Someone Just Like You (Kjon and Jenny) Chapter 40: David and Goliath, an aliens/predator fanfic

Kjon's Audio Diary Log / Jennifer's Diary

June 15, 2621.

After two days of rest and recuperation from his injuries, Jon's fight with the Drukathi warlord ,who he'd named Goliath, came. Jon's injuries had healed almost completely, and although he was rested, I was still having doubts that he would win. Jon was a strong individual, don't get me wrong, and he did use his brains to back up his brawn a lot of times, but still. Now this wasn't the first time things looked bleak for us, but this was by far the bleakest they'd ever looked. It wasn't just our lives on the line, but the lives of Jon's entire clan.

When I think about it, it's kind of ironic how almost all of them ridiculed him for the Abomination that he was, but now he was the one they were looking up to, to save them, despite what they still thought of him nonetheless. In some ways though, I actually found myself siding with them on this. The Drukathi were much bigger, stronger, and way more advanced than the Yautja were. Now Jon had managed to kill several Drukathi himself, some of them he managed to kill himself, but most of them he had help with. And while even I'd managed to kill one of them, it was extremely difficult. The Schroalatic clan had faced a massive loss in their numbers, mostly in their military. The clan couldn't take much more. The Drukathi however, had only lost a small portion of their tribe, and could easily wipe us all out if they wanted. Everyone's hopes were riding on a teenager, who hadn't fought a Drukathi at all up until that point, and one who they regarded as a dishonorable Abomination. I didn't share their biased thoughts about him. I didn't even think he was an Abomination at all, but still he was very young, and while he was a formidable fighter, I still could help but just feel doubtful about his abilities.

This caused me to argue with him a lot during those two days. I didn't like having to fight with Jon like that. We hadn't fought like that since that time I tried reasoning with him back at Cardona Valley. I loved my Fire Angel, and I knew he loved me too, but I just couldn't help it. I didn't want to see him go into that arena again with that monster and get killed. It caused my gut to churn just to think about all of the gruesome ways the Drukathi leader would kill him. Despite my behavior though, Jon was understanding. He did raise his voice to me a few time when we argued, but he wasn't angry with me. He understood that I was scared for him, and that that was why I was being so emotional.

"What more could I do? What more can I do?" He'd asked me during one of our arguments. I couldn't disagree with him when I thought about it like that. Heck, I couldn't blame him for any of this. He was just another victim of this attack just the same as we all were, only he was one of the very few to actually put up a fight and because of it he was chosen by Goliath. Jon hadn't even proposed to the idea of a one-on-one fight, Goliath had. Jon was just doing what he could to protect the clan. I didn't appear to be an interesting target to the Drukathi, aside from the fact that I was part xenomorph so they kept their sights locked on Jon and his clan. Millions of thoughts raced through my mind as those two short days passed us by. What was I going to do? How was I going to make it home? Would I even make it home at all? I tried not to think about selfish thoughts like this, but I couldn't. Each time our arguments ended, Jon would try to calm me down, comfort cuddle me, and just try his best to give me some hope. None of it worked though, aside from the comfort cuddling. Jon had the patience of an angel. That's yet another thing that made me adore him so much. He had hope, and he wanted to share that hope with me. Yes, I did pray, and I tried having faith, but I just felt so overwhelmed.

By the time Jon and Goliath had to fight however, it didn't matter.

"You ready for me ,Goliath?" Jon asked his opponent after the Drukathi exited their biomechanical slug-like craft. The twelve foot tall alien being was covered almost completely in armor, and wore a gauntlet around his right wrist, which was most likely the weapon he'd be using against Jon.

Goliath laughed, "I've been dying to see this moment come."

"Got bored that quickly? Damn, you guys really do put my clan to shame. My clan's more impatient with me than you are." Jon said as he lit a cigarette. Although he was protecting them, he couldn't help roasting his clan a little after all the persecution they'd given us. His joke didn't help to ease the tension around us as we watched them stare each other down, or at least while Goliath stared his opponent down.

"Shall we commence our duel ,young one?" Goliath asked eagerly as he released his energy whip from the side of his gauntlet, which began to spark with energy. This guy was bringing two weapons to the fight, when he said he'd use only one. The clan, and I gasped as we saw it. Jon ,on the other hand, didn't seem to give much thought to it beyond a simple short glance.

"Right this way." Jon answered leading the Drukathi towards the coliseum we'd fought in two days prior.

Goliath gave Jon some time to outfit himself with some armor and a weapon of his choosing. Jon knew how strong the Drukathi's technology was, as did I. I saw what kind of devastation the Drukathi's weapons could cause, and we knew just how strong their armor was also. I'd tried hitting a Drukathi warrior with my combi-stick, and several shots with my plasma caster only to have the alien's energy based force field to warp around the armor each time I struck it. These guys were practically indestructible with it on. Jon knew this just as well as I did, and because of it, he was packing heavy with armor. Normally he travelled lighter for better maneuverability, but in this fight he would need the added protection. As for weapons he had a number of things to decide from; daggers, mauls, scimitars, glaives, wristblade gauntlets, swords, smart discs, spear rifles, plasma casters, etcetera.

He inspected each of them carefully, before falling on the combi-stick. He seemed very displeased with it, before saying, "This will do," in a disappointed tone of voice. After that he took a piece of string off of one of the armory table and tied his dreadlocks in a knot.

"How are you feeling Fire Angel." I asked Jon softly.

"To be perfectly honest right now ,Pyode, I'm scared." Jon answered before looking down at me. He didn't bother asking me how I felt. I'd had two days of expressing how I felt to him. He knew I was scared, he could tell just by the shy glances I gave him that I was terrified. "Hey ,babe. Look at me. Everything's going to be alright." He with a soft smile. I couldn't help but tear up as I saw him look down at me lovingly with those hopeful eyes of his. I didn't want him to go out there, I didn't want him to fight, I didn't want him to die. "Do not cry my beautiful Pyode Tarei'hsan. No matter what happens I shall always be with you. Always." He told me, wiping the tears from my eyes gently with his claws. Something felt different about him as he said that, I can't quite describe it, but it felt like there was someone else with us, someone else inside of him, speaking through him to me. It was kind of an angelic feeling. I remember feeling a ounce of hope bouncing inside my heart as I felt it, which was enough to make me smile. "There. That's my Pyode Tarei'hsan," He spoke softly as he enveloped me an affectionate hug, "I love you ,Jenny."

