Translation:
Sei-i - Yes
Ooman - Human
I'sumu - Scar's name
Lar'dha - Miana's Yuatja name
Setg'rath - Lex's Yuatja name
**It is spelled Yuatja however, I may have switched the 'u' and 'a' on several occasions. I apologize.
8/2/19: According to the wiki, its Yautja and that's what I've tried to switch to.
8/7/19: Also, for older readers, the A/N: "AVP: Please Read" has been removed since it talks about 'My Ooman' which I have yet to finish. I discuss these stories at the end of a chapter elsewhere (I do not remember which CH but I wrote it somewhere I swear!)
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Silence came over the ship. Both Miana and Lex refused to be in the same room, neither speaking even when spoken to. Scar felt bummed, barely seeing his future life mate while she went back and forth between the kehrite and their room.
Beanie stayed in the kitchen, entertained by Molten and Jag. Every time they began to fight, the dog would jump in between them. His tail would wag in excitement as they play fought with him. The two warriors were irritated by the interruption, but the dog kept them just as entertained.
Miana stopped learning more about their language and culture. She stayed holed up in her room, mostly likely sulking. What she had told Night a few days back had been exactly what Lex did not want to share. She blew up, pissed as hell at Night's questioning, which led to the rest being curious as well as furious.
Weyland Jr. had not been pleased by the end result of the expedition along with the mysteries it left. Miana and Lex insisted an accident occurred, one of the machines blew, the ice had been fragile, too fragile, and no one had been prepared. They had been lucky enough to be near the surface and not buried underneath as the others had been.
They questioned the markings, the acidic scars, and new technology the women possessed. With no way to answer, they chose not to, leaving the company suspicious. Their research on the incident came up with many more unanswerable questions.
Lex continued to do her work, leading expedition after expedition. Miana continued in her field of study, geology. She had just begun to go back for her masters, wanting to excel in her major, when Lex decided to cut communication. They were watched, followed, especially when they met.
It resulted in Lex being stranded in the Himalayas for quite some time. Having to run to Russia for a short amount of time before finally making a break for Europe and back home to The States.
Miana was to wait for an email from Lex when she believed it was safe. It never came.
Weyland became suspicious about her sudden disappearance and came to Miana only to find her unable to answer. They chose to try and isolate her, something that was very easy to do. It's why Miana had run to her Master and then hid in the woods.
They wanted answers badly, refusing to accept the 'I don't know's.
Lex had kept this from them, fully knowing their reactions to such dishonorable things. Jag had suggested to delay their trip, return to Earth, and set it straight. Lex raised her objections but Scar had agreed with his hunt brother. For them, honorable warriors such as they should not just be hunted and punished for keeping the secrets of what they saw.
Celtic also felt responsible, needing to make amends with the two females who helped keep himself and his brother alive. A debt that could be paid by cutting down their foes, the Weyland Company.
"You are not listening!" Lex returned from her training to find them huddled in the control room discussing what they should do next.
Scar, Celtic, and Jag agreed about going back.
"Lex." Scar's tone was familiar of how an adult would talk to a child who couldn't understand. They were too "young".
"Don't 'Lex' me! This ship is going straight home and no detours!"
"You're marrying an idiot, Lex." Beanie barked beside Miana, as if agreeing. "Weyland wants to trap us. They want us to come back, to fight back. Specifically, they want you guys so they can cut you open and see how you tick."
"We can-" Night growled, ending Jag's protest.
"Lar'dha is correct. They want to trap us. They want information that we can not allow to give them. The elders will be made aware of this danger for future hunts. For now, you young blooded need to think. Our ooman friends are well aware of this danger and we shouldn't take their warning lightly." Night dismissed them with a wave of his hand.
He turned his attention to the controls. Miana stayed behind with him, accompanied by Beanie.
Right before Lex left, following the group out, Miana grabbed her arm. A silent conversation happened between them before Lex accepted Miana into a half hug.
"Night?"
"Sei-i?"
"Tell me about your species."
"That's very broad." He took the pilot chair, Miana sitting beside him.
When she didn't respond, he sighed. For a moment, no one spoke.
"Tell me about this honor stuff. I don't get it still." She didn't focus on him but the blinking lights before her. She could name everything and explain in detail what each did for the ship, from complicated to simple tasks. That knowledge comforted her; knowledge meant power.
"Well, males, particularly, have a high level of pride when younger. As they grow, they become much calmer, able to control their anger. Unblooded males are seen as dangerous because of this but they lack the experience and strength of elders."
"So, elders are usually the ones who teach because they have the experience but are also able to keep up with the students?" While she only understood half of what he said, a small monitor translated his sentence for her to learn and understand.
