Chapter 45: Hide and Seeker.
Remal dashed from bush to bush keeping his head low and using his tail as a rudder for steering at high speeds.
Now to the untrained eye male Raptorians might seem utterly un-threatening and weak but if you truly looked at one with an analytical eye you would begin to see a whole host of biological and evolutionary tricks and gifts that the Great Tree had bestowed upon its little sons in order to allow them to not only defend themselves but to evade even the most determined of predators.
First up was their speed, now while female Raptorians might be able to run for a longer flat out due to their higher stamina males could run faster, a lot faster, due to their smaller frames and lighter weight when combined with their powerful leg muscles which were often honed and toned due to both a need to attract a pride and for their jobs, things like a dancer really did tone up your leg muscles.
This was doubly in effect with Remal as he'd gone from singing and dancing to fighting as a Seeker, so his little body was utterly solid, he was a trained and fit Seeker of Truth so his little muscles were utterly solid, so when he kicked those little thighs of his into gear even without his Seeker speed he could easily outpace any female of his race in a flat out sprint, though the Yautja, Xenomorphs and humans were an utterly different kettle of fish thanks to their much longer legs and in the case of humans insane stamina pools, those bastards could fucking run seemingly forever once they got going.
But that's where his other little biological tricks kicked in and helped him out, humans could easily run him down when he ran out of stamina and had to rest, but where humans fell down was their eyesight, they were a predatory race with binocular vision but it seemed their eyes suffered the same problems that many of the predators on the Raptorian homeworld suffered from, distinguishing colours.
Remal had spent a good part of his time while in Seeker temple familiarising himself with the species of Clan Mason and their allies, so one thing he knew about humans was they had real problems seeing something that wasn't moving especially if it blended in with the background which is where another of the Great Tree's gifts to its beloved little sons came into play, male Raptorians have natural camouflage in the fact that they can change both their scale and feather colours to blend in with their background.
Male Raptorians had layers of feathers that they could manipulate to make them change to a very specific hue of colours which when paired with their scale blending could essentially allow them to blend in with foliage around them and given that Remal was wearing a dark coloured bodysuit which gave the effect of shadow he was more than once able to simply fade into the foliage as a hopeful human girl ran past.
This was a throwback to the point of the Raptorians past where they had to evade dangerous predators and the males would have to hide while being protected by their females.
Now while this trick was useful against both humans and even against his own fellow Raptorians, it was pretty much useless against the Yautja, Xenos and even the Serpentinus.
Yautja saw light on a different spectrum than most species and despite all Yautja who came to Clan Mason being the recipients of visual correcting technology from the Hive of queen Citrus and king Yoshi which allowed them to see a full spectrum of beautiful colours like the other races they still maintained their ability to see far further into the red spectrum which could pick him out even hidden in deep foliage.
They were not thankfully allowed their hunting masks as those gave them an unfair advantage allowing them to see his body heat through even the deepest of cover.
No his best defence against the Yautja was a combination of speed, agility and his size, it was surprisingly easy to dart right between the legs of a nine-foot-tall huntress before kicking off a tree and vanishing through the bushes with a flash of stabilising tail feathers.
Now while that would work on the Yautja it was utterly useless against both Xenos and the Serpentinus who were both far more agile and flexible than he and also both of them could sense his pheromones allowing them to tail him easily.
The Xenomorphs could actually see them which essentially gave them a trail through the deep forest leading right to him, so he had to deploy all the little tricks that being a Seeker trained by both Jack Mason and Liam Silver Dimondscale themselves had taught him, like using water to not only hide from their sight but to also wash off his pheromonal trail temporarily which would create a large gap in his trail temporarily, but not before setting up a load of false trails for them to follow by running through the dense foliage which caused it to rub off onto the leaves.
Now this would work on the Xenos but not too much on the Serpentinus as they could simply taste his scent on the air, so using Ryan Mason's lessons in using nature to your advantage came in handy, he would periodically use harmless but pungent-smelling plants to hide his scent as well as periodically switch it out for a totally different one by rubbing them onto his suit and scales.
Infact this trick saved his tail against one particularly resourceful and stubborn Serpentinus girl of the Cobra genus who got close enough to strike at him but after a particularly lucky escape using his sharp claws to dig into soft tree bark and run right up it and along a branch before jumping clear into a large forest rose bush.
