Jennifer's Diary
June 23, 2621
After quickly grabbing some gear, we all followed Jon. As we did I told Trish and Beo'n about their brother's ailment.
"Alright if you two are going to help us you need to understand something about your brother! Jon has PTSD! He's been through a lot of traumatic experiences, and because of that it's left a bad effect on his mind! Sometimes whenever he remembers something about his past that was very traumatic for him, his mind temporarily snaps and he begins to react violently! He thinks that the memories he sees are real and he loses all sense of awareness around him! Because of this he's basically having a nightmare while he's still awake and won't even know it's going on! He basically acts like a caged animal and that something is attacking him! The episodes are only temporary though, so he won't remain like that for long! All we need to do is pin him down or trap him someplace until his episode is over! Got it?!" I asked after finishing my explanation.
"We understand." Beo'n replied affirmatively
"It is also important to remember though that he has no control over himself while it's happening so if he looks like he will attack, he won't hesitate. He'll fight with every last ounce of strength he has. Do not offer him that chance!" Ch'ris added, remembering the last time he experienced it first hand.
"That's right ,Ch'ris! Thankfully, because everyone is at the hall, no one besides ourselves will be around for him to harm!" I said as we trailed him. It wasn't hard for us to track him down. Jon was gasping, groaning, and stomping as he ran. Normally he was a very stealthy individual, especially when he ran, but because of his instability he stood out like a bull in a China shop.
"What must we do to stop him?" Trish asked as we observed him from the roof tops. I didn't respond to her at first, not because I didn't hear her, nor was I not paying attention, but I honestly didn't know how to properly process what to do. When Jon, Ch'ris, Rachelle, and I fought against the bad bloods, none of us really took over as the leader of the group. Even when Jon and Ch'ris fought together, Jon wasn't really leading. He just provided crafty strategies that contributed to plans the both of them used against Zell-oah and her group. After she was captured, her group was disorganized, and because of the previous fighting all the bad bloods the four of us fought afterward were not very difficult to overcome. While this wasn't a very dire situation like that, there were more of us now, and although Ch'ris and Rachelle had fought Jon while he was like this before, I was the one who had more experience, so I needed to lead them too. I didn't want the responsibility of it, but I had no choice in the matter now.
"Jenny! What do we need to do?" Beo'n said in a loud whisper, managing to break my worried concentration. I stood there for a few seconds unsure of how to answer him. I didn't have a plan, but I did have experience fighting Jon during an episode. In our first fight, we'd fought in open territory; he practically wiped the floor with me then. To be fair I was hesitating that time, but even after I began fighting back it made little difference what I did. He was much stronger than me, and way more ferocious. During our second fight, Ch'ris, Rachelle, Sa-v'ar, and I fought him in Ch'ris' ship. During that fight, I noticed he had more difficulty in that fight because there were more of us and he had less room to fight in. That gave me a basic idea of what we needed to do.
"I don't know, but I do know he'll be easier to get control of in an enclosed space. If we can get him into a building he'll have less area to move around in. There are also more of us then before so that may also help. We just need to get him pinned down or trapped, and keep him that way until his episode is over." I said.
"How might we do that though?" Rachelle asked.
"I-I don't know ,Rachelle. I think each of us needs to split up and create a perimeter around him. We can take an area he may use to escape from and try to keep him in one spot. Then again, that may just end up antagonizing him, and we need as many individuals as possible if we're going to take him down." I said thoughtfully as we followed Jon who still seemed to be in partial control of himself. I knew that wouldn't last though, so I needed to make a determination quickly before he lost all control.
"So what shall we do?" Ch'ris asked.
I continued to mull the ideas I had before landing on what I felt was the smartest option. "Let's try to surround him first. He may snap and start attacking, but once he starts he won't stop so he won't go any where else. Once he's after one of us try to get him in an enclosed area, then we'll all gang up on him." I replied. After the plan was set each of us took a direction around the area he was in and waited.
"I see Kjon. He's coming towards me." Rachelle said through the microphone on each of our bio-masks.
"Is he attacking?" I asked.
"No, he does not see me," Rachelle replied, "What shall I do?"
"Keep him where he is. Don't let him get away." I replied.
"Wait he's going inside a house right now. This is our chance!" Rachelle said.
"Good, make sure he stays inside. Don't let him escape. We'll be with you shortly. Everyone, let's do this." I said with nervous anticipation. Once we all made it to Rachelle's location we all carefully surrounded the building. "How does it look?" I asked my friend.
"He has not left since he entered. Perhaps he still has some control." She said in a hopeful tone.
"Maybe, but that will not last to much longer," I informed, "Ch'ris, Beo'n, you two will be helping me. Rachelle, Trish, the two of you need to stay out here just incase he tries to escape. Understood?" I said.
"We understand." Trish responded.
"Loud and clear." Rachelle added. Beo'n and Trish gave her a weird look after she said that.