"I love you too." I was able to answer tearfully, before I went to kiss him one last time.

"SCHAEFER!" Goliath roared outside the armory. Jon gave an irate growl, before turning to face his opponent.

Once again I stood helplessly behind the barred entrance of the arena, to watch Jon fight, what I assumed would be his last battle. But that ounce of hope that Jon had given me was still their bouncing hopefully. Hopefully it would be enough. Hopefully.

I remembered the words my mother told me when she left me in our enclosure before she died. I remembered saying them to Jenny before I left her in the arena's armory. She was so tired of all of this. All of the fighting. As was I, and I'm pretty sure the rest of my clan was. Even they need a break after enjoying a hunt. There was more that I wanted to say to my Pyode, I wanted to assure her that I'd be alright. But there was no time for that now. I had to fight.

My clan looked down in disgust as they saw me entering the arena. Even after everything I was doing to help and protect them they still despised me as an Abomination. Most of them had this look of helplessness on their faces as they starred down hopelessly at me. Even they'd lost their faith. My clan were also a religious people just the same as I was, who worshiped their own gods, but even now they saw their situation as to hopeless for prayer to help. I myself had found no time to pray before the fight, but I can remember chanting, "God please, help me. Give me the strength. For my clan. For my mom."

"Shall we finally begin, young one?" Goliath asked with a sadistic grin on his face.

"Nothing I can do to stop it. Let's just get this over with." I replied with a confident frown as I opened my combi-stick. I still hated that weapon, not that it was bad, but because I always lost them. I remember thinking the same thing was going to happen with this one, before this fight was over.

Goliath sputtered a satisfied laugh, before putting his helmet on and releasing the whip on his gauntlet. The weapon crackled and snapped loudly as he flexed his wrist tightly with anticipation. Suddenly the arena's bell gonged signaling us, and the fight began.

Goliath did not waste a second, and immediately brought his whip up to strike me with it. For an alien who was almost twice my size and approximately four to five times my weight he was surprisingly very fast. It was either that, or I was just slower because of my armor. I managed to avoid the strike however, and roll to the side. Goliath quickly swung the weapon to the side, trying to hit me with it as I recovered. I narrowly managed to duck beneath the whip causing it to hit the edge of the arena. The wall exploded as the whip's energy discharged into the wall, leaving a visible mark in the stone wall. I foolishly awed at the damage the weapon had caused, leaving me open for Goliath to attack. He grabbed me with one of huge arms and effortlessly threw me to the other side of the arena. My armor cushioned me from most of the impact, although it did leave me weak. I was able to get up just in time to see Goliath as he brought one of his front feet up to stomp me with it. I quickly rolled underneath him and tried to swing my combi-stick at an exposed area on his leg that wasn't protected with his armor. I was stunned when my blow bounced back on me. I tried again but the same thing happened.

"He must be wearing so much armor that he just has a force field around his whole body. Or maybe the armor is different somehow." I thought after uselessly swinging my weapon at my opponent's leg. Goliath laughed as he saw me try desperately to harm him. I continued to swing though, hoping to land a lucky shot or something, before I was smacked away by the Drukathi.

"You're courage amazes me ,young one. But I pray that it may come to better use than that." He said in a taunting manner. I gave a frustrated growl before charging forward. Goliath advanced towards me on all fours as well. I tried leaping up to stab at him with my combi-stick, but before I could even reach him to find out how protected he was, I was felt a burning pain hit my side as his whip struck me. The blow sent me flying towards the arena wall again. As I tried recovering I felt Goliath's hand grab me by the ankle and pull back before flying into the other side of the arena. Goliath went to grab at me again but I blocked him with the combi-stick as best I could. I managed to break out off his grasp and run. Goliath saw my pitiful attempts to flee and shot a icy liquid nitrogen mist at me with his gauntlet.

The edge of the arena that had been shot by the misty spray began to crystalize with ice. I managed to dive away from the sprays path and run as Goliath tried to freeze me. I continued running loops around him trying to make him use up as much of the liquid nitrogen he had as possible, but I ended up slipping on a layer of ice on the ground. This gave Goliath the chance he needed to spray me. He managed to hit my leg with a small blast of the mist, which quickly solidified affixing my leg to the ground. I roared in pain as I felt the ice freeze my skin. Lucky for me, the concentration of the spray was not enough to cause very much physical damaged to my leg, still, the experience was not pleasant. Goliath brought his whip up and slammed it down on me. The weapons electrical energy managed to break some my armor, and leave a scar on my lower abdominal area, which stung badly. Goliath then went to make another vertical strike with his whip, which I was able to block with my combi-stick. The whip caught my weapon however, and allowed Goliath to rip it out of my grasp. The Drukathi went to make another swipe with his whip, but I managed to break the ice affixing my leg to the ground before sprinting away. As I ran for my combi-stick Goliath swung the whip across the ground managing to knock me off my feet. The massive alien then tried to slam his fist down on me, but I managed to roll away. This gave me the chance I needed to go for my combi-stick. I managed to reach it, but in the time I took to grab it, Goliath had brought his fist up to punch me. I uselessly tried blocking it, but my defensive strike did nothing to stop the Drukathi's devastating blow, which sent me to the ground.

Before I could get up I felt Goliath's whip smack the edge of my breastplate causing part of it to shatter into pieces. As I once again tried to get back up I felt Goliath strike me again with the whip causing my back armor to break as well. He then kicked me away causing me to once again hit the edge of the wall. Goliath made another swing with his whip but the strike fell short by a few inches. This gave me some time to get up and retreat. I was to slow to react though, and the Drukathi slashed my back with another strike from his whip. I then felt my back burn with cold as Goliath blasted me with a stream of his liquid nitrogen spray.

After he finished spraying me in the icy mist, I managed to break myself out with my combi-stick. As I tried to make a run for it though, I was caught by the ankle and thrown to the ground. Goliath then brought his whip down on me again, hitting me in the breast plate three time before my armor exploded into shrapnel. I roared painfully as I felt the metal from my breastplate dig into my skin, and the electricity of the Drukathi's whip burn my skin. Once I was able to roll away from, I mustered up all the strength I had to make a series of hit and run attacks with my combi-stick. The loss of my armor also took away the weight that came with it, allowing me to move faster and react quicker to my opponents strikes. Despite this I was still severely weakened by my enemies previous attacks, and my efforts of harming him proved just about as successful as the previous times I tried. No matter what I did or where I hit him, my opponent's force field protected him.