The pungent purple plants utterly masked his scent while he dropped to the ground and crawled through the undergrowth before vanishing into a small river which carried him two miles upstream where he emerged still smelling of roses.
Remal was utterly exhausted having been running for very nearly twenty hours solid, he was utterly amazed and flattered by the sheer will and determination of these girls hunting him, he just still couldn't believe that these girls were putting in all this effort for him of all people, what made him so special to them that they were willing to go to such lengths to prove to both the Great Tree and the Eternal Huntress that they alone were worthy of him?
It in a way made him feel like a fraud because, in all honesty, he didn't really believe in his heart that he was worthy of them or their attention, he was just a little Raptorian boy who was lucky enough to be noticed by a Seeker and become one himself, but a nagging sense of self-doubt gnawed at his brain telling him that he was a fraud that one day these good people would see right through and he would be exposed as the scared little boy that he believed himself to be despite his accomplishments.
The fact that he was still evading the girls at even twenty hours into the twenty-four-hour hunt only served to reinforce this, he didn't believe it was because these girls were not worthy of him but the other away around, he believed that the Great Tree might be steering them away from him because he was not worthy of them.
This planted a hard little seed of darkness in the back of Remal's heart and he sighed heavily as he looked at his count down watch for the millionth time, he was so very tempted to press the distress button to call an early end to this hunt to save the girls the extra effort.
"Do you truly believe these dark thoughts my beautiful son?" an incredibly soft voice slithered through his mind like sunshine made corporeal.
Remal snapped his head up from the bush he was currently hiding in making his feather stand on edge and ruffle with alarm as he looked around himself, but there was no one around him.
"Hello?" he said in surprise looking around himself.
"I hear you my beautiful son and I ask you again do you truly believe this darkness that invades the beauty of the strong little heart that I gave you?" the voice asked again.
"G-Great Tree?" Remal exclaimed and he actually felt what felt like a warm smile flicker through his mind's eye.
"Indeed my beautiful son, now tell me what troubles you my beautiful one?" the soft voice asked and Remal was utterly stunned to his core that the Great Tree himself was taking the time out of her day to speak to him of all people.
"I-I-I just don't know if I am worthy or even worth all of this trouble that everyone has put in for me," he said softly and a little shakily.
The Great Tree seemed amused at this and he heard a very soft laugh echo through his mind, "Oh my beautiful little boy do you really believe that?" the Great Tree asked.
"Well yeah I mean look here I am twenty hours in and still no one has come close to catching me really, I mean without my Dream Warrior abilities that you gave me what am I really? I'm nobody, just a little singer from a club, surely I'm not worth all this effort?" Remal said sadly.
This seemed to change the Great Tree's attitude to from happy to greatly sad, "My beautiful little son you are most definitely worth all this trouble, look at all the trouble that these girls are willing to go to just to be the one who holds you aloft as their beloved one and their greatest trophy, so they seem to think you are worth the effort don't they?" he said.
"Well yeah I guess so but what if they are wrong?" Remal said.
"Do you truly believe that? Or do you truly believe that all those girls who used to queue up week in week out just to see you dance and to hear you sing were all mistaken?" the Great Tree asked.
"W-Well I don't know," Remal said softly and the Great Tree chuckled again.
"Do you know why none of those girls have been able to catch hold of you little one?" she asked and Remal shook his head.
"Becasue I do not deem them worthy of you, so I have been warning you of their approach, letting you feel them, see them, smell them as they make their approach, but it has been all of your talent and skills that allowed you to escape them, that wasn't me, it was all you so do not dare doubt your skill or your talents little one, you are every bit the Dream Warrior that I grew and nurtured you to be and I am so incredibly proud to call you my beautiful little son, but there is one and only one that I have been hiding from your senses because in her I feel a heart that burns with a passion and a love that is like the purest of seeds that stands ready to grown and bloom into the most beautiful of trees, strong, proud and defiant against all things that would test its roots, this is the one I've deemed worthy of you my beautiful son because this one and only this one would make you happier than you could ever dare to dream that you could be and trust me when I say this, you are worthy of her because she and only she is worthy of you, she has been tailing you all this time and has seen through your every deception and escape trick, she has utterly marveled and relished in your skill and talent as her prey, you have given her the hunt of her life and she has utterly relished and reveled in every second of it, she has observed you and her every thought has been consumed with your beauty and your grace, she feels privlaged to have had you enter her life and now for this oppurtinuty to hunt you down, her determination is like the great fire that burns the forest down only to provide the soil what it needs to grow it back even stronger and more beautiful than it ever was before, she and she alone understands you, you complete her little one and she will do the same for you little one," the Great Tree proclaimed proudly.
