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Chapter 13: Arka P1
Arka was not perfect, but to a Trunian it was magic. Joanna came from a dusty and humdrum colony of Trun. The only attractions there were the local bars and an occasional shindig. They had aqueducts, but they were not for swimming and water-wheels which were far from Ferris Wheels. Trun was a mineral mining colony. It was not a small colony, but it wasn't a large one either. In about a year one would probably see everyone that stationed there one time or another. And if you ever stumbled drunk out of the 'Ditch' – local bar and running joke – soon everybody knew and they'd never let you live it down. The colony was not the most pleasing to the eye. There is a limited amount of awe one can get out of a grey open pit. It was impressive if you were visiting. The thick, dark forest floor was full of game and edible plants. The big advantage of Trun was that if anyone ever forgot about it, it would still go on living. It was highly self-sufficient. Even though the settlement could function unaided, and not many could, it was just not pretty to look at or exciting. Joanna always believed it to be the highlight of the word functional.
Arka was nothing like Trun. Not just because it was short of a crater, but because it was awarded a view. The first one she had the opportunity to absorb was not of the city itself, but the tropical forest that enclosed it. The landing shelter had retractable walls, two of which were pulled in and she got a good view of the land. The vast bright green jungle was mottled with vibrant colors of the local flora. Joanna observed it with wonder from the high edge of the tarmac. The breeze at this height leveled the thick humidity and heat. Despite the dense forest floor the vegetation appeared buoyant and shimmied with the wind.
Adi walk up to Jo beckoning her to follow. She assumed they were done with customs. That was fast. They probably had nothing to declare. With the amount of militia equipment each clan member carried Yautja TSA must be very lenient.
"Come"
"Where's Seth?" Jo asked surprised the leach was not the one in the presence.
"He waits at lifts"
"He sends you to get me?" That was surprising. Even though Jo had spent much of her time with Adi lately, Seth's communication with the younger Yautja was limited.
"H'ko, I say get you" Adi smirked proudly.
"Why not build more than one city?" Jo asked taking one last look at the polychrome jungle. This planet seemed like an ideal place for expansion. Jo would have hated the waste of the local plant life, but humans would never go for the minimum. Not in a place that offered promise of a good life and credits.
"No need. Is a relay. Not many stay. Clans pass. Come for hunts, mates and celebrations. Then, leave. Ships come and go. Jungle is preserve for hunts" Adi explained joining Jo in the observation.
Jo was still baffled that a highly evolved species' main occupation was hunting and gathering. Yautja hardly ever remained dirtside. Unlike humans who sought permanent colonization, yautjas lead mostly nomadic life styles; traveling with clans, stopping for supplies and apparently occasional quickie. If it was up to her, this might have been the first place she'd like to stay.
"Is it always this peaceful?" Jo asked.
"Has storms sometime. Most Sei-i"…"Come Jo. Setg'syra impatient"
"He's always impatient." Jo replied rolling her eyes and Adi smiled.
Seth was waiting as Adi implied. By the lift, his burly arms wrapped in front of his torso, impatient look in his eyes.
"Seth" Jo nodded at him, "Jackass" Jo was tempted to say to Kai, but settled for – "Kai" and a nod. He did not nod back. No surprise there.
In the elevator Seth and Adi had a quick conversion after which Adi said to her
"Stay with Setg'syra. Arka not safe for ooman. Many clan. Some do not like ooman"
"Some?" Jo asked with a raised eyebrow.
"Sei-i" Seth interjected sternly
In Jo's version of that warning it meant that some did not mind and as a result there was a chance at much needed r&r. But, there was no reason to chisel at Seth's serenity. She turned to him and gave him a confirming "mm'kay". She could not hide the crooked smile.
They exited the elevator without Adi. His accommodations were elsewhere.
"Dishonest creature! She will be difficult Setg'syra." Kai di'chak announced when they exited the lift. He has noticed the jerk of that fleshy mouth as well and that unconvincing tone. He became quite proficient at reading the expressive female. Did she think I would not notice?
"Sei-i, I have took notice as well"
"I suggest you ensure she is sealed in your quarters. Arka is crowded"
"I would do so but cannot. She will be blooded at the ceremony. Med'maru requested her presence before it as well."
"Does she know?" Kai di'chak asked jerking his head toward the ooman.
"About the ceremony?" Asked Setg'syra slightly confused.
"I am certainly not asking if she knows about Med'maru's visit. I believe she has attended many of those" Setg'syra grunted at Kai di'chak's answer. He could have just said yes.
"I did not tell her. You think I should?" He has not contemplated if she should know. It is a great honor. Perhaps she will be more placid after given the good news.