After a moment of running, swinging, and dodging past I was beginning to run out of steam. I knew I couldn't keep this up forever and eventually I would tire out. I had to find a way to get through the armor's force field and then I had a chance of winning. After a few more moments of running past, I felt my enemy's whip pin my arms to my sides before an electric current shot through my body. After a moment of getting zapped by my enemies weapon, I was then thrown to the other side of the arena with it. My lack of armor caused more painful results as my body slammed into the edge of the arena again. At that point Goliath was just rag dolling me across the arena; slamming me to the ground, throwing me into the walls of the arena, and slapping me about. My enemy was taking joy in causing me pain, I could tell, even with the helmet covering up his expressions.

This wasn't working. Nothing I was doing was causing this fight to go in my favor. My enemy, his armor, and his weapons were stronger than I was. I was beginning to think that this fight was also a lost cause. But I wasn't going to give up like that. No. I'd fight to my last breath. I'd continue to throw everything I had at my opponent until I was dead. The marines taught me this virtue, and I would not dare stop until it was over. What more could I do?

The spark of faith that had bounced hopefully inside me quickly died out as I watched Jon be smacked, slashed, and tossed around the arena. I would've expected him to be able to do something to the Drukathi warlord, but because of the force field that protected him, Jon wasn't able to do anything but dodge and retreat from his opponent's attacks. Still even that did nothing to help as Jon quickly exhausted himself and was once again thrown around by his opponent. But no matter what Goliath did to him though he continued to get up and take more. Just like before, he did not stop fighting. He would never stop.

I cried hopelessly as I watched my love's bravery be awarded so fruitlessly. It was to much for me to handle. Before Jon and I had chances of success, and although they were small we didn't give up hope. But now it looked like we had no chances of success. That's why I felt so helpless before, why I felt so helpless in that moment.

As I cried, millions of thoughts and questions raced through my mind. What would happen after this? Why was this happening to us? What had we done to deserve this? This was the most hopeless I'd felt ever, and I wasn't even in any real danger myself. The Drukathi did not care about me, all they cared about was killing Jon and his clan. But what else could I do besides weep tearfully as I watched my love and hope be beaten to a bloody pulp?

After getting thrown around a bit by his opponent, Goliath bean to speak. "Pitiful, Pathetic. Words can do nothing to describe the disappointment I feel right now ,young one. Although it is not you who I hold this disappointment for. It is your clan," Goliath stated as he picked Jon up again and threw him to the ground, "Your very species disgusts me. They are weak, just the same as you are. However, unlike them you, a mere child, fights for them fearlessly despite how helpless you know your circumstance is, while they cower cower behind their walls and watch as their only hope falls. They do not even give you a word of encouragement and just stare at you." Although Goliath was monologuing to his opponent, he did not give Jon the chance to do anything to him, and even if he did, there was nothing that Jon could do to break the force field surrounding the Drukathi's body. "It pains me to harm such a being with such spirit though, however, I have come to far to be sympathetic to the ones who I garter my hatred for most." Goliath said swatting Jon to the ground as the Yautja got up to attack him. Jon was then picked up and smashed against the arena wall. Goliath's hand pinned Jon's body as he pressed him hard against the arena wall. "Look at them. They are the ones who you fight for. They ridicule you, revile you, and spit upon you with such indignity, despite everything you do to show your care for them." Goliath said to Jon as he crushed him between the wall. Jon looked up to see his people who looked down at him with helpless disappointment. They knew he wasn't going to win, and that both Jon and Goliath were delaying the inevitable; Jon by continuing to fight despite how hopeless it was to do so, and Goliath by toying with his enemy. Goliath then threw his opponent to the center of the arena. The Drukathi then picked him up by the arm and began punching him repeatedly. "Why? Why do you sell your life so freely for such scum?" Goliath asked as he beat Jon, before throwing him down. Goliath gave his weakened opponent the opportunity to answer him before he continued.

My crying intensified as I saw the full extent of Jon's injuries. He had several burn marks on his torso from when Goliath's electrical whip had slashed his body. There was also a diagonal burn mark on the side of his forehead. Jon's was shivering from frostbite, as the effects of the liquid nitrogen spray from earlier were still affecting him. Jon has cuts on his from when his armor had exploded, causing the metal flakes to cut into his body. His body was bruised from all the punishment he'd received.

"Answer me ,young one, why do you do this?" Goliath asked impatiently slapping Jon with his whip a few times as he struggled to get back up.

I couldn't bear watching it and lowered my head. I didn't want Jon to see me like this. I didn't want to disappoint him by showing my hopeless sorrow. "God, why? Why are you allowing this to happen? What did he do to deserve this?" I asked quietly.

"The Son of my God... did the same thing for me! He endured through physical... and spiritual death... so that I... and many others... could have another chance! A chance of living with him peacefully after death... even though we don't deserve it! My mother did what she could... to protect me... before she died! They gave everything they could... for me! I promised my God... I'd do everything I could to protect his people... and I'll do the same for mine! For Him and His Son! My mother did what she could for me... because I was her only child! Because she wanted all her children to be honorable warriors... who'd fight for the good of our clan! I was her only child to survive! She knew I was a dishonorable Abomination... but she let me live... because she loved me! She taught me to be an honorable warrior... and it's because of her love for me... that I came back to my clan! I also came back... because I love her... just the same as she loved me! They are my heroes... and it's for them that I give my life so freely! Because I know it's what they would want me to do! And it's because of that... that I'll never stop fighting you... no matter what you do to me! I'LL DO THIS FOR THEM!" Jon panted. I saw a confident frown crease his face. I could see his mandibles shake and his eyes squint tearfully as he pronounced his reasoning.

"Did the humans teach you this?" Goliath asked.

"The marines taught me how to never back down from a fight... no matter what the risk is! Whether I'm standing up for others... or for my beliefs! Some of the best marines I knew... gave their lives for others... just the same as I do! They are also my heroes! And I'll do this for them too!" Jon answered his opponent bravely as his body shivered, and his eyes continued to water.

"I admire your conviction to this deity of yours and his offspring. Your love for your mother and your long-suffering for her, these human warriors, and their creed, amazes me greatly ,Yautja. Your bravery and resolve also do not cease to aspire my wonder. You truly do have a warrior's spirit. For that I award you my respect, and I shall remember you well for it. I shall also grant you the privilege of a swift death, as one with an essence such as yours should be befitted with." Goliath complimented Jon for his determination, before flexing his wrist tightly causing his whip to spark and snap with electricity.