Then like sensing the approach of a truly dangerous predator all of Remal's feathers bristled as he felt eyes upon him and he looked up as an itch in his head told him he was being observed from above and there she was like an Amazonian Goddess stood high in the trees looking down at him in his hiding bush, it was Xtam.
The pair stood motionless for a moment that felt like an eternity just watching one another, Remal simply had his breath taken from his lungs as the aura of moonlight that framed the huge Yautja female stood high in the branches seemed to make her skin glow with radiant quicksilver.
That's when he saw her incredible muscles bunch and out of pure instinct Remal reacted, he burst out of the bush just as the huge huntress slammed into the ground ahead of him and dove for the bush grasping at him, Remal simply slid under her flying frame but as they passed one another there was the briefest of moments where their eyes locked and he saw the most radiant of smiles on her beautiful face, the truth of what the Great Tree had said was there for anyone to see, right there in her eyes, she was utterly loving this, loving him.
Xtam was a dark-skinned Yautja who like the beloved wife of Ryan Mason himself Shena Blackcrest Mason had jet black skin that was littered with a patchwork of silver and white patches that under the light of the moon and stars above glowed like living quicksilver.
She also seemed to have a swirl of red littered throughout her predlocks that ran and twisted throughout them like a little red Serpentinus had wound itself throughout them which gave a truly unique look.
Xtam in a display of utterly incredible agility slammed a hand into the ground and using the momentum of her dive flipped herself over twisting through the air to land on her feet facing Remal, but this time there was no hesitation in her movements, this girl was playing to win and it showed as every one of her utterly huge muscles bunched and she charged right at him.
Remal was off like a little bullet, weaving and dodging her attacks as he ran, his part in this hunt wasn't to fight back only to escape her if he could, but he could feel it in his very soul, with every failed attempt at a grab she drew that little bit closer to him to the point where he felt the wind of her swing ruffle his feathers along his back, she was learning and adapting on the fly at incredible speed and this was without the use of her Seeker abilities, it was no wonder Xtam was such a feared warrior, she was utterly incredible.
Then just as it looked like Remal was going to escape by diving headfirst towards the roots which formed a maze of some Bulboa spiderroot trees that lived in the wet grounds of the forest and stood up on between ten or twelve stilt-like roots Remal felt mighty clawed fingers coil around the tip of his long tail and grip fast, she had him.
An involuntary "Eep" noise escaped Remal as he was yanked forcefully back from his safety which the huge huntress had absolutely zero chance of fitting into, with a flick of her wrist she sent him spinning but not into the hard ground which would have very possibly injured him but headfirst into a large soft patch of giant feather ferns which absorbed his impact like a giant leafy pillow.
As Remal's little feather and leaf-covered head popped up out of the large fluffy plant he was able to look up just in time to see a huge shape descending on him from the sky directly above him, he had just had enough time to make yet another 'Eep" noise as she landed on him but not directly thankfully or he got the feeling he would have been crushed into the soil like a seed if she'd done that.
No instead her huge knees slammed down either side of his hips and pinned his small body to the ground and before he could even move his hands to try and push her off she had both of his wrists in huge hands and had them pinned above his head, instantly he realised that struggling was utterly futile, she had utterly overwhelmed him and could feel the pure strength and raw power of her every muscle as she pressed down on him, he was beaten and she had won.
"I've got you now beautiful one! You will not escape me now sweetscale, oh what a run you have had, it has been the greatest joy of my life watching you dance and evade all those unworthy females, it was like watching pure grace at work, the way you danced, deceived and evaded them, but I told you I would catch you sweetscale and here you are right where you are meant to be, in my hands and only in my hands, I prayed to the Eternal Huntress and to the Great Tree to be the one to catch her and I promised them both that I would love you for a lifetime and now I make that very same promise to you Remal, yield to me and I will make every day of your life a joyous one, I will reward the hunt you gave me with all the happiness you could ever yearn for" Xtam growled deeply.
