'Hey Guys GhostNobody here again, first off let me say a big thank you to you all for your continued support for my little adventure here, it really does bring me so much joy that in some little way I am touching all your lives and hopefully bringing little more joy to you all, I mean it's one of those things you really can't have too much of really can you? So I'm just glad that in my little way I get to contribute to it for you all, secondly let me apologize for the irregularity of my updates as of late, thirdly I'm am now starting to take suggestions on what you guys would like to see from me next, I've already had a couple and a one has kinda peaked my interest and that was to do a love story between a Xeno queen and a human guy, but I did think I'd kinda give it a GhostNobody spin and jazz it right up, the voices in my head want me to make it take place in a full on zombie apocalypse where both humans and Xeno's can get infected and become undead, it'd be a hell of a challenge to get right that's for sure, but I'm still very much open to suggestions so if anyone has any ideas or if you guys like my idea of the human/Xeno love story in the zombie apocalypse feel free to drop your ideas or feelings in the comments or PM them to me and we can discuss it, this also goes for any ideas for a potential sequel for Hunter Hunted too. Lastly let me just say one last big thank you to everyone for all the love and support, this is GhostNobody signing off and saying on with the show…'
Chapter 28: New Love Old Problems.
As he burst out of the cave Ryan couldn't see Shena Black Crest anywhere but as he focused of finding her his vision flashed and he saw a trail of grey smoke leading down the side of the cliff and into the trees.
Rapidly Ryan made his way down the cliff and followed the trail as it wound through the trees, he stayed on the ground as he moved as he'd never felt comfortable leaping from tree to tree no matter how many times his mother had tried to teach him, he'd always found it easier and faster to run on the ground as he moved rather than bouncing between the branches. As he ran what he was going to say to her started to play through in his head, the first thing he was going to do was to apologize for the intrusion into her mind, he hadn't meant to do it but since they were in intimate contact it had triggered his abilities when he'd focused on her, but there was one thing that made him smile as he ran following the trail, he'd discovered that she found him attractive.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
"Stupid, stupid, stupid" Shena Black Crest said to herself as she bounced from branch to branch of the trees, she didn't know where she was running to but all she knew was she wanted to crawl into a hole and die of embarrassment. She couldn't believe that she'd been so stupid as to fall asleep and cuddle up to him, but she couldn't understand as to why she'd done it in the first place, she had never cuddled up to anyone while asleep in her life and not to mention the fact that she was such a light sleeper that a Viltar rat could fart in another room and she'd wake up, so how she'd managed to end up wrapped up in his arms without being woken up totally confused her.
Finally, she stopped running and found herself stood in a tree overlooking a massive clearing, from here she could see the sky and all the stars in it, she could also see two of the planet's moons rising high into the night sky, she huffed at the beautiful scene as right now her feelings were in a very dark place because she knew that the male she liked had seen into her mind and had seen her heart laid totally bare, right at this point she knew that he was in the cave in a total rage because of what he'd seen, she sat down on the branch and proceeded to burst into tears, just when she'd thought she might have found her way in the pages of that diary and how it might be alright for her to be attracted to someone who wasn't fully Yaujta, for the first time she actually felt like her differences might be alright and not the bad things that she had been led to believe, but he had to go and see her raw feelings like that, her whole heart laid before him and before she had a real chance to understand her own feelings, what must he think of her right now?
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Little did Shena Black Crest know that right at that very moment Ryan was stood directly below the tree she currently occupied looking up at her, in the moonlight he could see her black skin shining like polished Jet, she was by far the most beautiful creature he had ever seen in his short life.
As he'd been running he'd been rehearsing what he was going to say to her when he found her, but now here presented with the sight of a crying female in a tree and knowing that he was the cause all his carefully prepared words went right out of the window. He felt terrible knowing that he was the reason that strong proud Yaujta huntress had been reduced to tears, he'd never meant to see her most intimate thoughts and feelings without her permission, but at the same time he couldn't help what he was, he had to make this right, but how?