Jon took two weak steps forward before falling to his knees in exhaustion. He wasn't giving up. I knew he wasn't. Goliath knew that just as well as I did. The clan didn't know that though and began to weep just as I did. I could hear Jon whisper a prayer, but I couldn't understand it.

"Is that a prayer?" Goliath asked Jon sputtering a laugh. "You continue to stand fast to this religion of yours and I deeply respect that, but it is pointless. Gods are false creations. If my people's gods could not save them from the Raptusorms, nor could they save my mother and father, what hope should you have that yours will save you?" Goliath spat as he brought his whip down on Jon.

Despite my perseverance to never give up, that did little to deter my enemy. Goliath continued to beat me with all of his strength, he gave me no opportunity to do anything, not even recover. I was so exhausted and weak that I barely had the strength or speed just to get up, let alone dodge any of his attacks. Even when he monologued, Goliath had the sense not to give me an opening. Even though I was a physically weaker opponent than he was he did not underestimate me.

After throwing me to the edge of the arena for the umpteenth time, he spoke to me. "Pitiful, Pathetic. Words can do nothing to describe the disappointment I feel right now ,young one. Although it is not you who I hold this disappointment for. It is your clan." he said as he picked me up and slammed me to the ground. "Your very species disgusts me. They are weak, just the same as you are. However, unlike them you, a mere child, fights for them fearlessly despite how helpless you know your circumstance is, while they cower behind their walls and watch as their only hope falls. They do not even give you a word of encouragement and just stare at you." I tried stabbing at the Drukathi defensively with my combi-stick, which again did nothing. Goliath swung his fist at my face knocking me away and causing me to drop my combi-stick, which he stomped on afterward, causing it to snap in two. "It pains me to harm such a being with such spirit though, however, I have come to far to be sympathetic to the ones who I garter my hatred for most." I got up and tried swinging my fist at him but he back handed me before picking me up and slamming me to the wall, which he kept me pressed up against tightly with his massive hand. "Look at them. They are the ones who you fight for. They ridicule you, revile you, and spit upon you with such indignity, despite everything you do to show your care for them." I looked up to see the disappointment and hopelessness in my clan's eyes. Goliath was right, after everything I was doing, they still distained me. It hurt to see that. Goliath then threw me to the center of the arena before picking me back up again by the arm and began punching me several times. "Why? Why do you sell your life so freely for such scum?" Goliath asked, before tossing me away. The sight of my people crying further dispirited me, but it did not break my resolve to continue; I still had hope for the fight. Although my enemy had managed to harm it, he did not kill my faith, and because of that, it began to grow again, filling my will with more determination to continue. "Answer me ,young one. Why do you do this?" Goliath asked, whipping me a few times impatiently as I struggled to stand up.

I looked over at where Jenny was watching us, and I could see she was crying. I could sense shame in her crying, not for me but for herself. She didn't want me to see that she'd lost her faith. As I saw it, though my sense of reality began to distort. Everything began to slow down, and all of the noise softened to a silent whisper. The effect must have only lasted for about a second or so, but in my mind it lasted for hours. As everything went still and quite, I was pulled into a memory of my childhood, when Mom was still alive.

I was in my enclosure with her. It was evening, and we'd just finished an exhausting amount of training. She was cuddling me gently, rocking me to sleep, while softly purring my favorite lullaby, the one about the Protector Yatja. She was in the middle of the segment that went over his many heroic accomplishments, one of which was about him fighting a group of Drukathi to defend a helpless clan. I hadn't forgotten about Mom since I decided to come here, but it reminded me of the love she had for me. Despite the fact I was a dishonorable Abomination, she'd refused to destroy me like she should have. Although her hopes for her children becoming honorable hunter warriors would never come true, there was still hope that I could at least give some honor to the clan. Because of this and her love for me, I was here now. I was restoring her honor and defending my clan. I loved her just as much as she loved me, and it was because of her love for me that I was fighting now. I wanted to give her some peace, I wanted to restore her honor and fulfill the dream she had for me and all of my brothers and sisters.

As the memory continued playing I heard the spiritual voice whisper to me. "You have fought well for us, and you refuse to stop fighting. Go on. Keep fighting. Do not worry, we shall strengthen you. You know what to do. Just do it. Do it for her. Show them our power, and show them what you're made of."

"I will." I replied confidently. My motivation to win skyrocketed after that, causing my eyes to fill with tears as a result. So what if my clan didn't accept me. I wanted to redeem my mother's honor. She was who I was fighting for. God had also just given me an order to show them His and His Son's power. I would not disappoint them. Once I got back to my feet I answered my enemy.

"Did the humans teach you this?"

"I admire your conviction to this deity of yours and his offspring. Your love for your mother and your long-suffering for her, these human warriors' and their creed amazes me greatly ,Yautja. Your bravery and resolve also do not cease to aspire my wonder. You truly do have a warrior's spirit. For that I award you my respect, and I shall remember you well for it. I shall also grant you the privilege of a swift death, as one with an essence such as yours should be befitted with." Goliath said as he readied his whip.

I took a couple weak steps forward before falling to my hands and knees and began to softly pray. I wasn't asking God or Jesus for strength. I knew they'd given it to me, and I was thanking them for it. The only request I made was that this would help me succeed in restoring Mom's honor, so that her soul could finally have peace.

"Is that a prayer?" My enemy laughed. "You continue to stand fast to this religion of yours and I deeply respect that, but it is pointless. Gods are false creations. If my people's gods could not save them from the Raptusorms, nor could they save my mother and father, what hope should you have that yours will save you?" Goliath said mockingly as he brought his whip down on me.

I turned my face away as the whip was about to connect. I didn't want to see it. I didn't want to see his mangled broken body lie on the ground dead. I heard an explosive crackle of electricity when I turned my eyes away, which I thought had ended Jon's life. My sorrow was quickly silenced however when I heard the clan gasp in surprise. I turned to look back at Jon and found to my surprise that he was still alive. Upon further inspection I saw a piece of the whip lying on the ground a couple paces away. Jon also had a golden object in his right hand, which I correctly suspected he'd used to cut the whip.

"What is the meaning of this?!" Goliath asked, stunned by the unexpected reprisal Jon had just made.

