Beastly Bonds
Chapter XIX
Thanks to these reviewers:
Iridescent Twilight – To start, you've been reviewing this since the beginning and I even dedicated a chapter to you, you've been one of the best reviewers I have ever had the pleasure of having to read your reviews. And wouldn't anyone give into him? I mean seriously, it's kind of hard not to.
audran – Oh ye anonymous reviewer, thank you for all those times you've left good long reviews and those inspiring one liners. Not being sarcastic here, your reviews always make me happy. It's good to know someone is interested enough to keep reading a story. And yes, a fight scene does happen in this final chapter. I'm afraid it isn't as detailed as Of Schoolgirls and Convicts, but I did my best. No, no, Tipner and Litman are still here. Sorry about the vagueness and be ready, I will have much to write upon my return.
ren3017 – You're amazing too. All of you just make me day in a way that isn't possible otherwise. Yes, I write like a steam engine, indeedy do. And here is your last and final fix! Savor it!
TotallyRiddickObsessed – I wondered what happened to you and glad to have you back. I stopped doing the camping thing a while ago and yeah, unhappy times. Of course I'm updating, I'd feel so bad if I didn't. Yeah, the hellhound touch is really nice. At least to me.
Story!
Jack ran headlong into danger, pulling out a handgun and scalping the closest attacker who was trying to go from behind the bungalows. He still stumbled, and to Jack, that was alive, so another well-aimed bullet into the skull ended matters quickly. With a mess, but quickly. Neunzhen had already bloodied his muzzle from taking down the other man who had paired with the one Jack had already disposed of.
Their blood shone brightly against the green leaves, spattering it with what looked like scarlet honey, perhaps sweet to the mouth, but most definitely sticky to the touch. Yet Jack wasn't really taking notice of this as she heard another pained scream come from within the bungalow. Distracted, she ran forward, only to feel an alien warmth trying to sneak around her waist. It was another attacker but she wasn't thinking of defending herself, so she kept trying to run. Suddenly she heard a small and quick moan and the muscled arm when limp around her and fell forward. Jack began to brace herself for the fallen weight but instead it went off course and fell to the side. It was clear to her what had happened in those few seconds when she turned and saw Riddick, bloody shiv in hand, standing over a barely-breathing attacker.
Jack thanked him best she could in her state of mind and as she began to ran to the bungalows she distinctly heard his voice before the blow of death was delivered.
"First mistake. Attacking from behind, you fucking coward. Second mistake and most important. You touched what was mine and will never be anyone else's." And with that a heart-stopping bone crunch echoed in the rainforest, but Jack was already climbing into the bedroom window.
She cursed as she ran through that and into the living room, where a gory sight met her eyes. Krent was on the ground, breathing shallowly, blood seeping from various gunshot wounds while Meth did his best to protect him. Yet he was wounded as well and was losing consciousness fast.
"METH!" She shouted, making him startle and turn around. "GET FUCKING DOWN!"
He did as told as she easily took out another handgun and with more bullets then necessary, shot and killed the four attackers. She barely caught Meth as he fell to the floor, laying him down as she scrambled for the radio splattered with blood. Whose it was she didn't want to know but she had to contact the other two.
"C'mon Meth, hold on, hold on." She spoke quickly, trying to open a signal and rip part of her shirt off to slow the blood flow. Jack barely realized her hands were shaking until both of Riddick's covered hers, kneeling down behind her. Only then did she hear her own panicked breathing and she closed her eyes, regaining a semi-workable state of mind.
"Jacqueline," his deep voice calmed her quickly. "I'll take care of this, go contact the others." And with a brief kiss to the back of her neck, he gently shoved her off into the direction of the beach.
Holstering the two handguns she was carrying, Jack took out the two weapons that were most natural for her, the two shivs she had acquired over time. One was Riddick's, which he had given her before he left New Mecca and the other a bone shiv she made in Crematoria. Sheathing one in her belt, she ducked to the ground, seeing that another boat was slowly motoring in, trying to be very quiet. She dug the radio out of her pants pocket and immediately got signal with Litman and Tipner.