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
Shena Black Crest didn't hear Ryan approach until he was on the branch right next to her, his sudden appearance completely startled her from her tears, at first she thought it was someone coming to attack her and she readied herself for battle, but as soon as she saw his bright purple eyes looking at her in the moonlight she realized who she was sharing her branch with and went to flee from him again, "No! Shena please wait!" Ryan said in a voice that sounded so mournful that it froze her solid, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to invade your mind like that, it was an accident!" he said in a very apologetic and mournful voice, her eyes roamed his face for signs of deceit but found nothing, but locking on to his eyes she saw genuine regret in them, she un-tensed her muscles and looked from his face to the branch below her, suddenly she found herself rather angry, but not at him at herself but without any target to vent her rage it got channeled at him,
"You had no right!" she yelled, Ryan looked surprised at the raw anger in her voice, but having seen the inner workings of her mind he quickly realized that this was her defense mechanism kicking in, he realized now that he'd seen her mind he knew how it worked, he'd seen the pain and humiliation she'd suffered at the hands of her peers and teachers and so many others in her clan for not being tall like other females, he'd seen how hard she'd had to push herself, he'd seen all her triumphs being swept away like they were dust before the more pitiful achievements of bigger females simply because they were bigger and more feminine than her, it stank of total injustice and it infuriated him that someone as wonderful as her was judged so harshly simply because of something outside of her control like her height, all those things she'd done and achieved and for her to be treated like that was nothing short of criminal, it was no wonder she was angry and then just when she felt like she was beginning to be accepted as herself by someone, this happens, he had to make it right for her, but how?
"I know and I'm sorry, I didn't mean to honestly I was just so startled when I woke up with you in my arms that when I focused on you it triggered the ability I couldn't control it" he said in a quiet voice barely above a whisper, Shena flexed her fists open and shut looking like she might strike out at any moment,
"How much did you see?" she asked in an anger laden quiet voice, Ryan's first instinct was to try and calm her by claiming that it wasn't hardly anything, but as his eyes saw the fire in her bright silver eyes he knew he had to tell her the truth,
"All of it" he said in a quiet voice, the embarrassment driven rage in her eyes was obvious for all to see, "I saw the pain you feel every day as you get passed over for larger less accomplished females, simply because they're taller than you, I saw the humiliation you feel every time you get sneered at by a male, I saw the pain you feel when you parents pretty much ignore you over your brothers and sisters, I saw how hard you've trained and how hard you've worked to get to where you are" he said.
The rage in Shena boiled over and she lashed out screeching loudly as she did, she swung at Ryan but he easily countered it catching her hand and deflecting the blow, she kicked out at him and he twisted out of the way easily before it came near him, then as her other hand came in as a slap he caught her wrist and pushed her backwards up against the trunk of the tree with surprising strength, before she had chance to strike out again he caught her other wrist and held them both to her side with his face mere inches from hers, the fact that he'd so easily bested her only served to fuel her rage and she struggled against him, but then he did the most surprising thing that anyone had ever done to her, he hugged her.
Shena Black Crest proud unblooded huntress of the Shadow Claw clan was so completely stunned by this act she froze solid, she could feel Ryan's breathing against her neck and his heart beating through his chest as their skins were pressed tightly together, she turned her head slowly to look at him as he held her, in his eyes where she'd expected to see pity she saw something totally different, rage.
