Chapter 27: …and Mate

His threat or… promise… was terrifying. She couldn't help but think back on her first days aboard the ship when the choice of erasing memories was given to her by the Elder. It took a while to get used to life here and hell she wasn't even completely there yet, maybe she never would be, but the journey so far was not something she was willing to part with. Sure it was hard and there were more drawbacks that she could handle sometimes…but there were good things too…friends, laughter, family and a future to look forward to.

To Cat, letting all that go now after all that's already happened, was not an option, not when she found everything she ever wanted. Looking at the shimmer that was a few feet away from her, she couldn't believe he'd betray her like this. What bothered her most, was that she couldn't think of a why. Everything seemed too small and too insignificant. Heaving a frustrated sigh, she leaned her head back and closed her eyes, trying to relax a little to clear the cobwebs "I'm running all kinds of scenarios in my head. Thinking of motives for why you want me off this ship at all costs and I just can't seem to figure it out." the work on the other side of the room stopped for a moment and then continued without comment, prompting her to continue "I'm guessing you're the one that sent Lo'qe to the dining hall that evening? I'm thinking to test out my fighting, my reflexes and how I handle myself in such situations." Giving a small laugh, she taunted "Worried I could take you in a fair fight?" The slight growl she got was all the prompting she needed to continue "And Ho'ke?" not waiting for a response she forced some admiration into her tone "That was pure brilliance…if a bit predictable. His sheer hatred for all and anything human was perfect for you, so why not use it right. I'm sure he didn't need much convincing. Was it him in the domed hall with the laser pen, or you? That one is giving me a bit of trouble. You guys look all alike in camouflage"

The work stopped again, hearing him move closer she jumped a little when the computer spoke next to her "Don't be disagreeable, it's unbecoming." After a pause, he continued "Interesting. You heart rate has leveled and you are not showing you previous signs of fear. Now why is that?" Opening her eyes to look at where she thought his head was supposed to be, Cat smiled ironically "It's kind of hard to be terrified of someone that's seen you naked more than once." His surprise was an almost tangible thing, she had to give him credit for recovering quickly though "Your intelligence and perception has always been a fascination to me. I do admire you for it. It's also the main reason you need to be eliminated" following him with her eyes as he moved around the room again, she commented "I'm sure I'm not the only intelligent being here. Someone will figure everything out eventually" as he worked, he spoke "True, but there is a slight difference. Though my race is as, if not more intelligent than you, we rarely question our orders or our Elders, therefore any discoveries would be too late and of little importance. Should anyone ask too many questions, a simple reprimand or threat would be enough to quiet them efficiently. It is that disciplined quality you humans lack almost entirely." Cat was quite happy to be "lacking" in that regard, even if it did get her in this mess. Moving her fingers, she noticed the sedative was starting to slowly lose its potency. Seeing him turn toward her with some kind of a metal headband in his hands, with two thick and in her mind huge needles on the inside of either side of it, made her start worrying again. Stopping next to her, the Predator uncloaked "Don't worry. It will hurt only for a few moments and then you won't remember any of this." She knew he meant it as a comfort, but to her it sounded like a death sentence. "Hah…if he thinks I'm just gonna lie here..." Running was out of the question or anything else really, the only thing left to do was stall. As he was fiddling and preparing his little mind wipe thingy, she did the only thing that she could think of "This is going to hurt tomorrow…" taking a deep breath, she wiggled to the side of the table and almost entirely by willpower, forced herself off of it. She dropped like a rock. The landing was painful, if it wasn't for her drugged state it would have been even more so. Thankfully, her head bounced off of her forearm instead of the floor when she landed. Hearing him growl and curse her before moving around, she inched herself slowly backwards and under the table as fast and as far as her body would allow….it wasn't much, she was snatched up and placed back on the table in a few seconds.