"Jesus, Jack! What the fuck is going on?" Litman's angry voice harshly crackled over the connection.
"Shh, shut up. You're in the boat right?" She was relieved to not have a presence behind her, so she could focus mostly on the figures moving in front of her. These men were well-armed and seemingly better trained, she could tell by the way they moved about the ground, subconsciously taking care not to make any unnecessary noise.
"Yes. We're coming in on the east side." Litman confirmed. All their activity and the bungalows was placed on the east side of the island, leaving the west open for extra activity. Like sneaking around without being seen.
"Litman, listen to me. Stop, go around the north side of the island. When you've roughly hit northwest, stop there and get out. Get to the bungalows." She cut the connection, turning her attention back to the men lingering on the beach.
"So who the fuck are we looking for again?" One guy asked, kicking a rock into the forest. He had a tattoo that looked like a thestral rearing, the hooves and skeleton horse neck with its empty dead eyes just showing above the neck line of his shirt.
"You fucking idiot, that bitch Kyra and her wenchmen. Henchmen, wenchmen, whatever." Another snapped at him, walking further out then the others, looking into the forest where he saw nothing.
"Fucking bitch just took out the guys you sent around back." The first one, Thestral (as Jack mentally referred to him as) reported, looking stony.
"Great, more pay for us. Get your fucking pussies moving, bitches, we've got a bounty to collect." The leader spit on the ground.
"Boss, we don't even know where she is." One stupidly mentioned, who looked like he was having trouble taking off the safety on his gun.
If Riddick only saw this asses. Christ, such idiots.
"Well that's why we got so many men, you shithead. Now, kids, let's head out." He ordered, walking forward slowly. Jack dipped lower in the leaves, he passed right next to her but the thick leaves hid her.
The leader didn't realize how stupid his men were, seeing how instead of spreading out, they decided just to follow him. In a line. Jack smirked at this, this would be so easy. She and Neunzhen would have a party over this. Speaking of him, she turned to find him ready to pounce just across the path that the mercs had created. With an almost silent growl, she signaled to the hellhound, who looked up at her and waited. Jack knew she had time to kill, let them get semi-comfortable and confident walking around the rainforest, then get them. One by one she would pick them off, so to use time efficiently, she made a small diagram for Neunzhen.
There were fourteen men, she had counted by the footsteps and breathing patterns, so she found fourteen small twigs and stuck them into the ground in front of her. Neunzhen arched his head over to see what she was doing, glancing towards the receding back of the last in the line, who had no idea what was behind him. Without making a sound the hellhound crossed the path and settled down next to Jack.
She pointed to the line and to the sticks and the hellhound nodded, watching with amusement in his eyes and Jack flicked each stick out of the ground. Easy, they take turns, each taking one. Seven wasn't too bad, especially when they didn't know someone was behind them. Minutes passed and she hoped Riddick had taken care of Krent and Meth. She finally decided it was an all green, good to go, so she reworked her grip on her shivs and without any noise, just movement, she stepped from her hiding place.
As she began to walk forward, each step precisely placed, nothing around her registered anymore. Every part of her being was solely focused on her targets…well, more like victims. Soon she was behind the last man, who had the nerve to have a small smile on his face. Tilting her head towards Neunzhen, the hellhound slinked back into the forest, knowing it would be his turn soon. Jack raised both blades, planning to just slice the front of his throat both ways. Not very quiet, but it could be done. Just as the bone weapons were parallel to the living bone of the human, a strangled yell came from up front and Jack was forced to retreat into the bushes. Neunzhen was there, he had heard the yell as well and looked up at her. Jack shook her head and gripped his collar, waiting for what happened. As men ran back towards the beach, the clips of conversation was all she needed.
"FUCK! He didn't tell us that fucking Riddick was here too!"
"Goddamn that motherfucker, just steppin' out like that and shivvin' boss!" Another yelled, following his comrades.
