pretty.
dha'nu: Bow, composite, retractable bow.
deva: Unknown bipedal primate mammal (Homo unk. sp.), Engineer.
ga'da: Mace, a heavy club, typically having a metal head and spikes.
ganok': Troll, mythological creature. Giant, with great size.
je'kainde: Stubborn, Obstinate, Bull-headed.
ka'thorag: Lurk. Lurker. a person who hunts game stealthily. Stalker.
kehrite: Dojo, a room or hall in which martial arts are practiced. Training arena.
mur'kha: Stupid, Useless. Not fulfilling or not expected to achieve the intended purpose or desired outcome.
ne'dtessei: Lander, a spacecraft designed to land on the surface of a planet or moon.
ner'uda: Shuttle. A vehicle or aircraft that travels regularly between two places.
raksasa: Honorless, a yaksa that has severely violated aspects of the honor code, intentional or not.
rava: Roar, a. noun. A full, deep, prolonged cry uttered by a lion or other large wild animal. Roaring.
r'sna: Frenzy. Berserker, who fights with frenzy.
su'hnom: Conceive, bare a son/daughter. Pregnant.
yabh': Emotional expression of anger, yabh'v'rta: Used to express astonishment, shock, incredulity, or disbelief. yabh' yo: to have sex with someone (vulgar slang). Fuck!, What the fuck?, to Fuck.
yaksa: Unknown humanoid synapsid (unk. sp.). f. yaksi. Member of the species who had succeeded in all trials, a true hunter. Predator, Hish-qu-ten.
ze'pha: Penis, phallus, an erect penis (typically used with reference to male potency or dominance).