"Alright. Let's go." I said as the three of us quietly entered the building. We found Jon inside a bathroom standing in front of a mirror, gasping and spitting.
"It's fine ,Kjon! You're fine... You're fine... You're alright. It's just a memory. It's just a memory." Jon said as he took a series of deep slow breaths. He seemed like he was actually getting control of himself. That was until I made a bad mistake.
"Jon." I called stupidly. Ch'ris and Beo'n tried to stop me after they heard me, but it was too late. Jon looked up after I announced our presence, and saw our reflection in the mirror. Whatever he saw, he did not recognize that it was us. He gave a fearful groan before turning around to face us. The fearful look he gave when he turned around brought back bad memories. "What have I done," I thought to myself regretfully. Jon's fearful look quickly collapsed into one of struggle as suppressed memories filled his subconscious.
"Why did you do that?!" Beo'n exclaimed. Jon's eyes focused on us with animalistic aggression, which also brought back bad memories I'd forgotten. Jon made a defensive roar arresting our attention. Ch'ris and Beo'n immediately reacted sprinting towards Jon, who did the same after they did. Jon made a swipe at them, but Ch'ris ducked under his arm and Beo'n blocked it with his combi-stick, allowing Ch'ris to smack Jon in the face with his combi-stick. Jon wasn't fazed by the blow however, and tried retaliating by punching Ch'ris with his other hand. Beo'n ,however, caught his brother's arm before it could connect with Ch'ris. Beo'n then delivered a kick to Jon's gut as Ch'ris followed it up by hitting Jon in the face with the hilt of his combi-stick. All this did was piss Jon off. Jon kicked Ch'ris away before grabbing at Beo'n's throat with both hands.
As the three of them fought I tried to sneak behind Jon, but I was to slow to do so, and Jon sensed my presence. He leapt off of his brother, and pinned me against the wall. I fought as hard as I could to push him back with my combi-stick, but I could do little to force him back as he began chocking me with the hilt of the weapon. Ch'ris materialized behind Jon and grabbed his friend under his arms and pushing his head forward with his hands. Ch'ris was able to get him off of me, but he wasn't able to continue grappling with the enraged Yautja, as Jon slammed Ch'ris against the wall several times, before grabbing him and flipping him off of his back in an arch. Jon proceeded to lay into him mercilessly, but Beo'n and I were able to recover quickly and fight him off of Ch'ris. We were able to fight him long enough for Ch'ris to get up and help us, allowing us to pin him against the wall. Despite our combined strength, Jon would not let up, and used every bit of strength he had to force us off of him. Ch'ris and I went to try and pin him down again, but he smacked us away. Beo'n threw a few punches and kicks at his brother, but they did little against him, as Jon was able to grab Beo'n by the throat. Ch'ris went to help Beo'n, but Jon sensed the attack and grabbed him by the neck as well. Jon pinned the both of them against the wall as he continued to choke them. I went to help them by scratching at Jon's back with my tail. I didn't cut very deep, just deep enough to hurt and get his attention, which I was successful in doing so at my own expense. Jon turned around and backhanded me, letting Beo'n and Ch'ris go as they did so. As I recovered Jon grabbed me by the tail and slammed me into the wall. Fortunately, I had the sense to bring my armor, or my spine would've been in pieces. The blow was still strong enough to knock the wind out of me causing me to gasp for air.
Before Jon could make another attack Rachelle and Trish burst into the room and pinned him against the wall. Before Jon could force them off of, I got up and buried my foot in his crotch, causing him to fall to the floor. Before Jon could even recover from the blow I threw myself down on his torso. Ch'ris and Beo'n appeared shortly afterward and grabbed the enraged Yautja's legs, cementing him to the floor.
"You two were to remain outside!" Beo'n told them as the five of us held Jon's thrashing body down.
"We heard you struggling and we both agreed it would be better that we came to assist you." Trish answered her brother, who gave her an irate growl.
"You're welcome by the way!" Rachelle responded a little irritated herself for Beo'n's attitude.
"Thank-you Gkei'moun R'ka." Ch'ris said to Trish and his wife appreciatively.
"I'm sorry about that Beo'n." I told the frustrated Predator.
"You gave away our presence! You never announce your presence to your prey ever!" He didn't roar or scream at me, but he didn't speak softly either. "And the both of you left your posts. Had he moved to escape and you weren't there to stop him we would have lost him!" Beo'n said to his sister and Rachelle.
"That or he would have beaten the three of you to death like he was!" Trish responded.
"It does not matter! You should have told us before you moved so we could do something to prepare for it!" Beo'n said.
"It looked like you could not do anything then!" Rachelle said.
"Guys it's my fault, I gave us away. I'm sorry ,Beo'n." I apologized, making sure to be sincere as I said it. "Thank-you Rachelle, you too Trish. We seriously needed your help then." I told them appreciatively.
