Kisibhi
As the sun lowered gradually in the sky, Kisibhi finally motioned that they could slow the pace, her hair no longer stood on end. The forsworn must be further behind them now.
"Kisibhi, now that we've slowed up a bit why the fast pace?" Keith called, Red catching up to Black and walking shoulder to shoulder.
"Because there are Forsworn savages roam this area and murder unsuspecting travelers. This one would rather avoid tangling with them," Kisibhi answered honestly, surveying the surrounding forest carefully.
"And who are the Forsworn?" Keith inquired, frowning. Kisibhi grimaced.
"They worship the old gods. The daedra, they think they own the Reach. And maybe that is true, this one doesn't know, but killing without reason… They are trying to take the Reach back by force from the Nords. They don't care who gets in the way," Kisibhi answered darkly, ears flattening. She looked angrier than they had seen her before, she shook her head and sighed.
"Nords and Bretons?" Shiro questioned, wracking his memory to see if she had already explained this.
"Yes, they are among the races of man. Redguards, Bretons, Nords, and Imperials are all very much mortal. The elven races include the Bosmer, Dunmer, Altmer, and Orsimer people," Kisibhi explained in an amused tone, "they lead longer lives than the races of men. And although my people are Mer, we are more often called Beast folk, along with the Argonians."
"Orsimer?" Keith asked, "They're the ones with the big teeth and like putting heads on pikes, right?"
Shiro looked at Keith with slight horror on his face.
"Yes, they tend to have a variety of green and grey skin tones. This one once saw a more purple one then green," Kisibhi explained patiently "Why do you ask? Hasn't Kisibhi already told you about the other races?"
"Oh...well, we just haven't ever seen humans on other planets before," Keith shrugged, adjusting his helmet. Kisibhi stiffened slightly.
'Other planets?' She thought, surprised, 'well...they had to come from somewhere.'
"Speaking of which, what's the name of this planet?" Shiro asked curiously.
"Nirn," Kisibhi said softly, looking around again. "You're lucky you met this one before any Forsworn...Well, except for Red Kitten, he met a grumpy clan orc," she chuckled a bit, and Keith scowled at her. Kisibhi grinned and sniffed the fresh air, relaxing a bit.
"Huh. What's your story, then?" Keith asked abruptly, she fell into a thoughtful silence.
"This one is a simple khajit, one of simple words and explanations. Preferably explanations that don't involve answering the guards' questions as to why Kisibhi was on the roof riding a guar naked," she giggled fondly "this one also likes her moonsugar."
"...Wait, you did what?!" Keith asked, trying to process what Kisibhi just said. Shiro looked back at her questioningly as well.
"Nevermind, that is a story for another time," Kisibhi waved a hand as if brushing away their questions, still smiling.
"If I asked why you were on a roof riding a...guar? Would you tell us?" Keith asked, grinning wickedly at her. Kisibhi rolled her eyes at him
"Truthfully? This one would have to tell the whole story, and some details ought to never be repeated," she answered delicately, wiggling her whiskers. "So, what are your stories, kittens?"
"We are Paladins of Voltron. We're trying to save the universe from Zarkon and his empire," Shiro explained, he paused for a moment, but Kisibhi just nodded.
"What is Voltron?" She asked curiously, he chuckled.
"There are five giant metal robots that form one larger robot, each has a Paladin," Keith explained, Kisibhi mulled the information over.
"...A giant dwarven centurion made of metal khajit's. Simple enough," she stated with a small shrug, her ears perked up. The fur on her shoulders and neck stood on end as she looked around. The forest had gone silent.
"Shiro, stop!" She hissed, digging her claws into his shoulder. She gestured at Keith to stop as well, her eyes dilating. They sat silently near the cliff of a reach canyon as Kisibhi spun around on Black, scenting the air. Her tail fluffed up to almost triple its size. Forest on one side and a cliff on the other. It made her nervous.
"What's wrong?" Keith breathed, reaching slowly for his bayard. Black and Red had both tensed.
"The birds. They no longer sing," Kisibhi replied quietly as she readied her staff. Keith drew his sword, Black growled, and Shiro's arm began to glow softly.
A sharp whistle caught her attention, and she threw up a ward in time to block the ice spike. The force of the blow knocked her off Black, landing hard on her back. She wheezed, trying to catch her breath back. Shiro was down immediately, yanking her to her feet as the forest erupted into animalistic savage shrieks and taunts. Keith joined them, the blood draining from his face.
"What's happening?" Shiro demanded, his arm flaring to life. Odd...it didn't use to glow that color…
"Forsworn," Kisibhi answered, ears flat and pupils narrowed, she snarled at the savages as they were slowly surrounded. Red roared, slashing at a few who strayed to close, they jeered and spat at her in retaliation. Kisibhi shifted into a defensive stance between Shiro and Keith, and the bulk of the Forsworn group. Heart pounding, she counted at least five spell slingers and six brutes. A broad-shouldered briarheart pushed his way forward, smiling. The hole in his chest showed his replaced heart. Kisibhi hissed at him, her tail lashing.