"While we were fighting... I knew that I couldn't cause you any physical harm... because of the force field that your armor is generating around your body! Despite that... I also noticed that when you attacked me, I could make physical contact with your armor so long as I didn't do any thing to try and hurt you... and that gave me an interesting idea! As you held me up and began punching me... I swiped a piece of that glove of yours off of you!" Jon explained as he stood back up and showed his enemy the finger piece of his gauntlet. Goliath looked at his hand and saw that a piece of his gauntlet was missing, before turning his gaze back to the teenage Yautja. "You asked me what hope I have that my God can save me! Let me show you what kind of power He truly has!" Jon said as a confident smile creased his teary eyed face.

The scene stunned me just as much as it had stunned everyone else. Jon had just found a way to outwit his opponent, and he'd demonstrated his strength by showing his resolve to continue fighting. He also looked like he had more strength and energy to fight Goliath now, a sign that his Heavenly Father hadn't abandoned him. We had a chance of winning now. The spark of hope that Jon had left me with, which I thought had died out, suddenly burst into a roaring fire after that. "GO JON! GO GO GO!" I screamed energetically as I saw the two combatants charge each other.

Goliath roared aloud as he swung his fist at Jon, who jumped at him. Jon skillfully grasped onto his opponents fist and front flipped over it. Goliath's force field did not read that as an attack and allowed Jon to finally make physical contact with his opponent just as he explained. Jon landed on his opponents shoulder and plunged the armor piece into an exposed area on Goliath's arm. The armor piece phased through the force field and went into Goliath's arm causing purple blood to spurt out. Goliath tried punching Jon with his other hand, but the Yautja tore his weapon out and jumped off causing the Drukathi to punch himself instead.

Jon landed gracefully on his hands and feet before turning to face his opponent. Goliath could see the confidence in the young Yautja's face, and we could tell it was scarring him, but to the Drukathi's credit, he made no signs of showing it.

"Well played ,young one. You have figured me out" Goliath complimented as he began shooting his liquid nitrogen spray at the teenage Predator. Jon quickly ran from the spray's path, and dived underneath Goliath's feet. Goliath looked around to see where Jon had run, but he did not realize that the Yautja was still underneath him. Jon took that moment to drive the finger piece into one of his opponents hind feet. Goliath grunted as he felt Jon cut him, and responded by kicking him away. Jon landed on the ground a couple feet in front of me, but got right back up and charged at his opponent again. Goliath saw Jon coming towards him, and defensively slammed his hand down. For a moment we'd all thought Jon had been crushed, but Jon had dove behind his enemy's hand and was now tearing off another larger piece of Goliath's gauntlet. Goliath bellowed as he felt Jon drive the larger piece of the gauntlet into his wrist. Jon cut into his opponent's hand some more before he wrenched it out of his enemy's hand as Goliath recoiled backward. Goliath tried spraying his enemy again with his liquid nitrogen spray, which Jon ran from once again. He ran a couple circles around his opponent before he sprinting back under him. Goliath anticipated that Jon was hiding under him again, and tried stomping on him. Jon avoided his enemy's feet, and managed to swipe at one of the Drukathi's front legs. Goliath recoiled again, but as he backed away he slipped and fell on a layer of ice causing him to fall, which caused the arena to shake a little as it happened.

Jon continued his offensive and drove the gauntlet piece into an exposed area of Goliath's leg that connected the appendage to the rest of his body. The cut was deep and it managed to cripple the massive alien. Goliath wasn't out of the fight yet however, and smacked his opponent away. Goliath tried firing his liquid nitrogen spray, but found that Jon had drove the smaller armor piece he took earlier into the canister that held the icy fluid, causing it to leak out. Goliath saw his enemy recover, and desperately fired his napalm spray at the teenage Predator. He continued to torch his opponent for a few more seconds before he finally stopped. Goliath weakly got back up, holding his front leg where Jon had cut him as he gasped a series of relieved sighs.

Right as Goliath was about to pronounce himself as the victor, we heard Jon speak. "Thanks for warming me back up. Appreciate it." Jon thanked his enemy as he walked nonchalantly out of the flames. This didn't surprise me as I'd seen Jon completely covered in fire before, which had done nothing to him. Although this didn't shock me, it did startle the clan, and Goliath who unleashed his whip ,which was now his only weapon of defense, and began swinging it at the Yautja. Jon avoided a few strikes from the weapon as he ran under his opponents feet again. Jon then forcefully drove the gauntlet piece through an armored segment on one of his opponents hind legs. He was able to break through the armor and dig into his opponents leg causing him to scream in pain as he fell to the ground, causing Jon to retreat before his opponent fell on him. Goliath saw Jon and tried to slap him away with his whip, but he ducked underneath it and managed to drive the gauntlet piece into the area the whip was holstered on the gauntlet. Jon roared as he used all of his strength to tear the whip out, which he managed to do so. Goliath tried grabbing his opponent, but Jon stabbed his enemy's hand with the gauntlet piece, before retreating for the whip. He grabbed it with both hands and struggled to squeeze it hard enough to activate it. This provided Goliath with enough time for him to get up and charge, however, Jon was able to tighten his grip enough that he was able to activate it in time, and he swung it at Goliath. The blow was able to smack the Drukathi away, but it wasn't enough to stop him, and he continued to attack Jon. This desperate assault proved fruitless for him as Jon continued smacking him away with the whip. Jon left no room for his enemy to recover and continued to swing the whip into his opponent repeatedly. One of his strikes was able to knock Goliath's helmet off, revealing his scarred skeletal face, and glowing red eyes.

Goliath tried grabbing at the whip, but that also did not yield positive results as he ended up shocking himself with the weapon. After shocking him for a few seconds, Jon threw the weapon at his enemy's throat, and managed to wrap a few coils around Goliath's neck. Jon then leapt onto the back of Goliath's shoulders and began choking him with the weapon, before releasing an electrical current which shocked them both. Whether he did this intentionally or accidentally I didn't know, either way it proved to be the finishing move that Jon needed to completely sap his opponent's strength. After shocking them both, Jon was able to loosen his grip on the whip's handle, causing the current to stop, and they both fell to the ground. Jon still had some strength left in him and was able to get up before his opponent could even think to do so, and grabbed a piece of Goliath's armor that he'd managed to chip off of the Drukathi earlier when he swung the whip at him. Jon began swiping at the Drukathi's face with the shard, leaving a series of viscous cuts and scrapes. After dishing out his brutal assault on the Drukathi, he brought the weapon up to plunge it into his opponent's skull. Goliath saw this and closed his eyes as Jon brought it down. Jon stopped short however, which Goliath noticed shortly afterward. He saw Jon starring down at him with a hard look as he held the shard over Goliath's face. He could see the look in Jon's differently colored eyes, and he knew the young-blood could've easily killed him right there, but hadn't. The clan and I cheered and roared as we saw Jon overcome the warlord. The Drukathi warriors and Goliath's son all roared in protest against the Yautja's victory, but Goliath quickly silenced them.