"Sei-i. Our honor is what we live for. Being able to hunt, bring pride to our family and be able to mate; that is what brings our kind honor. Honor is in our law. To be dishonorable is to attack unfairly, to kill unnecessarily, to leave younglings orphaned." Night relaxed in his chair, a hand holding his head up with the elbow on the armrest. He patiently waited for Miana to understand what he said.
"Okay… I don't think I understand the mate thing, either…" Night clicked, amused by the embarrassment that came with her confusion. "Like why have the temporary mates and stuff?"
"We are very… Animalistic. Our kind isn't like yours in this retrospect. We have a mating season to continue our blood, we do not worry about being committed to one female but we must commit to our children. All of them. We helped to conceive them and so we have a responsibility to them." His switching to English made it much easier to keep up with his quick and long sentences.
"Lifemates are uncommon then?" Miana perked at the thought, curious enough to press for more.
"At Scar's age, yes. However, he always had been very calm and calculated. Being slightly smaller than his headstrong brothers, he felt the need to gain the advantage, not in brute strength but in intelligence. Many seek lifemates when older, their bloodline guaranteed to continue through previous mating seasons."
"So-"
"Think of us as a mix of a primitive human and a large cat. I am told we are very much like them but look like reptiles." Suddenly, Miana reached forward and popped him on the head.
"Silly, you guys look like reptiles but you guys aren't primitive or like the large cats. Our large cats either purr or roar, not both." She grinned, happy to have taught him something.
Night chuckled, agreeing with her point. His kind did do both and primitive seemed wrong as they sat in a highly advanced spacecraft.
"Point taken."
"Tell me. Stop hiding from me like a scared pup!"
"I am not scared! Least of all of you! I didn't say anything because you'd act this way!" Lex threw down her ki'cti-pa, turning to face the Yuatja behind her.
"Lex-"
"You listen here I'sumu, I am fully capable of handling them and I did. I may not have been there these past years to help Miana, and I regret that, but I do not need to be lectured!" She marched herself up to him so they were toe to toe. She lost a little authority by having to look up at him.
Damn his height.
"Setg'rath, I am not trying to lecture you. Why did you not speak of this before? They were there when we came to visit, no?" He purred, tracing the mark he gave her on her cheek.
"It's better to ignore them and when you guys came, I didn't think it to be a problem. You kept cloaked most of the time. Stop purring!" Lex shoved herself away from him, determined to stay mad.
"Lex, it matters to me. This marriage you and Miana speak of is a partnership. We are together, not separate. Our lifemates are very similar in that they fight together, not against each other. It is dishonorable for a mate to stand back and let anyone beat on their other."
Lex didn't say anything, already feeling childish but too prideful to admit it. She turned away from him, picking up the combi-stick she had received so long ago. It brought painful memories but it brought good ones too, with her new friends and family.
"Setg'rath, it would dishonorable for me to not fight for you, as much as not fighting for me would dishonor you. The people of our clan and of the other clans may not agree with us being together. You showed the kind of honor a lifemate should when you became concerned for my honor and my reputation at us being together. I am showing the same honor by wanting to cut down those who have hurt you, especially because of me." Scar huffed, speaking English for such a long amount of time was never his forté. Yet, he managed the words.
Using his nickname for her softened her, knowing the meaning behind it. Yuatja were not the kind for meaningless. Focusing heavily on their honor, as they were brought up to do, they honored those, in and out of their species, with meaning. He honored her with a nickname to accompany their great tale. While they may be prideful, stubborn and at times hot-headed, they knew how to give credit and by naming her, he did just that.
They were primitive-like, thinking about their hunting and mating for the sake of reproduction, not for love. However, they came beyond that with their honor, which even surpassed their prideful nature, humbling them to friend and foe alike.
As they grew, they became more aware of emotion, like Elder K'ash who loved his deceased mate. He admitted that hunting was a thrill for their kind that took priority above all else, even mating. Yet, when he grew to be an elder, he took pride in his title but also came to realize the life beyond he was missing. This led him to his mate, a strong female who kept him balanced.
Lex groaned at this, fully aware of how they worked, especially her mate and his more articulate mindset. Pulling him for a hug, which consisted of her being too short to even reach his chin, Lex kissed his bare skin. The scar of the queen laid in front of her, jagged and worn but faded with time.
"I hate how you make such sense even when I want to be right." Scar just purred, happy Lex no longer fumed.
Miana peeked in, a grin forming on her face as she saw the united couple. Molten stood behind her, also curious about his friends.
"I guess everything is okay now." He shrugged, moving away to not disturb them. Miana followed him back to the kitchen, a favorite spot of Jag's and his.
"Yeah," Miana spoke her broken Yuatja as best as she could. "We'll need headphones tonight… Or are your walls soundproof?"
Molten trilled, shaking his head at the female's humor. She would fit in perfectly.