Chapter 9
Miria lingered at the caves entrance, watching the hunter as he was busily organising his weapons and various other objects. He seemed to be deep in thought as he was crouched and now examining his shurikan. He growled with discontent after running his finger along the blade, and pulling out a whetstone he set to sharpening it. She watched his fluid motions and how he set to such a menial task so naturally and effortlessly. He was indeed a true hunter, magnificent in his own savage ways.
She blushed lightly when he caught her staring, but only motioned for her to come closer as he continued examining his weapons. Miria kneeled down opposite him as she was told, and waited patiently with slight confusion and awkwardness. A moment or so passed before he finally picked up the retracted spear and offered it to her. She took it warily, not entirely sure yet what his purpose was. As she held it across her lap, the hunter reached forward, running his finger over and indentation which caused the spear tips to extend suddenly. She jumped a little, not expecting the reaction. She realized then that he was showing her how these weapons worked.
'Why are you showing me this?' She asked cautiously. The hunter sat back on his haunches then, and scratched his brow. She was grateful for the fact that at least he could understand her questions.
'Hunt' The low growling voice emanated from his throat. She was shocked at the human word he produced. Although the voice didn't entirely seem his own, and she recalled being told these creatures were able to mimic human voices very close to their exact. He pointed at Miria now, and repeated the word 'Hunt'
'Me?' Miria shook her head dumbfounded. 'What possible use can I be?' She squawked with fright. She feared that this predator was seriously overestimating her abilities. The hunter seemed to sigh, his head cocking slightly to one side as he stared into her face with his penetrating amber gaze. After a moment, he lifted his arm with the computer device attached, and poked at a series of buttons. Miria was surprised as a holographic map of sorts appeared above his forearm. After more buttons were pushed, the image distorted for a moment before returning as a likeness of the jungle. She leaned in closer to examine flickering blue holograph. She jumped as a picture of a human appeared in the jungle scene. The hunter pressed some more buttons after Mirias face gleamed with recognition, and the image zoomed out to a broader scale. These were the sacrificial humans that were offered to the Yautja. But only three remained now as they trod precariously through the jungle. The hunter then pointed to within the map, and she noticed the 3 Predators encircling the unaware men. Miria knew how this part would play out, she thought. This was a replay of his hunt. Is this what he wanted her to do?
But after the 3 hunters had disposed of the remaining human men, she saw something that she was not expecting. As the three were crouched taking trophies from their kills, some more figures emerged in the scene. She watched as the three hunters were ambushed by another group of Yautja, who were relentless in their assault. The three original hunters seemed the more experienced combatants, though they seemed to realized that being outnumbered lessened chance of victory. Miria was entranced as she watched the events unfold. Two hunters made a getaway, leaving one to fend for himself. She watched as he fought ruefully and held his own for some time. But the odds were still against him. He managed to wound the others bad enough to force them into a retreat. But he was not without wounds himself.
She watched as the lone hunter watched the alien spacecraft with his comrades leave the planet. He fell to his knees in pain, clutching at the wound on his chest. The holographic image flickered off then, but Miria already knew how it played out from there.
'You knew I was there all along' Miria had already guessed the hunter had sought her out purposefully, knowing he would need aid in order to survive. He gave a slight nod of his head, and punched some more buttons on the device. Yet another image was produced, and Miria was startled to see herself this time. She was standing outside the cave, glancing around nervously. The hunter waited for her to recognize the scene, and when she did, he zoomed out once again to produce a larger scale of the image. She first noted him crouched on a limb not too far from her. He was watching her, and she was confused as to why he had acted this way when he was already familiar with her. But her questions were soon answered when he zoomed the map out yet some more, and two more Yautja appeared in the image. These pair were tracking her hunter. She noted that they had become aware of her presence, and seem irritated or perhaps excited by this. The hunter pointed to the two Yautja within the image, and with a single finger tapped the side of his head.
'You knew they were following you?' Miria asked, and he confirmed her question with a nod. 'So you chased me?' She was still confused by this part as she watched the image of herself take flight when the hunter gave chase. But then she realized what the message was he had been trying to convey. He didn't want the other hunters knowing she had aided him. He wanted it to seem as if she was on her own. The image flickered off as the other two Yautja disappeared into the jungle again.
She still felt anger at his need to terrify her that morning, but she also felt thankful that in doing so he had protected her somewhat. She pursed her lips in thought, curious as to what he had planned for her now. His head still cocked slightly to the side as he continued to watch her face, perhaps gauging her reaction to all this new information. They stood simultaneously, and the hunter placed his hand on her shoulder once again.