Jack snarled in anything but human manner. Riddick should've known that she was going to ghost them and not to interfere.
Hello Kyra.
Jack paid almost no attention to the voice in her head that spoke that, but she felt the same beast rousing in her that had stayed pacing and wild in Crematoria. Closing her eyes, she gave into that beast, suddenly connecting to Neunzhen on a much deeper level. With just one look to him, it was clear. This wasn't going to be a planned murder one by one, this was going to be a massacre.
Shivs held at her sides, she ran forward, barely noticing that the sky had darkened and the usual rain for the rainy season of Caribi had begun to start. The hooves of thunder galloped in the distance, the chariot not far behind, the storm in tow. Lances of lightning struck the water not far off, but Jack was in her element. Running forward, Neunzhen loped ahead of her, his scales a fiery red, his barely kept in roars rippling in his chest.
Taking a few leaps in step, Jack jumped in the air and twisting her body to the left, she shivved the her first victim in the neck. Stepping off the dead man's shoulder she continued her warpath in the air, falling directly onto another man's back, slamming the bloody blades deep into his body. Neunzhen had brutally taken a victim, tearing out his throat as his claws ripped deep into the soft flesh.
Jack didn't know that Riddick, Litman and Tipner stood at the edge of the forest, almost entranced by her elegant dance of killing. Suddenly the thunder boomed overhead and rain poured from the sky, soaking her instantly. Her beast was awake now and this splash of water only worked as a refresher. If one looked hard enough they could almost see a roused demon-like beast shadowing Jack's form, roaring in its victory of release and escape. Yet she continued and now she was chasing a few last men running on the beach, trying to get to their boat. Neunzhen easily took down one, relishing in the scream that ripped from the man's throat.
Jack killed the others, but something was wrong as she stood and stretched, scanning the beach. Thestral. She hadn't seen his body beneath her feet, pumping out blood like the rest of them. His corpse wasn't just that, it was alive and scheming. She was so intensely engrossed in watching her victim's take their final breath and thinking of Thestral's whereabouts that she barely heard Riddick's strong yell. Through the rain that blurred any vision, she saw him running towards her and a faint cry of 'behind you' just reached her ears. The sand shifted beneath her feet as she turned around, only to see that Thestral was standing here, gun in hand, pointed at her.
That's the problem with rain, dear Jacqueline. Her beast gently chastised her. You lose the scents.
"Hey, bitch, dead or alive you're still worth millions. And if I take in your buddy here, good ole Richie, I'm gonna be the filthiest richest merc in the universe." He said, panting. Jack would have tried to reply, but she knew it would only come out in snarls and beast sounds that his ear could never pick up on.
Instead she fingered the shiv in her hand and with an underhand toss, he didn't see her move but felt the pain of a blade crunching through one of legs, shattering bone and tearing tendons. He yelled in pain, leaning down to pull out the blade. He barely did it before a searing pain slashed his side. He looked up to see the hellhound snarling nearby, walking back towards Jack.
Throwing the blade onto the beach, he ran off, limping horribly. Everything to him was a blur, but between his panicked breathes and his hands trying to move him back on the ground, he managed to aim his gun and shoot at what he thought was the infernal woman who wouldn't die.
Throwing the gun behind his back, it slung back with its strap and he attempted to stand and run but was met with a pair of booted feet. Looking up he saw the cruel green eyes mocking him and almost blacked out when one of the feet came into contact with his skull, breaking his nose and maybe part of his jaw. His eyelids fluttered as he turned his back to her and in a last attempt to escape, limped towards the boat. But he was momentarily blinded by the lightning striking the water, electrifying the sky for just a second. Blinking rapidly, he saw the mysterious figure of this woman, illuminated by the frequent strikes of lightning.
"Time to end this." She growled out in a voice that Thestral could've sworn was that of the devil. 'But', his last thoughts went as such, 'I'll be hearin' that voice again in a few minutes. Hell, here I come.'
