Chapter 1 Reviews:

Dan Hunter – It's good to hear that the last chapter wasn't too boring.  Hopefully this chapter has been worth the wait!

~Chapter 2~

Kurath watched as 'Tkon'te, the most thin and lithe of all of the predators under his command, tried to wriggle his way into the largest of the collapsed burrows, but he could not get more than his head through the gap – his shoulders prevented him from going any further. Try as he might, he was never going to fit any further into the warren in the cliff-side, and it became narrower further on in. His closest friend, In'dre-an'de, whom could not be separated from him, stood nearby, stroking the grey stone of the foreboding, natural wall with his fingers. The short predator was dwarfed by 'Tkon'te's unbelievable tallness – it seemed implausible that two who were so much different in appearance and personality could become so close.

As 'Tkon'te's head emerged from the small tunnel, he turned to his leader and gestured with his hands and head that he had given up; there was no way that he was going to get into the burrow. Kurath let out an enraged growl – his plans were not going to schedule, and he knew that it was only a matter of time before the Arbitrators sent some fools after them – or tried themselves.

"What about the tunnels further up the mountain? Can we not use them to get inside?" He asked Ha-rauth and Sin-ae'de, whom he had asked to scout the area. The two looked at each other, before Sin-ae'de stepped forwards to speak.

"You see…" he began, "we would have to use climbing equipment to get up to that height, and the effort would leave us vulnerable to-" before Sin-ae'de could finish his sentence, In'dre-an'de whipped out his disc, aimed it at Kurath, his leader, and threw it with all of his might. Kurath remained expressionless even as it narrowly skimmed past the left side of his neck and embedded itself into a kainde amedha – an egg carrier. The acidic blood hissed and spilled onto the floor as In'dre-an'de went to retrieve his disc. "-them," Sin-ae'de finished finally. Kurath decided that the choice of entering the tunnels further up could not be considered an option – it would be suicide for them all, whether it was a quick and painful death, or a slow and painful one. So what else could be done?

"Why didn't we come here before we made our stand? Has it all been for nothing – just because we are too big to fit through some holes in a rock?!" Nie-de growled at Kurath. His leader did not take well to the tone of his voice; Kurath backhanded his second-in-command, sending him and his mask flying in different directions.

"Because if we had come here before we had made our stand, don't you think they would have suspected something? The Arbitrators know that there is more than kainde amedha on this world – much more! They watch closely on any hunts that go on here, in case we discover their little secret!" He hissed, dominating the sprawling form of Nie'de on the ground. "I know what I am doing! My actions are not driven by on-the-spot impulses, but carefully thought-out decisions and calculated risks! Do not ever show me disrespect again!" As Nie'de picked himself up out of the dust, he bowed his head in submission and appeared genuinely sorry for his words, but before he placed his mask back onto his face, something flashed in those penetrating yellow eyes of his…

Greeahnyau stood close to In'dre-an'de, his combi-stick gripped between both hands and his head tilted back so that he could see the sky. Poisonous fumes filled the air, causing a maelstrom out of black, starless sky and furiously swirling ooman-blood-red clouds. Sometimes, lightning forked the sky in multitudes of colour, creating their only light-source. From what Greeahnyau knew, the planet weather was always like this, but the inhabitants – the kainde amedha and other primitive species that had adjusted to their surroundings – did not seem to mind. His thoughts were not focused on the sky though, but on a solution to their problem. They had found out that machines – no matter how dexterous they were – quickly became prey to bug claws, even if they had weapons attached, so that option was out of the question. They needed something small that would fit through the tunnels and could fight back, thinking for itself. He took a look at the size of an average burrow, and when a drone swept down the tunnel towards him, he thrust his spear in until the beast stopped squirming. Looking at the size of the hole, and remembering his specifications, he came to the nearest logical and feasible conclusion.

"Humans," Greeahnyau said aloud to his brothers. They all looked at him, their masks hiding any emotion on their faces. "Humans; we could use them to get what we are after – they are small enough, after all, to enter these burrows and we all know how reactive their survival instincts are…" His suggestion seemed to be one of their only available options, but only one of them would decide if humans should be used in their plans; Kurath. They all looked to their leader, the one who would choose whether they would continue their plan and reach their goal, or abandon the idea altogether and take a different route through life, to a much lesser goal. Kurath abhorred humans far more than any of his followers ever could, and it was this factor that made the future of their agenda uncertain. There was a long, indecisive pause, and for a stretched moment, everyone thought that Kurath was going to abort their mission.

But they had need not feared.

"I thought as much before we attacked the pyode amedha outpost," their leader replied, his voice containing tension. "And so I sent out a message to someone I know who can help us in our quest. He will be alone, and he is coming here. I hope you don't mind another joining our little group boys, but his expertise will be of a great help." Whether that help would be given willingly or unwillingly, they had yet to establish.

~End of Chapter 2~

A/N: What does everyone think of the names? I've tried to stick as closely to the kind of 'naming-style' found in the only book that I have read that contains Predator names (AvP: Prey).