Beo'n exhaled a few relaxing breaths before responding. "You are forgiven, but you must not announce your existence like that. It is an unheard of mistake among all experienced hunters, especially leaders. We were following your direction. Our lives were within your hands, not just yours. You must understand that. I can understand your care for my brother, but it is as you said, you must not give your prey an opening. Remember this. And the both of you, we appreciate your selfless actions, but what you did was reckless. Had our brother chosen to escape rather than attack we would have lost him. You both should know this... Still we were in trouble and I should be grateful for your bravery. Thank-you both." Beo'n said. He did have a very good point to make with his arguments. What I did was very stupid. I was trained, I was in charge, I should have known this would happen. Now although it didn't cost us our lives, it might have. Now Beo'n had a little less of an excuse to make with Rachelle and Trish, but his assertions were still valid. I'll be honest I felt terrible. I nearly screwed us all. Had Trish and Rachelle not made that reckless decision to help us out, we'd have lost. I may have been a little hard on myself, but still.
Jon continued to fight us, and although he had managed to force us off of him before, He could do nothing against all five of us. We remained like that until Jon's episode passed.
"Guys?" Jon responded.
"Are you better now brother?" Beo'n asked.
Jon saw us standing over him and immediately realized what happened. "Oh sht. I did it again didn't I?" He said in a deeply apologetic voice.
"Unfortunately you did. But do not be to concerned ,Hunter Brother. We were ready. You did not harm us as badly as last time." Ch'ris said.
"Did I?" Jon asked to be sure.
"They are correct ,brother." Beo'n assured him.
"Merciful Master Jesus, Thank you." Jon responded, before taking a few relaxing breaths. "By the way who nailed me in the balls? Because I could feel that one." Jon asked.
"Sorry ,babe." I responded.
"It's okay ,Pyode." Jon excused me. "May I please get up now?"
After that, we returned to the temple to enjoy the rest of the feast. We did get a couple of odd looks from Ph-rills, but thankfully he was understanding of our explanation. We also made sure to make preparations for when this happened next. The next day all of the clans left us. Unfortunately that also meant Ch'ris and Rachelle. Their clan was still working on moving back into Yautja Prime's star system. They had responsibilities, and they had to address them. But that didn't mean we would never see them again. They even talked to us about seeing us again sometime in the future. We would've left with them to help, but they insisted it wasn't necessary. We would've also left just so we could return to KJ-147 faster. Jon and I also had responsibilities we needed to take care of, but Ph'rills insisted that we stayed. We agreed to stay for another week to give Ch'ris and Rachelle enough time for them to finish the work they needed to do for their clan, before they could take us home. Not that we could've left any sooner either way ,any way, since almost all of the Schroalatic clan's ships were destroyed, with the exception of a few smaller ones. To add to the experience it turned out that Jon's birthday was on at the end of the week, something Jon wasn't to thrilled about. Despite his lack of enthusiasm, my hyperactive self was more than excited for it. And yes, certain Yautja do celebrate birthdays.
As the days passed, Jon and I continued to spend time with his siblings, all except for Bri-ci'all or "Brick" as Jon appropriately nicknamed him. Bri-ci'all was actually a very reclusive individual, and whenever he did get out of his personal life ,doing whatever it was he did, he was just the same as he was at the feast with all his other siblings. Most of them gave him a wide respectful berth, except for Jon, Beo'n, Trish, and a couple others. Bri-ci'all didn't care much about me so he didn't bother me aside from giving me some dirty looks. Thankfully because of his reclusiveness he didn't interact with us very often. Now out of all of Jon's siblings Beo'n and Trish were the two he spent the most time with.
Now Jon and Beo'n didn't just look a lot alike, but they also were very similar in character as well. They were both experienced and passive individuals, who liked to spend time with others they cared about, they both enjoyed physical activity, weapon practice, and music, and they both were very good at making weapons. Beo'n was very talented at forging weapons like combi-sticks, wristblade gauntlets, smart-discs, and plasma casters. He had a whole garage full of appliances that he used to craft the armor and weapons he made. He not only made weapons for himself, but also crafted armor and gear for other members of the clan. His work was most helpful with crafting armor for young-bloods. Jon ,need I remind, also made his weapons, like his pulse rifle, wristblades, and his iconic machete. He even crafted my armor, plasma caster, and combi-stick. Heck if Beo'n had gills, lost the fangs, and wore camouflage pants, I wouldn't have been able to tell the two apart.
As for Trish, she were also passive and friendly. Trish was a newly blooded teenager, who was more introverted than her brothers. Despite that, Trish appreciated spending time with friends and siblings, and she also enjoyed doing physical activity for the purpose of preparing herself for future hunts. She wanted to rise from her current blooded ranking to the rank of an elite hunter so she could go off on her own and hunt dangerous creatures, just as all Yautja hunters like her did.