"STOP! Do not force their hand. I have lost this battle. The Yautja is the victor." Goliath said temporarily turning his gaze to his rioting tribe. The Drukathi turned his look back to Jon who kept the shard over his opponent's head. "I submit ,young one. You have won this fight." Goliath told Jon. After he heard that, Jon threw threw the shard away, before backing away and began to gasp for air. Jon was exhausted, but that did not stop him from bellowing a victorious scream. This wasn't a victory roar like before, it was a scream, one that sounded very human in tone, which did not intimidate me, but rather uplifted me as I heard it. After proclaiming his victory over the Drukathi warlord, he weakly fell to his knees, and began to sputter a tearful laugh. The Yautja guards opened the door that separated us, and I ran out to embrace my Fire Angel.

"Thank-you ,Dear Heavenly Father. Thank-you Merciful Master. Thank-you. Thank-you." I heard him say softly as he gasped his laugh.

Once I reached him I wrapped my Yautja in a loving hug, and began to weep. I couldn't help but tear up after that. I had just been through so much stress it was the only thing I could do. "I'm sorry Jon. I'm sorry I gave up on you like that." I sniffled an apology to him. I'd put Jon through so much over these past few days, when he had been under the same amount of stress that I had been under, and he'd done so much to try and uplift me that it only felt right that I apologized to him for it.

Jon stood on his knees and wrapped his arms around me. "It's okay Pyode, It's okay." He forgave me as he starred down at me with a soft loving smile. "You were scared. I understand that. I'm not angry with you at all." He told me as he nuzzled his mandibles on my forehead, before we both kissed each other softly. After our moment of comfort cuddling ended, Jon and I stood back up and approached Goliath who continued to lay on the ground.

"That was an impressive display of intelligence and strength ,young one. You took me by complete surprise." Goliath complimented Jon.

"He has a knack for that." I spoke as I wiped the tears off my face with my arm.

"That he does," Goliath told me, before he returned his attention to Jon, "If they do exist, your god truly is mightier than mine are."

We were quickly joined by Jon's clan, who energetically swarmed around us, along with the Drukathi tribe, who stood by their defeated leader. They all looked downcast by the development they had just witnessed. Although they had protested to the Yautja's victory they quickly accepted that they'd lost. Say what you could about them, they were at least honorable losers. Goliath's son knelt beside his father, and spoke something to him in their language.

Goliath answered his son, probably telling him to stand down, if I had to guess. Ph-rills soon joined us and gave the Drukathi hard look. "Your clan has one ,Ph-rills. Your people are free, as we agreed." Goliath told Ph-rills with a pained look on his face.

The clan and I roared aloud as we heard the Drukathi warlord submit. Ph-rills and Jon however, remained still. After most of us finished our scream fest Ph-rills turned to Jon. "Thank-you ,young Schaefer. Thank-you. We are most indebted to you." Ph-rills thanked him before bowing to him respectfully, which the rest of the clan did as well, finally showing some ounce of decency to him.

"Save your praise for the young one ,Ph-rills! He is not finished." Goliath told him.

"What do you mean? I won? What more is there to do?" Jon asked.

"You are the victor, and are now a worthy equal to my kind. I must be slain. I have shamed my tribe. It is your duty to do what must be done. Finish me." Goliath told him in a disappointed, but respectfully submissive tone as he deactivated his armor's force field.

"He is correct ,Schaefer. Slay this dishonorable barbarian." Ph-rills told him. Jon was met by another Yautja who offered him his machete, which he took. He looked unsure at first, but his uncertainty did not last.

"You fought well ,young one. Cut clean." Goliath gave one final respect to his foe before he closed his eyes and prepared for Jon to strike him down, to which Jon's clan began egging him on to end the Drukathi's life.

Jon looked at Goliath's son who had a sorrowful look on his face. He knew the Yautja would not give his father mercy. What mercy had they shown the Yautja when they attacked? Why should they be shown any mercy for what they'd done? The young Drukathi turned his head away, not wanting to bear the sight of watching his father, who he loved so dearly be killed. Jon saw this, and looked at his blade, then at me. To be perfectly honest I didn't care what Jon did to him. Goliath had tried to kill my boyfriend and I was more than furious, but I didn't think it was the correct thing to just kill him. I wasn't encouraging him like his clan was, but I wasn't stopping him either. Jon saw my mixed look and starred back at me with a sure look on his face before returning his gaze to the Drukathi before making a soft frown. Without even a second thought, Jon tossed his machete to the ground. Everyone ,except for me and Ph-rills, gasped as they saw it. Goliath heard Jon's machete clatter as it hit the ground and addressed him.

"What are you doing ,young one? I am your prey now. End me." Goliath said in confusion.

"He is right ,Schaefer. Why do you hesitate? Finish him." Ph-rills said, surprised as everyone else was.

"No." Jon answered.

"What?! Why?!" A Yautja asked, before the rest of them began to whisper about what was going on.

"Why do you do this ,young one. It is the 'decree of the battle.' You won. You must destroy me." Goliath said.

"No. I'm not going to do it. If I wanted you dead I wouldn't have hesitated earlier." Jon replied.

"But what of our deal?" Goliath asked.

"I never promised I'd go through with it completely. I only agreed to it so you'd leave my clan alone." Jon said.

"Why do you refuse to destroy me like this?" Goliath asked.

"There are a lot of reasons why I do the things I do. I spared you because I understood your anger. When you explained how my clan leader killed your parents, I saw a bit of myself in you. I lost my mother to the shadows when I was just a suckling, and since then I've been doing my damnedest to kill them all. So in a way, while I don't agree with you, I can understand how you feel. Besides my God has laws that I must abide by." Jon responded.

"But I attacked you and your clan. You fought to defend them and yourself. Surely he cannot blame you for killing out of defense?" Goliath spoke.

"And he doesn't, which is why I killed your soldiers as I did. But the conflict is over now. There is no need for it." Jon said.

"This makes no sense." Goliath whispered aloud. He couldn't understand why Jon was sparring him.