"I would enjoy greatly seeing the ooman make herself a mockery at the ceremony, but not see you shamed because she does not know her place"
Setg'syra has not even thought about the formality of the custom. It is a short function and he had attended so many. They have become second nature; although, he should have thought ahead. She was not known for being neither submissive nor agreeable.
"Sei-i. I will tell her"
"There are at least five clans present, there will be many new blooded males, and lots of females. I also suggest speaking to Med'maru about her scent"
Her distinctive feminine fragrance was decidedly pleasant, but he has never thought of it as an issue to be dealt with so he turned his head in question.
"It might deter Yautjan females" Kai di'chak added off hand. Setg'syra could not allow that. It was not often a male had the opportunity to mate. He could not allow such a thing and would have to speak with Med'maru.
Kai di'chak moved down the hall to the adjacent door. "I will arrive after cleansing. We will go together. Perhaps you can leave your irritating Pet with the Medic and have the Youngblood explain the proceedings. In the meantime we shall have a cup of c'nlip"
"Seth! Is he stayin next door?" Jo asked with chagrin.
"Sei-i" Setg'syra answered. Since the squabble between the two, the ooman did not relish Kai di'chak's presence. She never had, but now she did not even relish his proximity in separate quarters. For Setg'syra it meant one less issue to be concerned with.
On this side of the rock the panorama was even better than the wilderness. The city was an amazing combination of modern technology and natural design. The one and apparently only city, which was more of a large resort was built on a rock wall. Disparate to the jungle of mosaic in a kaleidoscope the view from her (and Seth's) room was tranquil and sunlit.
The living quarters cascaded down the wall on various levels to the white sand beach. Every terrace was built farther than the one above. As a result it created a fall at just the right angle, guaranteeing every villa a view of the crystal aquamarine water. Buried among those private quarters were public arrangements: baths, temples, halls, libraries, markets. The entire city was placed in a sun filled dramatic bay. The incredible design, however, was not built with human appreciation of aesthetics in mind. Joanna soon found out that the design was created to maximize the usage of light. As she stood on the terrace of their quarter she soon recognized that she was the only one basking in the view. This was the Yautjan version of the word functional. How ironic.
It was impossible to think of a place that looked as alluring as anything, but counterproductive. To humans this would have been a place of leisure and idleness. To all fairness if Trun looked like Arka nothing ever would have got done. This was the first time Jo saw a beach; a real beach not the fake holo in the center of Town Hall on Trun. Fake things just don't feel and smell right even if they look almost like the real thing. In her travels in the military only Mekka had a beach, but she was there one day and never got a chance to see it. Now she was fixated on the view she'd longed to see. Jo loved everything about it; the sound and smell of the water, the heat of the sun and the breeze tangling her hair. Even the height made her feel elated. She craved futility.
She heard Seth approach from the quarters. He checked out what she was looking at as if assessing a security perimeter. Jo rolled her eyes - No imagination.
Then he leaned in and inhaled. "Ple-ased?"
"Yeah" she gawked at him with disbelief "We're located on an impressive rock formation overlooking the sea. Hells yeah I'm pleased." She spoke as if it should have been obvious. "I'm planning a field trip to the beach."
"H'ko" Seth barked and went inside.
"This is a perfect place for a honeymoon!" Jo said taking a deep breath and closing her eyes. Then she turned "…and I'm stuck here with you" she quipped. We'll see about 'No'.
"Honnnney moon?" Seth tweeted "What is?"
"Something you're not good at." Jo waved off the question with a brush of her hand and a dismissive answer. Seth was not inclined to delve further.
"H'ko time"
"Whatchu talkin' bout?" As if on cue Kai walked from his patio onto theirs because apparently they were connected. Camp Tranquility transformed into Camp Crystal Lake. This place had no doors. It was just open space. She needed to know if there is a way to lock out the terrace, as much as she hated the idea, but Seth's next words changed the topic to something that required priority.
"You blooded today"
"What that means?" Blooded sounded excruciating. Instead of answering he just pointed to the nicely carved out scar on his forehead. Oh! Jo had no intention of doing that.
"Would I get that there?" She said pointing to Seth's mark
"H'ko"
"Oh! Good." She said and sighed in relive
"There" said Seth and pointed at her cheek. Like hell!