Trish also enjoyed learning about other Yautja clan religions, customs, and traditions, all of which revolved around the primary codes, but with slight cultural differences that affected their behavior. These religions, customs and traditions fascinated her, and she'd spend a lot of time to herself writing about them. Trish also enjoyed making upgrades to her some of her armor and weapons, most notably her bio-mask, medicomp backpack, and her bow.
Whenever Jon was with her, Trish would always acknowledge and respect him for his "superiority," but he respected her as an equal. He enjoyed asking her questions and listening to her as she told him about her fixations, her training, and how successful she'd been in her first Hunts. She'd just marked herself, her dreadlocks were not even braided yet, like most Predators were.
Interestingly, Trish even brought this up to him one time. Despite that Jon still treated her as an equal. He even brought up the fact that his dreadlocks hadn't even been braided yet either. You can also believe that that situation was quickly remedied. I was there to watch their braiding. I learned that their dreadlocks aren't actually hair follicles, but are complex sensory organs that help them with their balance and reflexes. I also found out, as I watched their dreadlocks being braided that they are used to attract mates; the longer the tresses are, the more attractive the individual is. As I watched I learned that the braiding process was actually very painful. The beads have these needles in them that dig into the dreadlocks when they are put on. It's pretty gory.
Trish always enjoyed listening to Jon's stories about his missions with the marines, and what living with humans was like. She even likened him to being a human, because of his character and "unusual" traditions. The thing that sparked her biggest interest with her brother was Jon's Christianity. Because of her fascination with other religions, she liked listening to Jon as he spoke about it. I would see her listening to him as he translated the Bible to her as he read it.
The four of us had a good time together. Whenever Jon wasn't spending time with Beo'n in his garage, nor spending time teaching Trish about the Gospel, we all had fun exercising, training, listening to music, and watching movies on Jon's bio-mask. It was like our trip to Yautja Prime with Ch'ris and Rachelle.
I should also bring up why Jon spent time with Beo'n in his garage. The two of them were actually making something together. It was a pretty good excuse for the two to spend some time together. I assumed they were making a new weapon or something and thought little of it. Little did I realize that what they were making was actually for me. Once it was finished they had me come into the garage to see it.
"So, what do you want me to see ,Jon?" I asked I approached him from behind.
"What do you think Jenny?" He answered as he turned around to reveal the object to me. It was a gauntlet, not like a wristblade gauntlet or a wristbracer, this was more like a glove, like an actual gauntlet. It was a reddish bronze color with a rustic yet smooth finish to it. The gauntlet reached all the way from my hand to my elbow. The glove had these accessories on the fingers ,except for the thumb, that looked like the blades on a wristblade gauntlet, except smaller. I took it in my hands as Jon gave it to me. To my surprise the weapon was very light.
"What is it?" I asked curiously.
"It's a glove. Go ahead try it on. It's for you." He beckoned me. The gauntlet or "glove" wasn't too tight, nor was it too loose, it felt perfect in my arm.
"It's great Jon, but I don't think I get the idea? Don't get me wrong, it's a nice glove. I really really love it, but..." I said.
"Flex your hand." Jon said, taking a few steps away.
"Oka-WOAH!" I exclaimed loudly as I heard the accessories on the fingers of the glove eject forward with a loud metallic slice, which startled me. "Woah!" I exclaimed again in amazement as I saw the blades. I saw them lock back into their original position on the glove after loosening the muscles in my hand, which again startled me.
"I know you were a fan of the Nightmare on Elm Street movies, and after finding out Beo'n has all this I thought ,what the hell, I'll make you something. By the way thanks for helping me out with it ,Beo'n." Jon explained while also giving acclaim to his brother.
"You're welcome brother." Beo'n replied. "I do believe it may make for a very effective weapon."
"Wow! This is great babe. Thanks." I said as I admired the glove's design. It was a very beautiful weapon, and I really really liked it. "Babe, you didn't need to make this for me." I told him.
"Ah, I don't need to do a lot of things I do. Besides Beo'n and I had a good time making it. We couldn't wait for you to see it." Jon replied.
"This thing is bad ass." I stated, flexing my hand a few times watching as the finger blades sprung open.
"I think she likes it." Jon said.
"You think?" Beo'n responded. "Look at her. She adores it."
"Sarcasm was intended ,brother." Jon replied.
"What is sarcasm?" Beo'n asked Jon with a weird look.
"I see I still got some explaining to do. Don't I?" Jon said.
"Can I cut something with it?!" I asked with an enthusiastic look on my face.
"We've created a monster ,Beo'n." Jon said jokingly as he saw the evil grin on my face.
"The Springwood Slasher has been reborn." I declared with a enthusiastic cackle. Needless to say the practice that I had with the glove that afternoon was fun.
Things continued the way they were peacefully, until a certain incident occurred. Trish, and I were peacefully listening to Jon as he read his Bible, until Bri-ci'all came out of nowhere, and decided it would be good to start some sht. "Abomination!" He called loudly as he approached us.