Her words and her voice sent a shiver down his spine making Remal's feathers vibrate and ruffle, he felt the truth in her words, he felt absolute and pure love in them and what's more, he saw it in her eyes, she wasn't looking at him like he was something to be owned or possessed, she was looking at him with pure want and adoration, she truly did want him.
"I-I yield Xtam, you have caught me and I yield myself to you and acknowledge your victory over me if it is your wish claim me and I swear I will make you a good husband, but please I beg of you, treat me gently," he said in a soft voice.
Xtam released his wrists from her powerful grip and she reached down and gently lifted his snout by very gently gripping his lower jaw, "It is my wish to be your wife Remal and this I swear to you you will never beg me or anyone else for anything ever again, if anyone ever wishes harm upon you they will answer to me, you will be my pride and my strength as I will be yours, I have loved you from the moment I set eyes upon you Remal, I never believed it was possible for such a beautiful creature to exist in this world let alone for me to be lucky enough to see one up close, but you took my breath away and stole my heart little one, now I give you mine and show you in no uncertain times what lengths I am willing to go to make you mine, I chased you across this world and now you are mine, I Xtam Glorytusk proud Yautja huntress and Seeker of Truth claim you Remal Rainbowscale proud and beautiful Raptorian male and Seeker of Truth to be mine and only mine as I will always be yours and only yours" she said and with that she took his wrist and pressed her watch to his.
Both watches issued a sharp series of beeps as they counted down as one of the safety features of the system was that the watches had to remain connected for a total of five seconds so that an accidental pressing during an evasion didn't trigger the system and accidentally claim a male.
Once the final beep was issued the pair of them changed to a green screen that displayed the word 'Claimed' upon it in red lettering.
Instantly in the distance, a loud horn blared across the landscape sending birds screaming into the air and it was instantly followed by fireworks screaming into the sky above the Clan Capitol as the successful claim and end of another Mate Hunt was recognised and celebrated by the Clan, it signalled both the participants and observers that the prey was caught and was claimed.
Xtam smiled down at Remal as the incredibly bright rainbow of colours exploded above her head, then she stood up and offered him a large hand to help him up, he took in and she pulled him to his feet, but he didn't remain on them for less than a second as with a quick movement she instantly flipped him up and scooped him up into her utterly massive arms in a bridal carry.
"Now I carry my pride, my love and my heart in my arms as is my right and our tradition, I will walk through the arch with my pride in both my arms and my heart Remal for now and always I carry your heart with me," she said beaming at him and to his utter surprise Remal felt both happy and proud to be carried like this, he had always told himself that he didn't need a pride to make him feel safe or to make him feel happy and in a way he'd been both right and wrong, it hadn't been a pride he'd needed, it was a proud huntress.
It took a while for them to reach the capital even with Xtam using her incredible speed and also using the trees to her advantage, but eventually, they reached the capital and the huge arch loomed up before them.
Remal was both incredibly nervous and also incredibly happy, he felt like his whole life had been building towards this very moment and it was a rather overwhelming feeling or rather a symphony of them broiling and bubbling inside him.
Xtam looked down at him and gave him a truly radiant smile with her mandibles drawn up, "Are you ready my little love. its time to let the whole Clan see exactly who it is you belong to now" she said and Remal nodded, her words should have made him baulk as he'd never liked the thought of belonging to anyone as he had always been a proud free male, but now he suddenly understood it, it wasn't a liberty thing, more a love thing, she owned his heart as he realised he owned hers.
As they approached the arch Remal began to see the crowd that awaited them both, Saviours were lining the street on either side stood to attention in two neat ranks and as they reached the first pair and they saluted them Remal realised what was happening, it was an honour guard, they were honouring them and the completion of the hunt.
Xtam walked proudly with her head held high and her chest puffed out as she carried little Remal in her arms, he could positively feel her pride and her love for him radiating off her, she was proudly showing him off to the whole Clan it was like she was saying "Look who I have caught for myself, this is my male and no one else's, now I will love him more than anyone ever has or could" and it made him feel truly lucky to have been blessed to come to this place and live among these amazing people, this was his true home and these were his people.
