Disclaimer: figure it out, people

Damn, Not Again!

Ch. 12

I' mus' have been the shock tha' kep' him from rippin' my arms righ' ou''a their socke's.

Bu' when he finally did pull away, i' was because there was rustlin' in the underbrush. He stood up, bu' I jus' stayed where I was.

"Dodger, you old bastard! Where the hell are you?"

The voice was female, and so was the body tha' i' belonged t'. She burs' through the jungle and tripped over wha' I realized was Dodger's decima'ed remains.

"Ugh, I have got to get used to that." mu''ered the girl, as she go' t' her fee' and turned t' look a' Dodger. Her eyes go' really wide and she stared a' him for a very long time before act'ally goin' over t' him and kneelin down beside him.

"This could be trouble," I mu''ered, and Riddick glanced a' me. His knife was still in his hand, and covered in blood, I no'iced.

"Oh god...It's not a trick. He really is dead."

I stopped. This girl did no' sound a' all distressed by Dodger's demise. She looked a' us and I stood up, tryin' t' ignore the fac' tha' my clothes were ripped. I crossed my arms and fel' a piece of fabric hangin' off my shir'. Horrified tha' I migh' be exposed, I looked down, bu' i' was jus' a strip of cloth. I followed the strip up t' i's origin and found tha' i' was hangin' from my neck.

Tha' mean' tha' my mark was showin'.

Oh...damn.

Riddick glanced a' me again and I looked back a' him, a li''le paranoid abou' people starin' a' the bi'emarks. He raised an eyebrow, bu' didn' say anathin' as he turned back t' look a' the girl, who had stopped studyin' Dodger's disgustin' dead body and turned t' us.

"Which one of you killed him?"

She was calm, I s'pose tha's wha' made me suspicious, bu' I fel' along the ground near me and pulled a loose rock from the ground, squeezin' i' so hard tha' my knuckles turned whi'e.

"I did." Riddick said, while I prepared t' defend my self and maybe him as well.

"Excellent." said the girl with a cheery smile. She sheathed the dagger she'd been holdin' and took a few steps t'wards us. "My name's Chrys and I'm very, very pleased to make your acquaintance. How 'bout a drink?" she said all of this very fas', and when she was done, she thrus' ou' her hand t'wards Riddick, who looked a' i', looked a' me, looked back a' the girl, and shook her hand, coverin' i' in second hand blood.

"Richard B. Riddick." he introduced himself. I stepped forward, hobblin' on one leg.

"Wildca' Rae." I introduced myself. She dropped Riddick's hand and grasped mine, pumpin' i' furiously. I winced and gri''ed my teeth, no'icin' painfully tha' she'd grabbed my lef' hand. The one tha' hur' somethin' fierce.

"Wildcat?" asked Chrys. I shrugged. "You an Ayorthian?"

Tha' one shocked me righ' ou''a my skull. On Mecca they assumed i' was a gang name, bu' no one had ever suspected as t' my origins. I blinked, and didn' answer, bu' of course she knew tha' she'd been correc'.

Damn.

"I knew it. God, you must hate space travel." Chrys rambled on, droppin' my hand and motionin' for us t' follow her. She told us how she was par' of a clan tha' made their livin' as a peaceful, earthbound tree-people, no' to'ally cu' off from the other plane's, bu' close enough. Then she told us how her mother was the clan leader, and when Dodger had come along, she'd fallen madly in love with his charm. He married her and then killed her and took over.

And i' had been chaos ever since.

Bu' now tha' he was dead, things could go back t' the way they were.

When we reached their camp, my leg cryin' ou' in pain from the exertion, I was wi'ness the mos' amazin' tree for' I'd ever seen in my entire life. Ladders, rope or plank, there were none. The branches ac'ed as bridges and ladders, and i' was amazin' t' see people swingin' from leafless limbs like acroba's.

Damn bu' these people were good!