"Fee-fi-fo-fum." Jon whispered as he gave a frustrated growl. "Yes." He replied to the larger Yautja's call.
"I told you our conflict would be settled! Now is that time!" Bri-ci'all proclaimed.
"Oh, so you've finally decided to come out of your cave to play. We going to finally do patty cake, or are we going to keep doing ring around the pussy like we've been doing?" Jon responded, causing me to almost burst into laughter. Bri-ci'all had tried this a couple times before, but each time Ph'rills, Trish, and Beo'n stopped them. Jon would've agreed to the duel but Ph'rills and his siblings didn't want to see their honored relative who was visiting to be antagonized like this. He did it simply for their sake, although Bri-ci'all always interpreted it as Jon being a coward, although whenever Bri-ci'all made these attempts, they threatened to hurt him if he ever went through with harming Jon. Not that they were worried for Jon's safety, but rather they were more concerned with Bri-ci'all damaging their respect and hospitality nature they were showing us.
"You are one to speak, coward!" Bri-ci'all retorted sharply.
"I've heard enough of this nonsense! Stop antagonizing our brother like this or-!" Trish threatened before Bri-ci'all cut her off.
"Or what?! What could a weakling such as you do to me, when even our brother can do nothing to me?!" He spoke down to her. Trish responded by punching her eight foot tall brother in the face before kicking him away. She actually sent him flying back a few feet with that blow despite her slender, smaller, and lighter physique. It even surprised Jon when he saw it.
"Nice one ,Trish." Jon stuttering an impressed laugh.
"You shall regret that weakling!" Bri-ci'all said as he got back up.
"What is the meaning of this?!" Ph'rills said as he and Beo'n entered the room. "Bri-ci'all!" He said starring down at his blue skinned offspring.
"He threatened to harm Kjon again." Trish informed her father, who gave Bri-ci'all a hard angry look.
"Why do you continue to do this ,Bri-ci'all?! Why?! He is your brother! He has done nothing to you! He has saved our lives including yours, yet you treat him with such disrespect! Why?!" Ph'rills asked.
"He does not belong here!" Bri-ci'all replied.
"Did you not here our father say he is no longer an Abomination?!" Beo'n questioned.
"I do not care that he is an Abomination or not, but I have not seen his abilities! He boasts of incredible feats no such Yautja is capable of especially as he is so young, yet you all adore him with such fondness, and regard, and honor! Do you not see he is using us for his comfort?!" Bri-ci'all explained.
"He brought back or stolen weapons, he fought our strongest elders, including our own father, he has stood against the Drukathi bravely for us all! He saved our clan from extinction, you saw it just as I did! How can you say that he cannot do the things he says he has done?! He has not even boasted of his accomplishments! The only things he has spoken of are of his hunts with the Oomans. He has given much of his acclaim to these Ooman warriors and his god whom he speaks of so fondly?! How can you say he has boasted or lacks the capability of anything he or his friends have spoken of him?!" Beo'n said to his brother.
"What proof has he shown! Until I see proof, I shall not even consider him a worthy member of this clan, let alone our family, which you say he is!" Bri-ci'all roared back.
The two Yautja looked like they were about to fight, but their father stopped them.
"I've heard enough talk of this! This is the last time I shall say this to you ,Bri-ci'all! These are your brothers and sister! They have done nothing to you! Leave them alone or I shall put you over myself." Ph'rills threatened.
"Nothing you or they do will sway me, father! Until I have this proof I shall not cease to clash with him!" Bri-ci'all said as he stared hatefully at Jon.
"So be it! You have brought this upon yourself!" Ph'rills spoke menacingly as he grabbed Bri-ci'all by the arm and Judo threw him. At first Jon and I were worried for Ph'rills. We had no doubt in our minds that he would win. We knew he was much more experienced and way more dangerous than Bri-ci'all because of it, but we were worried Bri-ci'all might cause the older Yautja some harm. You already know of Jon's protective nature, which has also rubbed off on me. We were ready to fight, but as we continued to watch the two Yautja fight we saw just how truly strong and experienced of a combatant Ph'rills was. Looking back on it he and Jon had fought before, and had nearly one. To be fair he had fought three elders before him, so he was pretty weak, although Ph'rills was far older than he was too. Despite that though, it didn't look like his age had affected his vitality or his strength, but had rather improved upon it. I was surprised that Jon had enough strength to bring that fight to a draw, when Ph'rills was mopping the floor with his older brother. Ph'rills' fight with his son was absolutely spectacular. Jon and I even found ourselves sitting down with Trish and Beo'n as we watched Ph'rills kick Bri-ci'all's ass without sustaining a single hit himself. Ph'rills didn't even get his robe dirty, I don't even think he broke a single ounce of sweat that whole time.