"No. There is no way in hell I'm carving my face"
"Honor. Kill Kainde Amedha." Jo did understand that this was some kind of honorable thing to be presented, but she was no diplomat. And even if her situation looked worse with every turn she refused to admit that she might spend the rest of her life among these creatures. They looked down on her, and as much as she did not give a fuck, it was not something she wanted to accept. She also did not believe that a burn mark will change that either. She still held high hopes that when opportunity presents itself she will be able to somehow take her leave and go back to her own kind. And when that will happen hiding a large Yautjan stamp of approval will not be the easiest task. She was set on getting laid again and the imprint will not improve her chances. Certainly if the mark came from combat the choice would have been averted, but since she could still fight and refuse she will try.
"There it goes again. That word kind… something. What's that?"
"Black ….hmm" Seth obviously was lacking ooman vocabulary. But, there were only one black something she killed. It was not hard to put the two together. They have mentioned it before, but she was not in her best state of mind at the time and didn't catch on right away.
"The Black creatures on Bumfuck Egypt?"
"Bum…"
Bumfuck – Jo knew what he was about to ask. Seth hated when she interrupted, growled and She wasn't one to interrupt but this conversation strayed off course.
"Yeah, yeah on Raka"
"Nar'raka" he corrected. Fine. Not wanting to argue she just tilted her head in agreement.
"So you call those things kind armadas? Armada I could understand, but in no way were they kind."
"Kainde Amedha." He corrected again
He was nit picking today. "Fine" she admitted sharply.
"So since I offed two of those things, in reward I get my face busted?"
He cocked his head. She really chose the wrong source to obtain data.
"I need to speak with Adi or Yin"
"Why?" Seth trilled
"Because Seth, talking with you is … damn near impossible. I need quick answers before I forget what I'm trying to find out." Seth quickly looked at Kai who in response he only snorted. No easy task without a nose. What was that about?
"No answers. Blooded" he said again and pointed at her cheek again.
"Let me answer in a language you can understand - Hhhh'coooo" Not only has he controlled every minute of the day, now he wanted to take control of her body. Jo was angry. Even more so when she noticed the stupid smirk on Kai's stupid mug. He was probably celebrating her misery.
Kai di'chak was amused. He was fully aware that the ooman would not be in high spirits. Only Setg'syra would believe so. He would have been irate of the short notice. She was annoyed at the actual marking rather than lack of preparation. But, that in itself did not surprise him much either. Pyode Amedhas did not understand honor. She was accepted among their kind. Not as much as an equal, but as a valued member. There were only few Pyode Amedhas in history awarded such credit. She was decorated properly. Not just by blunt recognition, in haste on a battlefield.
Setg'syra gave him a quick look. He was asking for assistance, Kai di'chak was not eager to give. Let his mei'hswei struggle. Accepting guardianship was rash and brainless. It was a task Setg'syra was not made for. Since given he was pitiable at it as well. The ooman was bad-mannered, loud and insubordinate. In doing so Kai di'chak was surprised she yet lived. Actually that was incorrect. She was more brisk than Setg'syra. She understood who to avoid. After their recent encounter he made the ballot.
Setg'syra did not understand the danger affixed with the marking. As a blooded she will become eligible for a challenge. That was not the biggest problem. She could not survive a jehdin jehdin, but then again she was a small female. No honored Yautja would ever make a challenge he was sure to easily win. Such would not come with any accolades. Unbloods were allowed to challenge a blooded but the blooded could easily decline the unfair challenge. The only Yautja to make such dare might be a Youngblood. That did not keep the ooman out of harm's way, especially with her lack of subordination. Yet it would not press her to a challenging circle.
She will also obtain more privileges and most importantly, as a blooded female, she will be given the allowance to choose and decline a mate even if she cannot produce young. Yautja females had no blooding requirement. Any other species gained the ability to decline a male by being blooded. All spelled trouble for Setg'syra. Any male interested in the female might approach Setg'syra with a challenge first. Setg'syra will have to face challenges over a female he does not wish to mate – Quite amusing. If she does, however, choose a mating partner Setg'syra will have no say and hope she will not be harmed. Males might not be gentle. There was also the possibility a male could approach directly and she might not be interested. Her declination may possibly not be received well, males can be persistent and the female is in short supply of tact. She was also badly versed in the yautja way of mating and courtship. Misunderstandings were inevitable.
Also, the problem was Setg'syra's knowledge on other clans. The grand rules stood for all, but guidelines, practices, and tastes differed among clans greatly. Setg'syra was young and never lived among any other clan. He hunted with other clan members rarely as well. His was still freshly honored. There was no telling the reactions she might stir.
Kai di'chak could not wait to see Setg'syra's reaction if a male approaches. There will be plenty of hormonal youngbloods looking for a female. It was possible Ad'zin would attempt to court the ooman. He squandered plenty of time in her presence. If not, he could preposition the female just to see Setg'syra's awareness of his predicament. There was no risk in it. He was not interested, and she was too afraid of him to let him near.