As they reached the archway the pair found both the Grand Matriarch and Patriarch as well as Sela eleth and now Ryan Mason waiting for them, the four of them were dressed up in their ceremonial armour and they looked utterly incredible, infact Remal felt utterly ashamed and self-conscious of his appearance as he was covered in leaves and caked in dirt, he felt shameful to appear before the four living legends of Clan Mason looking like this.
But the four of them didn't seem to care a single shit about that, infact the four of them utterly beamed at the pair as they approached, now there was a part to the tradition and the ceremony here that Remal didn't know about as it was only drilled into those who did the hunting on the Great Hunt.
Xtam walked up onto the small stage platform that the four of them stood waiting and she knelt down and held Remal out to the four of them, "Grand Matriarch and Patriarch I have hunted and caught this beautiful male and now in accordance with our most sacred traditions I before you both and the Eternal Huntress as well as the Great Tree who brought this beauty into my life stake my claim to him before all and I do so with pride and love in my heart" Xtam said proudly.
As she finished her speech Xtam placed Remal down on his feet and he looked around feeling a little confused but swiftly found himself staring up at Tik eleth Mason who towered over him, "Arise proud daughter of Clan Mason, you have done your Clan and the Eternal Huntress proud this day, you have upheld the traditions of the Clan and you have conducted yourself in the highest standing before us and the deities that look down and watch over us, you have through the sheer power of your honour and your love have hunted and captured this male" Tik said and Xtam stood and saluted which Remal instantly joined him still not quite sure what he was supposed to do here.
Jack Mason stepped forwards and placed his hand on Remal's shoulder, "Remal Rainbowscale you have in accordance with the most sacred traditions of Clan Mason been hunted and caught by this loyal and honoured huntress, she was the one the Eternal Huntress and the Great Tree deemed worthy to find you and to carry your heart this day and for the rest of your life, do you recognise this claim to your heart?" he said and Remal glanced at Xtam who was beaming at him happily and proudly.
"I do Grand Patriarch, Xtam Glorytusk caught me fair and square, she hunted me with honour and caught me fairly," he said and Jack Mason beamed at them both.
"Excellent then it is my distinct pride as master of ceremony to declare this hunt concluded, Xtam Glorytusk is it your wish to enter into matrimony with this male before the sight of the whole Clan?" Tik asked and Xtam looked prouder than Remal had ever seen her.
"It is Grand Matriarch" she replied and then Tik turned to Remal.
"Remal Rainbowscale you have been hunted and caught fairly by this honoured huntress of the proud Yautja people is it your wish to enter into matrimony with this woman before the sight of the whole Clan and all the deities who look down upon us?" she said.
Remal nodded, "Yes Grand Matriarch I want this more than anything," Remal said and Tik beamed at him giving him a truly radiant and proud smile.
"Then so shall it be! As Grand Matriarch of Clan Mason, I declare this hunt concluded now my beloved husband will join these two in marriage for all to see, let no one ever try to come between these two again for from this day forward they are one!" Tik declared loudly and around them there was a tremendous roar of applause and cheering.
Jack Mason took Remal and turned him to face Xtam before he took their hands and placed them inside on another, Xtam's hands utterly drowned Remal's tiny ones but as he looked up at the proud and happy Yautja huntress who beamed down at him he felt his heart swell with pride and love, this woman was truly radiant and now she would be all his and he all hers, together forever from this day on.
"Brothers, sisters, friends we gather here today to recognise the accomplishments of both Remal Rainbowscale and Xtam Glorytusk, they are both proud Seekers of Truth and that makes them my proud brother and sister Dream Warriors and it is my distinct pride and honour to stand before you all today my brothers and sisters to join this male and this female together as husband and wife before the entire Clan and before the Eternal Huntress and the Great Tree, so do you Remal Rainbowscale take this proud Yautja woman, this proud huntress of Clan Mason to be your lawfully wedded wife, will you love her, protect her, stand for her, be by her side for the rest of your life no matter what may come your way?" Jack said.
"I do and proudly so," Remal said making Jack beam from ear to ear.
"Do you Xtam Glorytusk take this proud Raptorian male, the first of his kind to stand before us here, the first to take part in the Great Hunt and the first to be caught on our sacred soil, will you take him now and for life, to have and to hold, to protect him, love him, cherish him with your whole self whatever may come your way?" Jack asked looking at Xtam.