"This doesn't have to end in a fight, cat. Just come quietly," he laughed, crossing his arms and sneering at them.
Kisibhi growled.
"Forget it, Mirachi. She won't come without kicking and screaming," A female spell slinger snapped, looking bored. She stepped forward and grabbed Keith's arm roughly. Before he could react, Kisibhi lashed out, a dark red spell hit the spell slinger. The Forsworn warrior landed several feet away, screaming and writhing on the ground as her body rotted and decayed before their eyes and she went still.
"Don't. Touch. Kittens," Kisibhi snarled, meeting Mirachi's gaze boldly and angrily. Her voice filled with contempt. He gestured at his warriors, and they rushed forward with battle cries.
The once peaceful forest erupted into chaos.
Shiro and Keith held their own, their lions lashing out to protect them. Kisibhi attacked all the spells slingers, blocking the ice and fire that rained down and firing back in rapid succession. Three ganged up on her, she gritted her teeth and struggled to keep the ward up against their constant attacks.
A shout from her left caught her attention, three forsworn ravagers were attacking Shiro at once, his attacks faltering. Kisibhi blasted the spell slingers back before throwing bolts of lightning at the ravagers, they crumpled as their organs exploded inside them. She met Shiro's eye, and his lips parted like he was going to say something.
Kisibhi was struck with multiple ice spells in rapid succession, she stumbled back dangerously close to the cliff as she regained her balance and blocked on overhead cleave with her staff. Kisibhi kicked him away, snarling. He laughed and charged, she managed to dodge and block each poorly aimed attack before striking him with an uppercut with her staff, he stumbled away clutching his broken jaw.
Screams of pain erupted in her head, momentarily blinding her, she looked around wildly, and her eyes fell on the lions. Both Red and Black had stepped into bear traps as they fought. Keith was hanging upside down by his ankle from a tree, and Shiro was backed up against another, fighting for his life.
"SHIRO!" Kisibhi shouted, he reacted on instinct and ducked away from a blow he hadn't seen coming that would have ended his life.
A shout split the air, Kisibhi turned sharply but had no time to block the Forsworn ravagers foot as it slammed into her chest. Kisibhi screamed as she fell off the edge, her staff lying several feet away from the cliff edge she had just vanished from, tumbling towards the canyon floor in a free fall.
Keith
Adrenaline coursed through his veins, making his hands shake as he struggled to free himself. It was an expertly crafted knot, which only made him angrier. His bayard was somewhere below him, and he was reminded vividly of Luke Skywalker hanging upside down in the ice cave.
'Why am I not taller?' Keith thought furiously, gritting his teeth as he struggled with the knot. A sharp shriek drew his attention, he looked up (or down in this case?) in time to see Kisibhi vanish over the cliff edge.
"QUIZNAK!" he swore, returning to the knot as panic started building in his chest. He finally managed to loosen it enough to pull his foot free, landing on the forest floor hard on his back and knocking the wind out of himself.
"Shiro?" He wheezed, choking as the air began rushing back into his lungs. Shiro was a few feet away, looking angry and terrified, having seen Kisibhi kicked off the cliff. Black and Red were preoccupied with bear traps snapped onto their front paws. Black held very still near her's to avoid pain, while Red angrily tried to gnaw her's off.
"Skeever-brain! She specifically asked for the khajit!" One of the women shouted in annoyance.
"She had it coming! If they want her so bad, they can go to the bottom of the canyon and scrape her up themselves!" The warrior who had just murdered their guide snapped back just as callously, "Those are khajit too, aren't they?" He gestured to Black and Red.
"Do you know how hard it is to kill a senche tiger?" The female protested, "I like my skin ON my body, pitbait!"
"Then she gets Nord tonight," Miachi snapped, interrupting them and glaring at Shiro and Keith. One of the warriors stomped closer to Keith, he lashed out with his knife on instinct, heart pounding. The resulting shout of pain ended in four of the Forsworn tackling Keith to the ground. He spat dirt out of his mouth as he was forced onto his back with his limbs pinned down by the warriors. The knife still clutched in his hand. Keith turned his head just enough to see them binding Shiro roughly.
"You little-!" the Forsworn laughed almost maniacally, his hand bleeding freely, "That wasn't very nice!"
'I hope it gets infected and you die!' Keith thought to himself as he glared silently at the man. One of the women forced his fingers apart and seized the knife, pulling the wrappings off.
"I haven't seen workmanship this fine for a long time! Probably get some extra septims for it!" She exclaimed ecstatically, admiring the knife. Mirachi shrugged, looking around for any signs of danger.
"She likes trophies. Hold onto it until we get there," he commented, sounding almost bored.
"And the tigers?" One of the warriors out of sight asked. Keith was too busy trying to free his arms to look.