At the end of the fight ,Ph'rills had Brick on the ground in an arm lock. "You are an elite hunter warrior Bri-ci'all! You have had many many more years of experience than your younger brother has, yet he has shown to be a much stronger and more focused opponent than you! It is disappointing! Insulting even!" Ph'rills said shaming his son ,who groaned and growled in pain. "I shall say this only once! Leave your brothers and sisters in peace!" Ph'rills told him, before letting him go. Bri-ci'all would not stop though, and got up to attack his father. The more experienced Yautja however, anticipated this and Judo threw the monster Predator. Jon and I made a pained laugh, while Trish and Beo'n gave a satisfied smile as we saw it.
"Clan Leader." A Yautja general said giving Ph'rills a respectful bow as he entered the room.
"What do you have to report of?" Ph'rills asked.
"It has returned to feed ,Ph'rills." The general replied.
"Now?! So soon?! Time has passed faster than I have thought." Ph'rills said in a stressed voice.
"What is it, Ph'rills? What's come back?" Jon asked his father curiously.
"Thei-de Tjau'ke (Death Rock)." Ph'rills replied.
"What is Thei-de Tjau'ke?" I asked.
"Thei-de Tjau'ke are ancient underground creatures that live in the volcanoes of this planet. They live there because they cannot survive in cold areas for very long. They mostly stay within the volcanoes, but occasionally some will grow to unusual size and venture outside of their known territories during the colder half of the season when the ground is warmer in search for larger prey to hunt. Some have been known to swallow us whole. Some of the clans that live on this planet with us fear these creatures as devil gods, and even offer sacrifices to them. Others like us hunt these beasts down. They are not to much of a nuisance to us when this happens, especially when they grow as large as they do ,however, some can grow become very large and dangerous. Such instances are very very rare however." Trish explained.
"How large is this creature?" Bri-ci'all questioned, as he stood back up.
"Approximately 50 cubits in length." The general replied.
"That would make it about... 75 feet long." Jon and I replied after finishing the math.
"That is most unusual. Most only grow to be over half that size." Trish informed.
"Is that a bad thing." I asked.
"No, however an individual like itself should not be away from the volcano pits like it is, the earth is to cold for them." Trish said. "If so such an individual of such size could have found away to exist outside it's preferred habitat it could cause considerable damage." She thought.
"So does that mean we have a problem?" Jon asked her.
"Not likely. The creatures have never been seen in the oasis territories, the earth is at it's coolest here. However with such an unusual individual like this creature I would not doubt that it may make an attempt to come here. That or it may cause trouble for the clans in the desert areas." Trish replied thoughtfully. She was actually smarter then I thought she was.
"What of it concerns you?" Bri-ci'all asked in an almost mocking voice.
"What do you mean ,Bri-ci'all?" Beo'n asked.
"Great hunter warriors you say you are ,yet you show so much concern for such an insignificant nuisance as this Thei-de Tjau'ke!" Bri-ci'all spat at us, before turning to leave.
"Where are you going?" Jon asked.
"To hunt the beast, since you are too scared to face it yourself!" Bri-ci'all stated.
"Did you not hear our general say it was 50 cubits ,Bri-ci'all?!" Beo'n asked.
"What of it?! I have no care! I shall slay this beast, while you shudder defenselessly for your safety ,cowards!" Bri-ci'all said disrespectfully. "How far is it from us?" Bri-ci'all asked the general once more.
"It should arrive at the Dune Valley within the next days time." The general answered.
"Bri-ci'all!" Beo'n and Trish called for their brother as he left, only to be stopped by Ph'rills.
"Let him go. All hunter warriors must learn from their mistakes. He is no different." Ph'rills told his children who bowed their heads in respectful acknowledgement.
"But he could die?" I said with some concern in my voice, which even I'll admit was weird to say when I thought about how much of a dick Bri-ci'all had been. Still it was surprising to see this from Ph'rills and his children, who did care for him.
"This is how all hunter warriors must learn. They are taught through leadership and it's experience. If they reject this, they choose to learn for themselves. If death befalls him it was caused by his own doing." Ph'rills said with very little emotion.
"But he's your son?!" I exclaimed.
"It is the way our society continues. If they wish to become great and powerful warriors and leaders of our future they must learn somehow. This is how they learn. If he had wished to claim help from others, then he would have been allowed to do so, but he has made his choice now. He wishes to hunt alone and that is what he shall do. He is on his own." Ph'rills replied. Truth be told I couldn't really blame his reasoning. This was there society, and although I said they were very similar to us humans, they were still very different from us in many many ways. Looking at it, I also couldn't disagree with their logic either. In order to become someone special in the clan you had to do something worthy of receiving the recognition. That was how they did things. Bri-ci'all was also an egotistic ass, so there was that. I just left the subject alone after that.
"Prepare what forces we have. I do not intend to employ them if this creature does not prove to be a threat to us ,however, I shall not take chances on loosing any more of our clan as we have." Ph'rills told his general before they both left the room leaving the four of us alone.