'Hunt' The mimicked voice repeated. And Miria sighed. As she shook her head a slightly eccentric giggle erupted from her mouth
"Yeah, yeah, I get it!' She threw her hands up in exasperation 'But you're fucking delusional if you think I'm going to go out there and hunt those things' She pointed out of the cave as she still failed to comprehend how she could possibly be of any use in his endeavor to annihilate the other Yautja. She was rewarded with a rap of his knuckles on the top of her head, and she suddenly felt as if he was reprimanding her. She glared at him as his amused cackle gurgled from his throat.
'Stop it' She snapped, and as she turned away from him, he mimicked her own voice.
'Stop it' he was almost exact in her tone and she spun around to glare at him once again. He cocked his head to the side and shrugged in response. He seemed excited by the anticipation of the hunt, but the mood wasn't an infectious one. Miria was beginning to fill with dread.
'Hey,' she began, holding his attention 'Miria' she said placing her hand over her chest. 'My name is Miria'
Her gaze never broke from his as he approached her, placing his hand on her shoulder once again. She forced a smile as he mimicked her once more.
'Miria'
If the predator was determined to set her to hunt, Miria thought she best prepare herself in some way. Her hair was first on the agenda, it always fell forward across her face and hindered her vision. She had naught to tie it back with or secure it in any way. Not to mention it was already a mass of knots and tangles. Grabbing a small handful she rubbed the strands together vigorously in her hands. After a moments work she held it in front of her face to examine it carefully. The dread-lock had formed well with the amount of grime that was still in her hair, and she was happy with the result. She tucked the first one back behind her ear, and set to working on the rest of her head.
Her neck was sore by the time she was done, but she had managed to fashion the dreads tight enough so they would stay back off her face. They fell to just below her shoulders, giving enough length for her to be able to secure them back if she needed. She emerged from the cave to find the hunter whittling a series of branches into spears. When he glanced up at her he let off a surprised bark. She laughed softly at his response as he stood to examine her more carefully. Miria frowned when he lifted a handful of her dreads in a closer perusal, but noted that he seemed impressed with what she had done, and he clapped her on the back before continuing with his task.
Miria seated herself on a nearby rock to watch him work. As it approached midday the heat became sweltering again, and his body glistened with a light perspiration. He finished the spears and began removing some of his own armor. He took the two pieces from his thighs, and approached Miria with them. Confused to his purpose, she jumped as he knelt before her and grabbed her by the ankle. Extending her leg, he wrapped one piece around her shin, securing it behind her calf muscle with a small leather band.
'Um, thanks' Miria said as he finished securing the second, and stood back to admire his handy work. She stood also, feeling the restrictions of the armor in her movements. It was surprisingly a lot lighter than she anticipated, and was somewhat glad. She studied the hunter carefully as he began tugging at his own hair. It took several minutes for Miria to realize he was removing the intricately carved beads. She was further surprised when he moved beside her to begin threading them onto her own dreadlocks.
'You think this is going to make me appear more intimidating? A tiny little thing like me? I think you're wasting your time' She shrugged as he tugged on her hair. He stood before her again pointing his thumb to his chest, and then drawing it across his throat.
'Oh!' Miria realized 'You want them to think you're dead?' He trilled softly and bumped his fist under her chin. The affectionate gesture drew Miria to avert her eyes from his piercing gaze. She kept her focus on the ground until she knew the hunter had moved away. But he was gone only a moment before returning with the spear he had given her earlier and once again placed it in her hands. He also passed her the small hunting knife. He withdrew a blade of his own, and for a moment Miria thought he was going to bestow her with another weapon. She jumped as he drew the blade across his own palm, and it quickly began to spill his bright green blood. Miria gulped as he began to flick his own blood over her.
'Really? The hair?' She complained as he held his hand above her head, and she felt the hot sticky fluid seep into her scalp. After he was satisfied with the effect, he then wiped his palm from her shoulder right across her chest. She gasped as his large hand brushed her breasts, her cheeks reddening once again. He stood back then, admiring his handiwork. He reached out and touched her cheek, turning her face to the side as if examining it. She was caught completely off guard when he slapped her hard across the face, and she fell to the ground grasping her cheek.
'Well' she groaned, 'I guess now it looks legit' She could feel the swelling beneath her hand already, and her vision danced with white dots. His large hand under her armpit helped lift her to her feet again, and she looked at him with watery eyes. He seemed happy with her now, as her appearance looked as if she had been in a bloody struggle. He gathered up his handcrafted weapons, and flicked his head as he urged her to follow him into the jungle.
'Great. So I guess we are going hunting now?' Miria gulped in an effort to keep her breathing steady and her heart from racing. She may have appeared collected on the outside, but on the inside she was a turmoil of panic and fear.