He heard an unearthly yell of blind rage as he felt a shiv sinking deep into the back of neck. Just on the edge of death he groaned and felt two hands place themselves on his wet head. The rain poured in torrents now, the dark sky foreshadowing the fate of the now dead team of mercs. The raindrops washed away the blood leaking from his face but the hands were real enough as they squeezed and viciously snapped his head back, his neck breaking instantly.
It was a sight none of them would forget, forever burned into their memories. Jack stood, the rain washing sins off her body that had landed her in the hellish prison of Crematoria all those years ago. The white of bone shivs shone bright as the blood dripped off, giving them a clean and almost innocent look. She stood in the center of the massacre, not at all sorry for what she had done, the multitude of lives she had just taken. Her breaths came out in puffs of steam, giving her an animalistic presence. Her body showed pure power, undeniable majesty and wisdom all residing in that being. Behind her Neunzhen stood, his red scales showing bright against the dull, washed out colours that surrounded them, his silvery blue eyes flashing victoriously with his tail that whipped back and forth slowly. As if ending the special moment, he lifted his head back and bellowed a roar, but unlike the ones in Crematoria, this one sounded of final freedom, something that had been chased for many years by all those who were part of this.
As Jack's human spirit returned, she looked up to see her pack patiently waiting and more importantly, her mate, who stood in quiet and accepting awe of her strength. Closing her eyes, she regained her breath and sheathed her shivs, quietly calling to Neunzhen. He padded next to her, licking her hand as they slowly made their way towards the group who stood on the edge of the forest still.
Tipner and Litman strayed off, walking towards the bungalows to leave Riddick and Jack alone. Surprisingly, Neunzhen went with them, giving Jack one last final look of approval. Riddick watched carefully as she approached him, her eyes clearly human, but he couldn't be too sure of that.
"Jacqueline?" He questioned, his voice like that of the thunder that was now rumbling far off in the distance. The rain hadn't slowed, but somehow she could see clearer.
"Riddick, it's me." She said before taking two steps to close the distance between them and kissing him full on the mouth. He eagerly responded, tasting what little beast hadn't fell asleep within her yet. The two bodies almost melted into one, Jack's form pressed against Riddick's as well as she could while still staying upright and kissing him. Breaking apart for air, their breath steamed up above them, clearing away moments later.
In motions that could only be called that of a beast, they affectionately nuzzled and nipped at each other, small growls and whines being all the communication needed. Firmly holding Jack in his arms, Riddick kissed her again and his silver eyes had this shining hope in them that Jack was curious about.
"Riddick?" She asked, bringing up her hand to gently caress his face. He pushed his head into her hand, a show of tenderness that wasn't unusual to Jack, seeing how Neunzhen did it all the time. "You alright?"
"Jack," he started, clasping her hands in one of his and he found it smooth and clean of blood. "I love you." He swooped down to kiss her before she could reply, part of him almost afraid that she wouldn't say the same so he sealed this memory with one last kiss. To his dismay, she pulled back, growling out his name defensively.
"Riddick, I can taste your fear of rejection." She sounded almost angry, but her voice changed to that of gentle and loving. "And you've never held fear of anything before, so you shouldn't start now."
He growled in confusion at her, his silver eyes lost and unsure. Her green eyes showed sympathy as she slowly kissed him, and to Riddick, tasting him for what could be the last time.
"Riddick, I love you too." She said back to him, her tired voice sincere. The two molded together again, this time inseparable. The rain hadn't cleared yet and whether this was a bad or good omen neither knew and in their beastly bonding, neither cared.
Epilogue
Jack groaned as she tossed another bag onto her ship, not even seeing if it landed somewhere appropriate. In a swagger she moved down the ramp, greeting Neunzhen with a smile. He stood from his position of sunning himself and followed her as she marched out of the hangar. With a mumble of forgetfulness, Jack turned around and with a remote control of sorts, watched as the door closed and hissed shut.