"I do Grand Patriarch and proudly so, this male is my heart and from this day forwards he li loved and he is protected," Xtam said proudly.
Jack nodded happily, then he looked at Xtam again, "As the capturing huntress you have the choice now to you name him as yours or do you claim his name as your own?" he asked.
Xtam looked at Remal and drew her mandibles up into a warm radiant smile, "I Claim his name as my own Grand Patriarch, I want everyone to know how proud I am to stand by his side as his wife, I want everyone to know my pride in this beautiful male, he may be small but his heart, his strength and his spirit are bigger than all of us and I am honoured to stand at his side" she said.
Remal felt his mouth fall open with shock, he was not only about to become the first Raptorian male in the history of his people to marry outside of his species but he was about to become the first to have his wife take his name rather than the reverse, it was such a simple gesture but it meant the absolute world to Remal.
"Very well then as the left hand of the Eternal Huntress and with the power invested in me as the Grand Patriarch I now pronounce you man and wife, huntress you may kiss your prey," Jack said.
Remal turned to face his new wife and he barely had time to look up at her before she leaned down and hoisted him off his feet by grabbing his arms in her huge hands and lifting him up to her head height, as she did she opened her mandibles exposing her inner mouth to him.
Remal leaned in towards Xtam and pressed his scaly lips to her inner mouth before feeling her mandibles close possessively but gently around his face and he felt her mandible tusks stroking thee sides of his face and snout before she opened her inner mouth and he felt her tongue lick his lips just before he opened them letting her invade his mouth.
It was like all of Remal's senses just lit u and sparkled, it felt exquisite as her tongue coiled around his and gripped it tightly as she tasted his mouth, even lost in their own little universe where it felt like it was just the pair of them they could both here the wild cheering and clapping from their assembled brothers and sisters of Clan Mason as they celebrated them and Xtam's victory, no not Xtam's victory, both of their victory because he had won something wonderful for himself as well.
The taste of Xtam's saliva made Remal's entire mouth sparkle as she pulled his tongue from his mouth and into hers letting him feel her spiky teeth and wonderful mouth, when they finally parted Remal's head felt like it had been filled with fluffy clouds or cottonwool and he gazed dreamily right into Xtam's bright eyes, "I have waited my whole life for you Remal but I had no idea what face you would wear but the moment I set eyes upon you I knew you were meant for me, every single time I was near you I could feel my heart screaming out for yours and now finally yours answered my beautiful little male, my husband, my life mate" Xtam said softly as she placed him back down on his feet.
Remal reached up and stroked the side of her face with his small hand revelling in the soft but rough feel of her skin, "And now I know why I could never look at a pride the way I was supposed to as a Raptorian male because the Great Tree never meant me to be in the arms of a pride but instead of the arms of someone who lifts me and makes me proud, I never actually expected it to be someone who could actually lift me up but by the Great Tree and I glad it's you and I swear I will love you so large you think I'm ten foot tall" he said and Xtam roared with laughter.
"I never want you to be ten foot tall my beautiful little husband because then I'd have trouble doing this," she said and with that, she hoisted him up into her arms again and held him against her, "To me, you are perfect the way you are," she said pressing her forehead to his before finally the pair turned to face the crowd just as Tik eleth Mason stepped up and placed hands on both their shoulders.
"Brothers and sisters of Clan Mason I proudly present you mister and Mrs Rainbowscale, celebrate them, cherish them, cheer for them and roar for them, let the Eternal Huntress and the Great Tree hear you, so let's show our pride to them both and thank them for this beautiful unity because today the smallest of all of us stood taller and prouder than any of us!" Tik roared before the whole place roared so loud together that the whole place shook with the pride of the whole Clan.
Suddenly Jack Mason stepped forwards and placed his hands on both their shoulders, "Strength through unity..." he began and Tik's face lit up and she placed her hands over the top of her husband's shoulders.
"...Unity through togetherness..." she continued and Remal looked into his new wife's eyes.
"...Togetherness through pure love..." he said.
Ryan was next, planting his hand atop his parents', "... a love so pure it burns through all who hear its call..." he said.