"We're already late, if they want the damn cats we'll come back for them," Mirachi snapped, huffing in annoyance. They were forced to their feet, wrists bound tightly.
"Where are you taking us?" Shiro demanded laughter and whoops were his only response.
"Keep your flapper shut, or we'll shut it for you," one the warriors laughed, slapping Shiro's helmet hard enough to make him lose his balance a bit.
Keith smirked a bit as their visors expanded to cover their mouths. He could almost see Shiro smirking under his own.
"Give it a go then," Keith mocked, Mirachi and his band of savages all wore identical expressions of shock.
"Move out!" Mirachi snapped, still looking a bit wrong-footed and scowling at them as he led them through the forest back towards the way they'd come.
Keith kept silent, as did Shiro who was behind him, as they were marched off as prisoners. They needed to escape, but they'd been disarmed, and the bindings were so tight it would be incredibly challenging to have someone else untie them, let alone do it himself. Plus, with Kisibhi dead it was going to be twice as hard to leave the planet, not to mention the lions-
'...We can't form Voltron!' Keith realized with a horrified gasp. Kisibhi couldn't open that Oblivion pocket, place, whatever she called it, and get the bodies out if she was dead!
"We can't form Voltron…" he heard Shiro whisper behind him, having reached the same conclusion.
Keith didn't have time to dwell upon the enormity of the situation they'd gotten into as they approached a group of people wearing black robes. As they got closer, it became abundantly clear that these robes were very finely made, the hair on Keith's neck stood on end when they were close enough to make eye contact with these people. Something in his gut was screaming at him to run. He doubted he could actually escape, but something about their empty eyes and rotting teeth made his skin crawl.
"Are you savages deaf?" One of them, the leader, hissed angrily. His yellow eyes flashing with rage. "She specifically requested khajit!"
"We would've brought her too, but she took a tumble over the cliffside," Mirachi growled, looking exasperated.
"She had it coming!" Kisibhi's murderer grumbled again. Raucous laughter immediately overtook the group of Forsworn. Keith scowled as they laughed about her scream of fear, how could they treat death so lightly?
"Cats always land on their feet. That just might not help her in this situation," one of the women called, drawing more laughter. Keith glanced at Shiro, his hands were curled into fists.
"This is all you're getting for now unless you want the senche tigers that were with them," Mirachi roared, his warriors fell silent as he continued to talk to the robed man.
"NOT the same!" The robed man hissed furiously, before rolling his eyes, "Just let us inspect the catch."
What happened next could be accurately described as the most uncomfortable frisking Keith had ever been forced to endure. These weird robed people were squeezing his arms and legs. Squeezing and pinching in more choice places that made him want to thrash until he was free and run.
'If this is how cattle feel, I'm going vegetarian,' he thought, gritting his teeth. To say he felt violated was an understatement.
Shiro received the same treatment and looked just as uncomfortable. They paused on his right arm, forcibly robbing away the glove to see the gleaming Galran metal.
"Metal?" the leader gave Mirachi a deadpan look "Taking septims off for that. Less meat."
'Meat? The quiznak is he-' the breath froze in his lungs as he realized what the man meant. Keith caught Shiro's eye, panicking. He could see the realization dawn on Shiro's face as well.
They were being sold as dinner.
"Hmph. They'll do. He'll be slow-cooked with a nice bast of juniper...The skinny one will need to be tenderized thoroughly before consumption," the leader commented almost dreamily while a hunched over man wrote what he said down on a piece of parchment. Keith was briefly reminded of Hanniball Lector from Silence of the Lambs with that comment. And that did not make him feel any better!
"We don't need the details. Just hand over the gold," Mirachi snapped, crossing his muscular arms.
"Anything else to throw in?" The robed leader asked, arching an eyebrow. The Forsworn woman wordlessly held out Keith's knife. Anger bubbling in his stomach when one of the robed women took it. She inspected the blade with gleaming eyes, testing its balance and grip.
"Perfectly balanced…" she murmured, handing it to the leader, he smiled sickly.
"I'll throw in an extra hundred septims for the knife. The Ringbearer will want it," he agreed, tossing two fat money pouches at Mirachi, who started counting them.
"Shiro, what do we do?" Keith hissed desperately, Shiro looked like it was taking all of his self-control not to puke. Keith felt his blood run cold when Shiro gave him a helpless, frightened look. Mirachi finished counting the septims.
"It's been a pleasure," he said simply, and lead his band of savages back into the hills while the robed people grabbed Keith and Shiro, forcing them onward. The leader looked over his shoulder at them and smiled.
o~o
And cut! HAHA! I know! It's cruel to leave it at such an intense cliffhanger like that, but I must unforutnately!
Again, thank you so much for waiting so patiently for this chapter. Like I said, TheCrookedQueen finally got her laptop fixed, so we were finally able to get this chapter written and out for all of you!
R&R please if you're enjoying this story so far. We absolutely love hearing from you guys!
We'll see you next chapter!