For what was the last time, she walked through the rain forest, all the animals chattering and chirping as she passed. The sun's shattered rays lit the forest, everything glowing in its own natural manner. The wet earth absorbed her footsteps, but they stayed visible. Neunzhen went behind her, covering each of hers with his paws, leaving the tracks of an animal, not a human who had an animal companion. After what seemed an eternity of walking around trunks, watching for thorny leaves and jumping over fallen trees, Jack walked out of the rainforest and onto the paths.
The bungalows came into view, but that wasn't what she was looking for. She passed right by them, the wind spilling through the rooms and Jack caught scent of Krent's and Meth's unique bonded smell. She approached the beach, where the boat stood at ready, the passengers loading their belongings and getting comfortable. She was upwind now of everyone else and in less then a second she saw Riddick's head lift up and turn in her direction. She smiled at him as she neared the water's edge and leaned back into his body when he greeted her with an embrace from behind.
To her relief, Krent had barely made it, the bullets hitting in all the wrong places, which had made Tipner doubtful if he could do anything. Yet, a few broken ribs, thankfully not shattered, quite a few stitches to his shoulder, whose arm was now in a sling and many of Meth's tears later, he sat on the boat. He tried shifted to get comfortable but he winced, seeing how whichever way he turned it caused him pain. Yet Meth, who had not gone unscathed, was there at his side, helping the older man. Litman was checking the systems of the boat while Tipner was returning with another sackful of books that he refused to leave in Caribi.
"You guys going to be alright?" She asked, folding her arms over Riddick's. He was lightly kissing her neck, becoming quite a distraction so she had to step on his foot to get him to stop.
"Alone? Without you? I'm not too sure about that Jack. It's bad enough that the more mature of us are injured, but I don't know if we can handle young Neil Buckner here without you." Tipner said, gesturing to the now scowling Litman, who sent a glare to the old man.
"If he gets too bad, I'm sure you can knock him out with just a wee shot of vodka." Jack joked, making Litman moan in embarrassment.
"Not even, maybe a thimbleful will do the trick." Meth added, securing his lover's position in the boat. Krent had been very worried about his health, but Meth proved to be strong and came through. This had only served to bond the lovers more, the two barely being able to be out of sight or touch with the other.
"Real funny, guys. I bet Riddick can't hold alcohol well. I mean, c'mon, he can't be drunk while taking out all those people." Litman stupidly reasoned, not sure where his proper train of thought had derailed too.
"I wouldn't be too sure about that, Litman." Jack cautioned, tightening her grip on Riddick's hands, who didn't seem bothered at all.
"Listen to your captain, kiddie. I could out drink all of you put together. Easy, no problem." Riddick commented, almost challenging them.
"Well, enough of this, we have a flight to catch and I'm sure you two have…business to attend to." Tipner said, loading the last of the bags and packages onto the boat.
Riddick stayed on the beach while Jack clambered into the boat, saying goodbye to all of her prison mates. Riddick suspected she had somehow blessed the relationship between Meth and Krent, but he wasn't going to ask. Jack had a rather long and serious farewell to Tipner, who assured her that he would be fine and the tropical climate had done some good for his health. To Litman she had immediately smacked on the back of the head, growling at him to behave and not make any unnecessary noise. And by that, she had added, she meant just talking in general. But it was a genuine farewell as she jumped the side of the boat, walking back to Riddick as the boat slowly pulled out. Litman was more careful this time, seeing how there were injured passengers aboard.
They waited until the boat was out of sight before turning back to head to their own ship. Riddick sought out Jack's hand and held hers as they walked quietly towards the forest, Neunzhen weaving in and out around them. After their confession both of them had been very tender and affectionate, not that either minded. Then they had quickly went to Krent and Meth, who were doing better after Riddick's quick surgery, but Tipner had done a more detailed check, just to make sure nothing had gone wrong. That night Riddick had insisted he do a full body check to make sure nothing was broken or hurt in Jack. This quickly turned into a passionate night of sex, neither caring if the other was bruised or hurt. Their rain soaked bodies had slid together so easily, not unlike their first kiss in the ocean. They had barely slept and as a result didn't get up until late the next afternoon.