"You know, I may be a young-blood ,so what do I know, but if I do know one thing, it's that there's a reason for everything, whether we can understand the purpose of it or not." Jon said thoughtfully.

"This is true, but I still do not understand why you do this." Goliath spoke.

"Does it matter?" Jon asked the Drukathi before giving the Drukathi's son a quick glance. Goliath saw this, before looking Jon in the eyes again. This time he saw something that he hadn't seen before. Goliath silently gasped in amazement as he finally understood Jon. "I know what it's like to lose someone you care for dearly, Goliath. I may be your ancient enemy, and I may be an ugly mother fcker, but I'm not a ruthless monster." Jon told him.

"You are merciful ,mighty one," Goliath addressed Jon, "Whatever it is that you desire of me I shall grant unto you. We shall even be your slaves if that is what you wish." Goliath told him.

"All I want is for you and your people to leave my people in peace, and for your people and mine to stop fighting." Jon said to the Drukathi.

"That is all?" Goliath asked, expecting Jon to ask for more than that.

"That's it. This conflict has gone on long enough. I think it's time it ends here." Jon replied.

"Very well ,mighty one. We shall not harm your clan, nor shall we make war with you ever again," Goliath said as his warriors lifted him to his feet, "Thank-you for your understanding and your mercy ,mighty one. I shall not forget the compassion you've shown today."

"By the way, What part of that fight was supposed to be fair, if that was your intention? And what's this 'decree of battle' crap?" Jon asked.

"In our culture it is customary to fight any being that poses a significant threat to us by using our weapons and armor against them. It is similar to your code of honor, only you do not use your weapons and armor to defeat your opponents but offer them fighting chances. If our adversary manages to best us while we are at our strongest we consider them equals and we decree that their species is strong enough to survive. Very few have managed to do so though like you have today. It is one of the many laws in our code that we call the 'decree of battle.'" Goliath explained.

"Hypocrites, and you call my species foolish and barbaric. You're no different than we are. Go on. Get outta here." Jon told them. He wasn't forceful about it, but the Drukathi did have the sense to do as he told them to. Before they left however, Jon gave Goliath a compliment. "By the way, Goliath, Thanks for the fight. I have to say it's one of my best." Jon told the Drukathi with a respectful smile.

"Thank-you as well." Goliath said with a soft smile of his own. Goliath's son gave Jon a short smile and said something to him, that we couldn't understand, likely a thank-you for sparring his father the way he did. After that they boarded their ship and left peacefully.

Once they left, I gave an exhausted sigh before addressing my clan leader, "So can Jenny and I finally have a break, please?"

"It would be appropriate for the one who saved us to have his rest." Ph-rills answered.

"Thank-you." I said in a mildly dramatic tone of voice.

"I must thank-you again ,young Schaefer, for your bravery and your sacrifice. I am indebted to you for it, as is my family, and our clan." Ph-rills said as he and his concubines and children bowed to us with gratitude and respect, before addressing our clan who also bowed their thanks. I could see the shameful looks on some of their faces, as well as a few of them who still distained me, and a fair amount who were truly sorry and grateful.

"Any time, Ph-rills. Any time. By the way can I get my stuff back there's something I want from it?" I replied.

"Certainly." Ph-rills responded. "Again thank-you. It is my proud honor to consider you an honorable member of this clan. I should like to speak with you more, but we have much to do now." my clan leader said.

"All in good time." I replied.

"Indeed." He said to me before addressing his clan. "This young-blood has shown us his intentions, and has sacrificed much for us, and I deem him worthy to be an accepted and honorable member of this clan, and I shall hear no word against it. If I hear any more accounts of his, or his Ooman's being to be threatened, or harassed in any way they shall be met with swift and sever punishment. We owe him and his Ooman a great debt, and I shall not tolerate them being mistreated as they are with us. Understood?" Ph-rills told the rest of the clan who nodded their heads in agreement. "Good." He responded before issuing orders. "Send a message to the Grand Council. Inform them of our circumstances, and issue a request for aid from the other clans. Also inform the Grand Leader of the young-blood, inform him that he has passed his trials, and also send word of his heroic actions." He told one of his guards, who obediently did as he was told, before addressing one of his servants. "Bring the young-blood his belongings, he wishes to have them, get someone to dress his injuries, and have a proper room prepared for him and his Ooman. They have been through much and I would be pleased to see them rested." After issuing his orders we left the arena.

"Thank-you for your hospitality ,Ph-rills." Jenny thanked my clan leader.

"Thank your friend here for his selflessness. Without him we may all very well be dead. I know of the Drukathi's treachery, and although they were not interested in you, I imagine that they would've slain you just as they would have done the rest of us. It would've make no difference to them." Ph-rills explained.

"Well, I'm glad someone told me after the fact." Jenny said comedically with a wide-eyed expression, causing me to laugh a little.

"Anything we can do to help you Ph-rills?" I asked.

"There is not much we can do until we receive support from our brother and sister clans. The Drukathi have caused us much devastation, and we've lost many good Yatja." He answered a little forlorn and saddened by the loss.

"I'm sorry." I apologized sincerely.

"You couldn't have known this would happen, none of us could. They all died honorable deaths. Let us bury them and put their souls to rest, and rebuild what has been destroyed." He said. "As for you both I would be greatly pleased to see you receive your rest."

"While we're waiting on it though is their anything we can do? I mean we may as well." Jenny asked.

"You both are very kind. I shall see what can be done. For now though, there is not much I would have for you do. I shall notify you when there is." He responded.

"Thank-you." Jenny and I replied.

"Also ,young Schaefer, may I say that you have a very peculiar look to you. You seem very similar in a lot of ways to me when I was younger." Ph-rills said thoughtfully. He wasn't wrong in that statement, he and I did look very similar in appearance, and to some degree our character was very similar, and on a smaller note, we'd both managed to take on the Drukathi and come out on top.

"Yeah, I noticed the same thing when I first saw you too. It's kind of strange." I agreed.

"It must be out of pure chance. We shouldn't need to show too much concern for such a foolish matter." Ph-rills said.

"Agreed." I responded.

"If I may ask you this as well young-blood, I would also like to discuss about your mother and this god of yours? You mentioned them during the fight, and I am greatly interested to know of them." Ph-rills requested.

"Certainly. I will say my religion is a pretty long story." I answered.

"We may come to it at another time if you wish. But what of your mother?" Ph-rills asked.