We continued with what we were doing before, when something came to Jon's mind. "You know. I wonder how much fun it would actually be to hunt a creature like that." He thought.
"Yeah." I replied nonchalantly shrugging the idea of with disinterest, as did Trish and Beo'n.
"I mean it I really think it would be an experience." Jon continued.
"You cannot be serious right now ,Jon." I said.
"I am. Seriously." Jon said with some enthusiasm as he got up from the couch and moved towards his room.
"Where are you going?" Beo'n asked.
"To get my stuff." Jon replied.
"What for?" His brother continued.
"It's been a long time since I've had a hunt that I actually looked forward to. Something that can really motivate me like this." Jon answered.
"Wait. You are not seriously talking about hunting this thing are you?" I said.
"Yes, I am." Jon said as he entered his bedroom. His answer compelled the rest of us to talk to him.
"Do not say you have gone mad like Bri-ci'all has?!" Beo'n asked in a concerned voice.
"No, of course not." Jon replied as he began to clean his weapons.
"Yet you are planning on hunting it as he does?!" Trish said.
"They're right Jon this is insane." I agreed.
"Listen guys. We are Yautja. Now I know I've lived with Oomans for most of, if not all of my life, so I may not know as much as I think I do, but don't we hunt for sport too? Don't we hunt dangerous creatures because it's fun for us? I mean isn't that a reason for why we hunt? The experience, the thrill? It's not all just about the honor and recognition, is it?" Jon asked us thoughtfully.
Trish and Beo'n looked at each other and gave a thoughtful growl. Their brother had a point with that argument. One of the things that set marked Yautja apart from unblooded and young-blooded ones was that they were considered adults now. That also gave them the right of participating in what ever hunts they wished to go on, or go off on their own hunts in search of prey they wished to hunt. Granted when I say marked I mean to say that hunters that have achieved an elite status are allowed to embark on such hunts. Trish was only a blooded warrior, and I while Jon was now an accepted member of the clan, that didn't necessarily mean I was. Still If Jon and Beo'n who were elite hunters allowed us to come with, we could. Trish did want to rise within the ranks of her clan so she could achieve this purpose, and although Beo'n was more interested in other projects, that did not mean he didn't have a desire to hunt what game he wanted to.
"You make an interesting point ,brother. But do you feel you are prepared for this?" Beo'n asked.
"I don't really intend to kill the thing the first time I see it ,Beo'n, if that's what you're asking, but yeah. Heck if you guys want to you can come with. It'll be fun for us all. Plus Trish, you say you wanted to become an elite. This can help you gain experience." Jon added.
"Yes, I would. I would like to come with you ,Kjon." Trish replied enthusiastically.
"Alright, alright, alright. Hold on here for a second. You cannot be for real ,Jon." I said. While Jon had managed to convince Trish and Beo'n, I ,unlike them, was a human-mostly anyway-with a different mindset. I didn't like having to see my friends being put into dangerous circumstances. I wasn't going to have my Fire Angel put himself in a life or death situation all because he thought it would be fun.
"What?" Jon said.
"I cannot believe you sometimes ,Jon. You are seriously going to fight a monster that could kill you, because you enjoy the sport?!" I said in a worried voice.
"Well ,if it helps any, I also thought about helping out those other clans, while I did it." Jon said.
"Please don't lie to me ,Jon."
"I'm not ,Jenny." I scoffed a displeased sigh as we spoke. Since Jon's fight with the elders and the Drukathi, I'd became a little more worried for him. Truth be told there was little for me to actually worry about since he'd been in much dire situations before ,like the previously mentioned incidents and many more before them, but you could understand my concern. I flopped back on the couch after storming off. A couple moments afterward I was joined by Jon and his siblings.
"I'm sorry about that Jenny." Jon apologized as he sat down next to me. "I don't deliberately mean to make you worry. I-I just-." Jon continued.
"No, I'm sorry. It's just, since I met you I've grown to care more about others, and I just don't like seeing them in these kinds of situations. Like the kind you were in when you fought Goliath. I just don't like to see that." I explained as I made my apology.
"You're still stressed from that, aren't you?" Jon stated in an understanding voice.
"Yeah. I'm sorry that I worry so much." I said.
"Don't worry about it ,Pyode. It shows that you care. That's a good thing." Jon told me as he nudged my cheek gently with his mandibles. "If you're too worried about it, I won't go if that's what you'd like." He said in a smooth assuring voice.
"No, no, I don't want to spoil your fun. You guys go." I said. Despite giving them my permission they didn't move an inch. Despite the fact that I wasn't considered a legitimate member of the clan, they were treating me as though I was. No, it was more than that, they were treating me like I was a part of the family. We stood there for a couple moments in silence before Jon spoke again.
"Hey ,Pyode. Remember when you asked me to train you?" Jon asked.