About two weeks had passed between that time and today, seeing how Krent was in absolutely no condition to travel. It had been tense, Jack always checking the monitors and news reels for anything. Once or twice she had seen a small detail, but nothing major had popped up as a red flag. So they had waited, Jack and Riddick often spending the days just wandering the rainforest, finding hidden clearings and caves.
As they went into the hangar, Neunzhen bounded ahead of them, waiting for the door to open. When the ramp hit the ground, he stalked up and into the ship, followed by Riddick and Jack. Jack knew nothing was wrong and that the hellhound was simply exploring, probably looking for a room to occupy. Riddick followed Jack into the captain's bedroom, which was much more spacious then he had realized. When he had snuck onto the ship before they reached Caribi, he had roughly estimated what rooms were which, how big they were and so and so forth. But he had never imagined the ship to be so finely equipped and elegant. Especially not from the guards of Crematoria. Yet the model of the ship was known for being just what he saw before him, so he didn't voice any complaints.
Jack secured herself in the pilots seat, not even thinking that Riddick would have preferred it if he was piloting. But he quietly settled into the copilots seat, doing the normal system checks and the like.
"Hey Riddick." Jack almost asked, looking out onto the ocean that lay beyond the hangar.
"Yeah?" He asked, relieved to find that all was fine with the ship.
"Where we going to go?" She asked, leaning forward with a release of breath, flipping the connection switches.
"Not Helion Prime, not yet." He decided, watching as Jack naturally held the switch down for a signal. She didn't reply but waited for the voice to come over the speaker.
"This is Captain Laurent, requesting permission to takeoff." She spoke, waiting for a reply.
"Permission given, you're free to leave anytime." The bodiless voice returned. Jack cut the signal and started the engines, relaxed by the hum of the ship.
"So you've got a place in mind?" She asked, easily steering the ship in its water form out onto the ocean. Riddick didn't reply, wondering where the hell this conversation was going. To his surprise Jack easily lifted them off and smoothly transported them through the atmosphere, clicking on the autopilot to just float around the system.
"Well," she answered her own question. "I do."
"Do you really?" He asked, releasing his restraints as Jack did, watching her shirt ride up as she stretched. Her body entranced him as it moved away and he stood, waiting to regain any sort of motor skills to follow her.
"Yeah, I do. Guess where it is?" She asked, a seductive smile surprised him as she turned around, licking her lips. "I'm pretty sure you can, Richard B. Riddick." Just hearing that name off her tongue kicked him into motion. He usually hated anyone who dared to use his full name, but it was different with Jack. Everything was.
"Hmm, Jacqueline." He growled, smoothing one hand over her stomach as he quietly walked around her, visibly leaning down to sniff her neck. He felt her shudder beneath his touch and he pushed down his laughter. "I can only imagine the places I'd like to explore." He growled out, sliding his hand a little lower.
"Surprisingly enough, Richard," she turned and slipped her hand between his body and his pants, tugging on it. "I feel the same way." Riddick allowed himself to be dragged behind Jack as she walked towards the bedroom, throwing another seductive grin over her shoulder. "And, as much as I enjoy the foreplay, this beast wants its desires fulfilled."
The door hissed closed behind them as Jack walked to the bed, letting go of Riddick's pants and spreading herself out over the covers. His goggles were already off, so his silver eyes glinted in anticipation as he approached the bed. Jack waited as he crawled up the bed, taking the chance to kiss the bared skin of her stomach as he came up to her. Leaning down to her ear, the next words his whispered epitomized what was going to be their relationship.
"Jack, I'm going to make your beast howl."
The End.
Oh: Believe it or not, I had some alternate ideas for plot twists and stuff, if you're interested, email me. Or something. Thanks for reading this story, you've made me happy even if you don't review. But, please do.