Noticing him pick up that needled monstrosity, she wiggled to the edge again. This time he was ready, catching her right as she was tipping over and dragging her back, almost roaring "Stop it! Are you trying to kill yourself or just my patience?" glaring at him she answered through clenched teeth "I'd rather take my chances with the floor, thank you very much" glaring right back, the Yautja growled exasperatedly "You will not." though the notion of her death was becoming more appealing by the minute. Holding her with one arm, he was looking around for something to tie her down with. Not finding anything, he squelched the urge to check the containers on the other side of the room, because leaving her to her own devices for a few moments was out of the question. He knew she'd try it again if he left her for even a second. Still focused on stalling, Cat decided on prodding for more information "Since I'm going to lose my memory anyway, you might as well tell me why you're doing all this. What would I discover?" turning to her he debated with himself for a tense few seconds before clicking "I could tell you everything, but there is also the slight chance that I fail, and having you know our plans is much too big of a risk."

Deciding on a question, she needed to know where it all began and somehow find out why "Why did you have her killed?" Knowing exactly who she was talking about, his first impulse was to remain quiet, but thinking on it for a moment more, he decided to tell her a part of the truth. "Before we came to your planet for that first hunt I was approached by an influential member. The whys or reasons are not important, but suffice it to say I had no other choice but to do as told." It revolted her when he started combing through her hair as he spoke, like he was still her friend and protector, but she remained still and didn't try moving away for fear of him stopping "I had a young sibling that needed my guidance. Our mother had passed in the birthing procedure and the pups father was killed in battle. Her rearing and tutelage fell solely onto me and as she was female and alone I dared not leave her to die. If she was born a male, I could have passed her on to someone else, but she was female; a life giver and the need for familial bonding was necessary." Looking directly into her eyes he made sure she was paying attention "A few decades passed and I was deciding on my chosen path at the time, wanting to be a healer. And though you may not believe it, I do have a difficult time killing those in my care." She could believe it, but she also knew that it didn't change the fact that he did kill, even if he regretted it.

He didn't know why he wanted her to know he didn'texactly choose to be what he now was on his own, but in some untainted part of his conscience it did matter that she didn't think him wholly a monster. "The day of departure for your Earth was the day everything changed. A few days after our arrival, Selt'ox brought Catherine to our encampment. She was hurt, in need of my assistance and I of course helped her. As time passed, I believe I grew to care for her almost as much as he did." The urge to hold his hand as he spoke of this was there, but she couldn't do it, not when her life was still in question. Though the telling was difficult to bear for both of them, neither was willing to stop it, after a moment he continued more quietly "She was always there after that, mostly at night, when she could get away, even if Selt'ox was hunting. I suppose looking back on it now; it was inevitable that she stumbled on my acts one evening. She somehow knew what I was doing and I tried to calm her, make her understand that I had no choice, but she wouldn't listen. I let her escape… I couldn't bring myself to end her right then and there."

"So you what Mir'en... visited her mate personally or just left him a message." Hearing that low deadly growl, Cat immediately looked to the door and let out a relieved breath. Grandpa was here, he found her. The healer didn't look at all surprised. Sighing, he gave her an admiring look and pat on the head "Clever, little one" Before anyone could move, he grabbed her neck and hauled her to his chest, stepping behind her and eyed his superior "I wasn't expecting you quite yet my friend" Growing, Selt'ox was beyond angry or even enraged. Giving a reassuring look to Cat, he roared at his former friend "Release her Mir'en. It is time we ended this once and for all, you pauk-de traitor!" Glancing down at her, the healer gave a small nod and moved her to a far wall, setting her down on the floor, her back propped up against it "Don't worry, we will finish what we started little one, you will be home soon" Glaring at him, she hissed "Wrong. He'll win" patting her head he clicked, while rising "Perhaps"

Both Yautja moved to opposite sides of the large room, growling, clicking and circling. Snapping his blades open Selt'ox was ready, watching patiently and rotating his shoulders, relaxing muscles, looking for an opening. Mir'en extended his combistick, prepared to win, maybe even lose if it came to it. The Elder was the first to roar and charge, dealing fast blows to the torso like a boxer, the healer parried each with his own weapon, managing to hook first one set of blades on his combistick and then the other. They were head to head, pitting their strength against each other, each pushing against the other. Selt'ox worked furiously to disengage his weapons, both pushed so hard that when they untangled, each slid backwards.