"Yes, why?" I returned.
"Do you remember what it felt like, the challenge I mean?" He asked.
"Yeah, it felt like hell." I replied with a chuckle as I remembered all of the painful exercise, and Jon's screaming in my face while he kicked the crap out of me.
"Yes, but you had a motive to achieve your goal. You did this to help me even though you knew I didn't want it. But you still did it. You had a motivation and you not only went after it, but you achieved it despite how difficult it was, and how many times you failed. You did it because you loved me." Jon told me in a comforting voice. "And while you were doing it you felt the drive inside of you to continue. I know you did. I felt the same thing when I went through boot camp. Sure it was hell, but you eventually learned to tolerate it. Learned to live with it. Heck sometimes it makes it more fun, doesn't it?" Jon continued as a smile creased his face.
It caused me make a soft smirk which intensified as the memories became more clear and detailed. Jon was right. Every word he said was exactly what I'd felt when I went through my training. I had a drive to do what I did, and I got it like a champ. It made me feel more proud of myself as I thought about it. "Yeah, yeah. Your right." Although my voice didn't reflect the enthusiasm I felt, the smile on my face did. "You've done the same too Jon. You've fought to restore your mother's honor, to avenge her death, and protect everyone else around you while you were at it, despite how difficult it was for you to do, but you did it." I said giggling a laugh.
"I just thought that since we've come so far ,you and I, we could just enjoy one for once, you know. Sort of relish in it." Jon said as he laughed with me. "But if you're to worried about it, I won't go if you don't want me to. I'm not going to be upset about it. Trish and Beo'n maybe." He said.
I sat there for a moment thinking the whole thing over ,before I made a reply. "You know Jon. Now that I think about it, I am starting to realize just how much fun it would be to test my abilities." I said as I arched my back and rose my tail up in interested thought.
"So... What's the verdict?" Jon asked me.
"I'll get my stuff ready." I replied with an enthusiastic burst of energy.
"Zero three hundred, not a minute to late or we're leaving you behind." He told me.
"Well guys I guess we're going after all. You guys still feel like coming?" Jon asked.
"Of course." Trish said with a similar boost of enthusiasm.
"Get your shit together then, and you'd better be up early too." Jon replied.
We spent the rest of our day preparing for the eventful day we had ahead of us. We also decided it would be a good idea to inform Ph'rills of our actions before we did so just as a precautionary measure. After that the three of us went to sleep early. Not only did we need to get up early, but we'd need all the rest we could get before we fought this Thei-de Tjau'ke.
The next morning we set out for the Dune Valley. As we did so we encountered Bri-ci'all as he was leaving. His whole body was covered in armor, and he had enough weapons to go up against three xenomorph nests single handedly. He gave an irritated growl as he saw us.
"What are you doing?" He asked us with a hint of sass.
"We are also going to hunt the Thei-de Tjau'ke." Beo'n replied. His answer caused Bri-ci'all to exhale a frustrated growl.
"Do not dare intrude upon my hunt! The Thei-de Tjau'ke is mine to slay!" Bri-ci'all told us.
"Says who?" Jon challenged.
"It is mine, and I shall not dare lose it to the likes of a weak young-blood like you and that pathetic Ooman of yours." Bri-ci'all spat.
"Look to be perfectly honest I don't care whether you kill it or not. We just wanted to have some fun, but if you think were backing off of this hunt just because you are afraid we'll kill this thing and you won't, you've got another thing coming." Jon retaliated. The two looked like they were actually about to come to blows, but that did not end up happening. "Wait, wait. I have another idea. You know how you've been trying to fight me for some time now? Why not a little competition instead?" Jon said thoughtfully. His response confused all of us, including Bri-ci'all.
"What are you talking about Kjon?" Trish asked.
"Here's what I'm thinking. You have a hair up your ass about this hunt and ,to some degree, so do we. Why don't we place a bet on this. Whoever kills the Thei-de Tjau'ke can proclaim himself the better hunter." Jon proposed.
"Me against you four?" Bri-ci'all said before making a deep disagreeing growl. "You say you are honorable, yet I must compete with the four of you in this mission." Bri-ci'all spoke.
"Yeah, but if I'm not mistaken I believe I heard you call me and Jenny weaklings. I also heard you call Trish that yesterday as well. Now Beo'n is with us also yes, but still, you have way more weapons than we do, and you are also arguably stronger than the rest of us. Yes, there are more of us then there are of you, but if you think about it that'll just make it more interesting of a challenge for you won't it. Besides you say you're the best out of all of us, why don't you prove it by besting all of us?" Jon explained in a very persuasive tone. Bri-ci'all began rubbing the fangs on his lower mandibles while exhaling a soft growl. A smile crossed his face as he thought about it.
"Very well, Abomination. I accept this proposal of yours." He said with that same evil grin on his face, which Jon returned just the same. With our deal made, we went our own ways and the hunt began.