"What was done to you is despicable, to judge someone's worth based solely on something as petty as height is nothing short of pathetic, I have seen what you have done, I have seen what you have accomplished and it's nothing short of remarkable" he said in a voice laced with a righteous anger, his words stung like a blade to the heart but they carried the most weight because he had seen how hard she had struggled and she knew that he understood,
"It's not fair" she said in a shaky voice, he nodded as he still held her against him,
"It isn't and you know what else is not fair?" he asked, she looked at him and shook her head,
"The fact that I took that pain from you when it was yours and yours alone, those struggles were yours and those fights were yours and I've experienced them through your eyes and I know now how I can make it right" he said,
"H-H-How?" she asked in a stammering voice, he drew his mandibles up into a smile,
"I've seen your heart so it's only right that you see mine" he said, she furrowed her brow, but then her curiosity got the better of her,
"Is that even possible?" she asked, he nodded,
"I've seen my father do it to my mother many times, when she was going into a rage or storming around the place or they'd just had an argument, he'd simply reach up and touch her, but before I didn't know that he was a Dream Warrior and only now I understand what it was that I was seeing, he was letting her into his mind, I'm not as experienced as a Dream Warrior as he is but I'd do anything to make up for the injustice I've done to you" he replied, his words surprised her greatly,
"Why?" she asked and he cocked his head to one side obviously not understanding her question, "Why would you do something like that for me?" she asked more clearly, he smiled again,
"Because I care about you and I can't stand to think that my actions have hurt you, my honor demands that I make it right" he said, her eyes flew open as wide as they would go at his words,
"Y-Y-Y-You care about me!?" she stammered, he nodded,
"But rather than tell you in words why don't you let me show you in actions?" he said, her breathing quickened and her heart hammered in her chest, these were words that she'd never in a million years that she'd though she'd hear from a male, especially not one she liked, she swallowed hard and nodded her head, "Alright, show me" she said, Ryan nodded and he brought his hand up and placed it to her temple, his skin was so smooth and soft and his hand was so warm, then he closed his eyes and she felt something happening, it was like there was someone in her mind with her, then in a massive rush she felt her vision flicker and in huge spool Ryan's life and experiences were flushed into her mind, it was like watching a huge broadcast in extreme fast forwards but at the same time it was like time seemed to stand still and she saw each and every experience in full exquisite detail, she knew everything he did and felt everything he did, in that second she knew exactly what it was to be a Dream Warrior and why they were so feared, in those seconds she saw the entirety of his life and she also saw the first time he'd seen her, she felt the way his heart had beat faster, she actually felt the rush of adrenaline and endorphins flood his mind as he looked at her, she looked at herself through his eyes and heard the thoughts that crossed his mind as he looked at her body and one word stood out 'Beautiful', she knew exactly how he felt about her and it brought tears to her eyes, even after only knowing her for only one day he was in love with her so completely that it made his heart ache when he looked at her and she actually felt it and what scared her more was that his feelings exactly matched her own, is this what Tik eleth had meant when she talked about meeting your soul mate? Two hearts that match each other so perfectly that when they meet for the first time it's like they've always been together, maybe this love at first sight thing wasn't a myth at all, for her and for him it seemed to be a complete reality.
00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
From the ground Sela eleth watched the exchange between her brother and Shena, she saw quite clearly Shena's reaction as her brother's entire life was shown to her in exquisite detail as he did his Dream Warrior thing, she knew exactly how intense that was as her father had done it for her once, she'd gone off in a huff because she felt that brother was being favored over her and she'd gone off to sulk about it, in typical fashion her father had found her in no time at all and he'd just sat with her not saying a word, she'd gone off on one shouting at him calling him all sorts of names and getting rather emotional, she'd accused him of favoritism and all sorts of other things, then without saying a word he'd simply reached out and touched her cheek and instantly his emotions and memories had been transferred into her mind in a flash, everything from her birth right up to their birthdays, celebrating ooman Christmas and her giggling at her Matriarch because her father had made her wear something called a Santa's hat, to his joy at watching her open her presents and playing with them, right up to her first day of training and up till now, she cried out her heart in his arms for the next hour, after that moment she'd never doubted his love for her again and she knew that both he and her Matriarch would kill the universe to protect them, so she knew how Shena was feeling right now, Dream Warrior emotional transference was a very powerful thing and she would be experiencing all of Ryan's emotions raw and unchecked, but one thing was for definite, she would be left with no doubts about how he felt towards her.
000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
After the transfer was complete Ryan collapsed, he still wasn't used to his Dream Warrior abilities and using something as powerful as emotional transference really took it out of him, but before he went down Shena caught him, he felt himself being drawn into a tight embrace and he saw an extreme close up of her beautiful face she looked worried, "Ryan!" she exclaimed, he managed to regain his footing and stood up with a bit of a sway,
"Sorry that really took it out of me" he said with a weak smile, he looked at Shena's face again, she had tears in her eyes but was smiling broadly with her mandibles drawn right up,
"I-I-I-I had no idea you felt that way about me" she said in a rather happy sounding voice, he nodded,
"I saw how you felt towards me with no buffers and I felt it was only fair that I showed you the same in return" he said, Shena pulled him into the tightest hug he'd ever received save for the time his Matriarch had arrived the time his father had saved him from a Whelp by tearing its head off with his bare hands, she'd nearly crushed him to death with her hugs and he actually remembered that that was one of the only time he'd seen her full on cry because she'd been so scared that he'd been hurt or worse, now it seemed to be Shena's turn to crush him to death with her feelings.