Mir'en reached for his belt and leaped to the side, throwing a diversionary disk in the other direction. Moving quickly, the Elder stopped the oncoming blow to his lower back legs by turning in his opponent's direction. The sparks and loud clang of metal, was a surprise to Mir'en who didn't move away fast enough to avoid the slashing of his side. Both predators ignored Cat's triumphant whoops in her grandfather's favor. Roaring, the Healer moved away a few paces, to recover from his blow. Selt'ox growled, pacing carefully and vigilantly "I see you still remember what I taught you" Remaining quiet, the Healer only gave a respectful nod to his former friend and teacher before charging at him. Recognizing that assault as well, the Elder moved toward his attacker and threw himself over the combistick that was being thrust into his midsection. Landing by the healer's side he crouched and swiped his lower legs with his wristblades in a quick motion, making the healer stumble to his knees. Growling, Selt'ox positioned his wristblades at Mir'ens neck "You were never all that good at fighting. I guess that is why you never did anything directly" Thrilling, the Predator answered "True, but I was always better with thinking ahead" with that the laser activated itself on his shoulder, the first beep of the charging cannon sounding in the quiet room. Looking at the lasers direction Selt'ox cursed viciously. It was aimed at Cat. Even if Selt'ox followed through with his attack there wasn't any guarantee the plasma caster wouldn't fire "Stop. I yield"

Watching all this, Cat knew the Elder would stand down, even before he said it and snapped his wristblades back into their holster. She was getting her mobility back, but she knew she couldn't move fast enough to get out of the way of a plasma blast. As another beep sounded, Selt'ox snapped his head back to Mir'en, catching his gaze he knew the pauk-de bastard wouldn't stop the countdown. Roaring, he stood as the sparking energy started to culminate and another beep sounded. Shocked, Cat watched as Selt'ox ran for her as the final beep echoed in the room, followed by a blinding burst of blue light. She could only close her eyes tightly and brace herself for the impact that came a moment later, throwing her back against the wall.

Was it ages when the beginning of awareness returned or only the harsh reality of minutes? There was a weight against her front, enveloping warmth all around her. She once pictured death to be chillingly cold, more agonizingly painful than this feeling of strong, comforting arms around her. Opening her eyes, she saw grandfathers face, his eyes watching hers, whispering "Was I in bed sleeping? Was it just a horrible dream?" the answer came only moments later, when the brilliance of his eyes diminished right in front of her, his arms falling from her frame were reminiscent of leaves falling in autumn. Grabbing his dear face she whispered in fear "no, please no, don't leave me… " as he fell to the floor, she went with him, no wanting to understand or accept what she saw. Her throat hurt so much, breathing was almost impossible and tears were blurring her vision and still she touched him and begged him to get up, to not leave, to come back, praying to gods unknown and promising the moon and stars for a miracle.

Mir'en watched and listened to her efforts with a heavy heart. He wished he hadn't done it, that years ago he'd refused and made other decisions, had taken other paths. Getting up, he moved toward her and was stopped from reaching for her as her pained, sobbing scream reached him. He'd never heard anything like it in his life, and he hoped he'd never have to again. "I am sorry little one"

To her, his whispered apology was a slap in the face. Snapping her head up, she watched him with such hatred and coldness in her gaze, he almost stepped back. He couldn't meet her eyes for a long moment after seeing that look, not noticing that she took something and hid it in the folds of her clothes. Cursing, collecting his composure and his will, he knew he still had work to do. Reaching for her, he grabbed her by her arms and sat her on the high medical table; ignoring his Elders dead body as he did so, noticing that she on the other hand couldn't take her eyes from it. Taking the memory device into his hands he moved to stand in front of her, hesitating before he turned her head towards him. At first she was looking at his chest, after a moment she moved her gaze to his. She didn't say anything at all, which to him was more disconcerting, then if she would have screamed and tried to fight. They looked at each other for long moments, then without any real surprise or warning, the sound of a click cracked the silence. His wide eyes were the only indication he gave, as the blades from the Elders shuriken extended and she thrust them beneath his sternum to his heart, hearing a whispered "Thanks for teaching me anatomy" In a way, he was grateful.