Sela placed her hands atop her brother's, "...and hear its call, we do..." she said.
Xtam beamed at her new husband, "...and answer that call honestly, we do..." she said.
Now they all spoke in perfect unison, "...humbled by its power, we are..." they said.
Now the surrounding crowd began to join in in perfect unison with them till all those gathered there were speaking together as one, "Humble and proud we stand, shoulder to shoulder, these are my brothers and my sisters, they stand for me as I stand for them, I am never alone for wherever I am I carry my brothers and sisters with me, as they carry me, my strength is theirs as theirs is mine, together we are strong and we are free, for we are Clan Mason and we stand proudly together now and always" the entire gathered Clan said in perfect unison before the whole place began cheering together and clapping.
That's when both Remal and Xtam were grabbed by both Tik and Jack and quickly led down through the crowd who followed along with them till they reached the large garden behind their house where a load of tables had been laid out with a huge spread of food that was being laid out by both Hunters and Seekers and they also found the three hive queens with their kings all waiting all dressed up.
"Ahh the happy couple finally arrives, another hunt is concluded and another pair of lives are joined together before the gods, welcome young ones," queen Zara said stepping up and steering the happy couple to the head of the large table and placing them in a pair of seats at the head of the centre of the table.
Remal was utterly amazed as he sat there looking down this huge table that was filled with the most incredible and delicious looking foods from everywhere and he spotted both Raptorian dishes and Serpentinus dishes among those native to the big three species of Clan Mason and it also amazed him that Clan utterly practised what it preached in unity, sat to his right was the Guardian of Males Smoke along with his pride and were all dressed up and looked amazing when they noticed him looking they all raised a drink to them.
To his left were Seeker Liam Silver Dimondscale and his Serpentinus pack who also raised their glasses to the happy couple, in fact, everyone at the table was doing the same and it touched Remal's heart that all of these people were here to celebrate them and it touched it, even more, when he realised that even the women who had hunted him and failed to catch him were present and there appeared to be no hard feelings among them.
Suddenly Jack appeared to their side, "I'm just going to borrow your new husband for a moment Xtam" he said and Xtam smiled at him.
"Of course just don't go running off with him I know he's probably the prettiest boy you've seen and it's hard to resist just hoisting him up and running for the hills but he's mine so unless you want two angry Yautja women chasing you just don't," she said with a grin and Remal heard Tik eleth Mason snarl.
"I agree with my sister dear husband, no running off with the Raptorian boy," she said playfully and Jack grinned.
"I'll try to resist I promise," he said as Remal jumped down and followed him.
"So what can I do for you Grand Patriarch?' Remal asked and Jack smiled.
"Oh nothing this is about what I can do for you," he said and Remal looked as confused as he felt.
"But Grand Patriarch you've already done so much for me already, I couldn't possibly accept anything..." he began but Jack Mason held up a hand and smiled.
'Trust me little one you are going to want to hear this, lets call it Yautja girl 101 and you are going to want to hear it because this might be your wedding day but its also going to be your wedding night and trust me when I say you have no idea what's coming your way, so you might want to listen to the voice of experience here" he said and Remal's eyes widened as that realisation hit him.
Half an hour later Remal staggered back to his seat next to his still proud-looking wife with Jack's words ringing in his head, he was absolutely amazed and both excited and somewhat terrified, he just hoped he was going to be able to measure up to her here.
Suddenly he felt a wash of hot breath on the side of his head and very gently Xtam ran two of her mandibles over his face as she ran her hands over his chest and tail, "Shall we call it a night husband? Tonight is a night I have waited my entire life to enjoy and I do not wish to waste another minute and I cannot wait to see you shake that beautiful tail for me, I was not joking when I said I wanted you to dance for me, I just never mentioned how many or should I say few clothes you would be wearing in my little dream" she purred in his ear.
Remal swallowed hard and he nodded as his heart tried to beat its way through his little rib cage, oh boy what a night this was going to be, now all he had to do was dance his tail off harder than he'd ever shaken it before and make a Yautja girl who was five times bigger than he was happier than she had ever been before, should be easy right, as he allowed her to scoop him up into her strong arms as she bid everyone a good night he silently thanked the Great Tree for making him a Dream Warrior as he got the feeling he was going to need the stamina, every little bit of it.