A sudden cough from underneath them made them separate from their embrace and they looked down to see Sela eleth on the ground, "If you two have finished maybe we should head back" she said in an amused but happy sounding voice, both Shena and Ryan looked at each other embarrassedly but then they both smiled broadly and both burst out laughing, in fact they both laughed so hard and so loudly that Sela eleth begun to suspect that they had both gone crazy as a result of sharing each other's emotions, but finally they both climbed down and joined her on the ground.
0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000
The three of them walked back to the cave, as they walked Sela eleth noticed that at some point along the way her brother and Shena had begun holding hands, she smiled at the cute scene, it was amazing how quickly that emotional transfer ability could clear things up and also forge new bonds, though she felt she probably shouldn't be surprised as it left no margins for errors as it showed in no uncertain terms exactly how you felt for a person, right at this point Shena had no delusions about how her brother felt for her and he knew exactly how strongly she felt for him. It also appeared that her Matriarch's diary had had a rather profound effect on her and had helped her get some perspective on how she felt, she just really hoped they weren't planning on trying out anything she'd read in some of the later sections or it would be her running out of the cave in embarrassment this time.
Once they were back at the cave Ryan sealed them in with the massive wooden block as Sela eleth went over to where she'd left her catch, "Would you like to help me prepare food Shena?" she asked, Shena looked at her and then at the lizards she'd hunted, she seemed surprised that she was being offered food after what she'd done, she nodded happily,
"Great, here's a little tip for you if you plan to have a long life together with my brother, whatever you do don't ever let Ryan prepare food, his cooking's far more lethal than any poison, in fact I'm sure that our father was considering using Ryan's porridge to tip his bullets once" Sela eleth said with a sly grin, Shena grinned broadly but shyly at the same time at the mention of being paired with Ryan for life,
"Hey my cooking's not that bad!" Ryan protested as he walked into the main cave, Sela looked at him and raised an eyebrow,
"Pauk off, father once used that stew of yours to frighten off the gremlin rats that kept eating the vegetables in our Matriarch's garden, damn things were so scared of what it did to the one rat that was stupid enough to eat it that they never came back" Sela said with her hands on her hips,
"Wasn't my fault that father didn't tell me that those roots weren't for cooking" Ryan grumbled dropping down on the bed in a huff, Shena giggled behand her hand at this,
"What happened to the gremlin rat?" she asked curiously,
"It dissolved from the inside out" Sela said and now Shena full on started belly laughing at Ryan as he laid back on the bed grumbling to himself, Sela eleth grinned at her brother,
"But as it happens I'm a rather good cook if I don't say so myself, our father taught me the art of field cooking and I can find food pretty much anywhere and I'm rather good at it if I don't say so myself, our father is a fantastic cook our Matriarch always gets really excited when she finds something exotic for him to turn his attention to" she said,
"My uncle taught me the art of field cooking and he was really good at it too" Shena said smiling proudly as she remembered the food her beloved uncle used to treat her too after his hunts,
"Well then you can be my helper and Ryan can stay there on the bed safely away from anything edible lest he taint it by getting to close" Sela said in a teasing voice,
"What is this take the piss out of Ryan day?" he grumped from the bed, then both Sela and Shena looked at each other and instantly both burst out laughing, for a second Ryan watched them in a huff, but then he found himself joining in on it and pretty soon the three of them were laughing so hard they could barely stand, they just felt so relieved to have each other that it had just come tumbling out in the form of laughter, but little did they know the trials that the three of them would have to face in the next few days, but for now they just laughed and for the first time since they'd all got here all of them felt happy.