"Well, twenty seven years ago, our clan came to KJ-147 ,the Ooman planet that I was born on and have been living on since then, and my mother was captured during a hunt you went on there. The shadows or kiande amedha, the marines, and you all fought against each other when it happened. She said that you were after a shadow queen, and at the end of the fight you tried destroying any evidence of our existence, but Mom deactivated her wristbracer and she survived. She was pregnant with me and my litter at the time, and that's why she did what she did. Because of that, she allowed herself to be taken captive by Weyland Yutani and the technology she had with her was also taken. After she gave birth to me and the rest of my litter we were experimented on by the Oomans, and the rest of my litter was killed in the process. I was the only one to survive the procedure. They made me the Abomination I am now. She'd wanted to raise us and watch us become great and honorable warriors for this clan. I-it's what she always wanted, but... Mother also refused to kill me as well. She kept me alive because she loved me, and because she hoped that I would one day restore honor to the clan, where she'd dishonored you. She was killed by a shadow seven years later. You can figure the rest out, can't you?" I explained.

"Yes, I know of the battle you speak of. I did not think that anyone had survived the exposure. Such actions are most dishonorable indeed." Ph-rills replied.

"After Schaefer took me in and made me a marine, I've tried my best to fight honorably to restore her honor, and after Jenny, Ch'ris, Rachelle and I fought the bad bloods, we discovered technology that belonged to our clan and I saw my opportunity to restore her honor and fulfill her dream by becoming the great warrior she always wanted for me to be. She's the reason I'm here now." I finished.

"I see. You wish to clean her name of this dishonor, and give her soul peace." Ph-rills said.

"Yes. Is there any way that may be done?" I asked hopefully.

"For the sacrifice you've made this day. I shall see that that is done once we've repaired. We shall be holding a feast for the other clans after we are finished, I shall make it known then that your mother's honor has been restored." Ph-rills replied. That news brought a bright smile to my face, and caused my eyes to begin watering. It was finally done. Mom's honor was finally recognized, and she was forgiven. After spending so many years bearing the pain, disgrace, and shame knowing that she could never restore herself from the dishonor she'd caused our clan, it... it... it... it was... just the most liberating feeling I'd ever felt. Now she could finally rest peacefully, and I could finally receive closure knowing that I'd lived up to her hopes, and that I'd fulfilled her dreams of being the honorable hunter warrior she'd always wanted for all of her children to be. It was a lot to take in, so much so that it made me cry right there on the spot.

"Are you alright Jon." Jenny asked noticing the tears on my face.

"I'm fine. I'm fine." I sniffled a response. Although she hadn't know much about the relationship between me and Mom, she understood how important this was to me, how important Mom was to me. Her face brightened as she saw me give her that bright smile.

"Rejoice ,young Schaefer. I believe that you have earned it." Ph-rills said.

"It feels like I've come a long way." I said as I watched one of our suns set over the horizon. It felt very oddly artistic, and poetic in this hopeful sense. Although we'd just endured through a tremendous loss, one that would not be forgotten, some good had come from it. My people could heal, and so could I. I would help them. It's what Mom would've wanted. I held Jenny close to me as this tidal wave of relief washed over me. As we stood there I said the most grateful prayer I could to my Heavenly Father thanking him for everything that he'd allowed me to accomplish. I thanked him for his guidance, his help, for the opportunities he'd presented me with, and the people who I'd met along the way that had also helped me come this far. "It's finally done Mom. It's finally done. You can rest peacefully now." I said as I choked on my tears.

Now although this seems like a good finisher for this entry there's one last thing I kind of have to mention.

After standing there for an uncounted amount of time Ph-rills spoke to me. "Although your mother dishonored us, it was her actions that have allowed us to survive. For that, she will be forgiven also. You are truly blessed to have such a woman for a mother."

"Oh, you and I have no idea." I responded with that same bright smile on my face.

"I have some. She sounds much like one of my most beloved concubines. She too was present in the battle you spoke of, and she too wished for children she could raise into brave, young, honorable hunters. But she was lost in the fight." Ph-rills explained.

"I'm sorry about her."

"You do not need apologize ,Schaefer. She died an honorable death. I know she did. I imagine your mother died the same way."

"She did."

"Tell me, what was her name?"

"I-I-I don't remember actually. I just always called her Mom, and she didn't say her name very often. Sometimes I'm able to remember part of it, but... It's just been so long I can't remember." I replied with a sigh. I kind of felt a little ashamed that I didn't even know my mother's name.

"Your room is ready ,We have brought you your belongings as you requested." The servant who Ph-rills had ordered earlier said as he came with my bag, pulse-rifle, machete and it's sheath, and my smart disc and it's sheath. I politely thanked the Yatja as I began to run through my bag to look for my bio-mask. I wanted to enjoy the moment by cutting back and listening to some music on my iPhone. As brought my mask out Ph-rills took notice of it.

"That mask ,young-blood, tell me, where did you get it?" my clan leader asked.

"It was my Mom's. I claimed it as my own after I killed my first shadow. Why do you ask?" I replied allowing him to get a better look at the spray painted Marshmello smiley face on it.

"It looks very familiar. I wonder..." Ph-rills said as he began to think. The real revelation came after he noticed my smart disc, which he recognized instantly. "Where did you get that weapon ,Schaefer." He said with a wide-eyed expression on his face.

"It belonged to my mother's brother ,A'rgr-lo. She'd made it for him and when-." I began to explain before my clan leader stopped me short.

"Your mother was the sister to A'rgr-lo?!" He asked me with a surprised look.

"Yeah?" I answered him with a nervous and confused look. My answer caused Ph-rill's eyes to widen even more so in a hopeful look.

"Was the name of your mother Ma-ek'laa?" He asked.

Although I hadn't heard her name in years, I recognized it immediately as he said it. "Yeah, Yeah, that's it. How'd you know?" I asked.

"Let me see your hand." He said as he took my right hand in his to look at my palm, his look growing more excited as he did so. I was getting pretty nervous at this point as you could tell. "You bear the mark." Ph-rills said with a pleasant look on his face.

"So what? It's just a birth mark." I had this birth mark on the palm of my right hand that looked like a semicircle with two holes in it. I thought nothing of it, but my clan leader knew something I didn't. He showed me his right hand after I asked. He had the exact same mark on his hand. It was then that I put two and two together. My eyes widened as the realization dawned on me. To say that that was a wtf moment would be an enormous understatement. Jenny and I gasped as the revelation smacked us in the face like a pissed of kangaroo.

"Son?"

"Dad?!"