His grin grew wider as Med'maru and Ad'zin entered the quarters.
Jo's attempt at weaseling her way out of the blooding was futile. She did manage to negotiate change of the mark's location. Instead of her cheek, the mark will be engraved into her shoulder. She'll take what she can get. Doc was quite upset she did not want what he defined as 'glory'. Not wanting to insult him anymore than she already has, she just explained she felt she was not worthy, which was a flat out lie. In response Doc, Seth and Adi confirmed that she most definitely in fact was worthy. This only proved they were all absolutely oblivious to well executed libel. Until this very moment nearly every Yautja she came in contact with quickly picked up on what she was feeling. Yet, no one picked up on her untruthfulness. Except for Kai that seamed skeptical, but he wasn't speaking so who gives a fuck.
Yautja were very in tune to physiological changes in the body. When a person lied those changes occurred as well, but in this situation there were plenty of elements that worked against their heightened senses. Jo was already in a state of high alertness and stress, any more or less were too small to be detected. Yet, most of all Jo was a brilliant liar when she wanted to, bordering on sociopathic. This was an angle she could use in the future. Right now she averted insulting some of these large creatures.
Doc and Adi explained the proceeding and Jo decided she can handle that. Then, Doc pulled out a small funny looking device and gave it to her. He explained that it was a translator. It will pick up on all the Yautja dialect and attached to her ear convert it into Basic. It was not permanent. She could fasten it on or take it off at any time. Doc explained that it was developed in a lab some years ago by a group of scientist working with humans. Jo wanted to inquire about those humans, but Doc just waved her questions off. The converter was created as a communication aid for the human. It was not perfect and will not be able to gather words from multiple sources. If more than one Yautja would be talking at the same time, the translator will jumble the words, picking them out one at a time. It wasn't a big kink because Yautjas did not tend to engage in shouting matches. This device will only aid her understanding. She wished they could have done something about Seth's understanding as well. Doc also cautioned not to expose it to direct moisture.
With the translator attached to her ear Doc asked
"How is that?"
Joanna flinched, her hair stood on and end, her skin was covered with goosebumps. It was interesting sensation. She heard Doc's voice rapidly followed by formal 'basic'. The tone of the translator was also computerized and held no emotion. There was more to speech than meaning, but it was better than nothing.
"Tickles" she said giggling like a loon.
She noticed they were all staring at her, even Kai who hardly ever found anything about her worth his interest. Why was he even here? He always evaded her like the plague. Seth moved closed reached out and soother his palm over her upper arm. It was obvious they never seen this reaction from a human. And it must have fascinated them, because Yautja's did not have a touchy feely side. Before anyone asked she simply stated
"Human skin is very sensitive. Some things make it crawl"
When Doc and Seth simultaneously cocked their heads to the side she realized she did not explain herself well so she added
"Well not crawl. Just tingle" Great job 'Encyclopedia Britannica'.
"Does it hurt?" Asked Doc in his language and the translator once again picked his words and zinged her ear. She giggled again and goosebumps returned in full effect.
"No. It's actually quite pleasant"
"How is sound connected to your skin?" asked Seth.
"Well… It's not the perception of words more the vibration it's causing. The skin is very sensitive and subtle touches affect it that way."
"Is it the ear area that is affected?"
"That too… Goosebumps can appear no matter where is the place of origin of the touch, but there are areas more sensitive than others."
"What areas?" Adi ventured curiously.
"Ear, neck, scalp …other" she stated courtly
"What other?"
"Other…um… more sensual parts"
"Sens-ual?" Asked Seth. One track mind.
"Yes" Jo stated simply.
"Sens-ual?"
"You don't need to know."
"Ne-ed to knowww" Was his declarative response. How did this conversation change direction?
"NO! It's on the need to know basis and you don't need to know"… "Besides it doesn't have to be a touch. It can be a breeze or something… cold."
"The air current can cause such reaction?" Doc's question brought this exchange back on track.
"Yes, as I said human skin is very sensitive and it only happens when the origin is subtle, delicate." That explained also why they never seen such reaction. Talking about subtle or delicate with a yautja was like having a talk with a watch dog on financial security.
"If we lower the volume or adjust the balance of sound and minimize the vibration my body will adjust and stop reacting. See …" she said showing her arm to the inspecting eyes "it only lasts a short time"
Doc took the converter and passed it to Adi. He adjusted the volume and as she suspected the effect the devise was causing stopped.
Seth gave her more rags to wear for this blooding ritual and added.
"Take Kainde Amedha blade"
Blade? Were they expecting trouble? "What kind of a party is this?"