Chapter VIII
Disclaimer:
This story has been written purely for entertainment purposes, and in no way, shape, form, or fashion means to impede, or infringe upon any copyrighted material whatsoever. I do however retain credit and claim responsibility for the creation of names and character statistics of any and all characters within this publication. These characters are based on copyrighted ideas and or characters of the respective owners of said material within the entertainment industry. No money will be attributed to the author of the following publication in any form. Definitions and wording used to describe devices, and other such items are derived from other literary works involving these types of characters. This publication was created for the sole purpose of entertainment and the expansion of a concept formerly copyrighted by an individual or individuals as a group.
I hope that you readers feel that this is where the story gets even more interesting, as I have tried to incorporate as much intrigue as possible into the situation between Hulij-Thwei and Morgan. Ok, as you can see I have changed this chapter somewhat. Originally it was posted without any dialogue. This change and the changes I have made to others previous to this one have stemmed from having gone back and re-reading all of the existing chapters. It was at that point I decided to make these changes. They are for the better and will allow a smoother transition from this chapter far into the chapters to come. Enjoy.
Special thanks to those of you who reviewed, Minkutei, swift hunter, Veriea Fornnan, mau'indi, Dachande663, and Spacefan, who's reviews stood vigilantly as an inspiration for me to finally get another chapter of this story posted. Thank you guys.
Chapter VIII
Mere seconds stretched into minutes in the minds of both Morgan and Hulij-Thwei as they were locked in what was most decidedly the most unusual and confusing standoff either one had possibly ever imagined.
Those around them were confused as well; they were all under orders to keep this meeting between the two races under terms that were peaceful. No one truly knew how to react.
At least three of the more attentive Yautja had raised their targeting gauntlets and locked them onto whatever human soldier they could, with weapons ready. This was apparent by the three red dots that appeared at various points on a few of the humans' chest armor. Others were oblivious to the human soldiers that had only recently switched off their cloaking devices.
The humans for that matter were no better or worse. The members of Team 1 were obviously ready for anything considering they had the upper hand of surprise. It was in fact, the members of Team 1 that in turn had some of the Yautja in their sights and targeted with their laser targeting systems, resulting in several single red dots appearing at various body parts of the unprepared Yautja. The rest of the humans other than Garvin and the lead radioman of Team 2 were caught off guard by Team 1 as well, and these inattentive humans displayed equally as much confusion as the Yautja that were caught unaware.
Pok'de it'ktse noticed the seriousness of the situation between the two races, but more than anything he wanted to make the best effort in diffusing the potentially dangerous confrontation between Hulij-Thwei and what he recognized to be the woman, Morgan Maddison from the files on Hulij-Thwei's computer. If he didn't do something soon this could quickly turn into a horrific tragedy.
Before the situation became a volatile cesspool of death for both sides Pok'de it'ktse belted out the orders to stand down to his Yautja brethren then glanced in the direction of Sgt. Maj. Garvin.
It was Garvin that noticed and surmised that this meant he should do the same. Despite the differences in both culture and command structure the silent communication between the two was apparent and accurately deciphered mutually. There would be no mistaking the intentions of either side after the orders had been announced.
Only two of the many beings gathered on these grounds refused to comply with the audible orders of both Pok'de it'ktse, and Garvin.
Both Hulij-Thwei and Maddison were holding steadily with their positions and sustained a nearly impenetrable stare at each other. Confusion racked the both of them tightly as they shared similar feelings of recognition for the other. It was perhaps this that kept them locked mutually in a deep gaze. The air around them was filled with the sensation that these two somehow knew each other. It was evident in the fact that they had stared at one another now for more than what was perceived as a reasonable amount of time to be able to diffuse whatever situation they were in. Their mutual feelings of having previous knowledge of the other were most likely the only thing standing in the way of either of them upsetting the situation, and killing each other.
There was no doubt that Hulij-Thwei was strong and quick enough to break her neck in a moments notice, or even slice right through her with the sharp blades of his extended ki'cti-pa, or wrist blades, only inches from the side of her ear and resting on the same arm he used to reach out for her throat. It was in her peripheral vision that Morgan could see the glint of light reflecting off of this particular weapon and knew that it would most likely spell her demise if she made the wrong move. He of course wasn't the only one with the advantage. The gun she carried would equivocally remove his head from his shoulders upon squeezing the trigger.
They somehow sensed the fluctuations of common feelings they shared at the moment. It was as if nothing around them existed at all. No sights, no sounds, only them. It was in this perpetual world of familiarity that they felt a small yet growing bond between them, and still their personal individualities reflected the uneasiness and potential danger present in their current circumstances. It was their conscious minds that still ruled in the area of rationalization in regards to reality. That reality being the fact that neither of them had actually ever met before, and this was truly to their disadvantage in rectifying the situation that the universe had obviously wanted them to take part in.
Morgan was literally up to her neck in trouble. The strength of this Yautja…human…whatever he is was incredible by most human standards. She had heard of some humans having this kind of pure raw power, but those were only in cases where the individual was born and raised on a planet with much higher gravity than Earth. She had concluded that this must be the case, and with that being so she would react accordingly so as to keep her windpipe intact and her head upon her shoulders.
Unlike most people, who would most likely opt out of the scenario by giving up and submissively diffuse the situation, Morgan chose to save her own neck with a different strategy altogether. With her gun still planted firmly into the side of Crazy Blood's neck she pushed the tip of the barrel forcefully further into the spot where it now began to leave a visible impression. Her options were limited, and from what she knew of these creatures a show of force is something she was betting on that they would respect as long as she didn't carry her actions out so far as to insult the one who now held her throat in his hands.
Hulij-Thwei was more than pissed off, beyond the normal limitations of anger he regularly controlled within himself. The simple fact that this human woman was able to get so close without his knowledge was unnerving, and yet somehow intriguing to him. Nonetheless, his overly accelerated feelings of fury dwelled within to the degree that he could feel himself tighten his grip around her small neck as she pressed the gun further into his throat. It was a classic battle of wills, and the two volleyed for the others respect. Much to his surprise he felt himself halted emotionally when pondering the idea of her being dead at his own hand. He was sure that a scenario like that would leave him empty inside for some time to come. Their mutually perpetrated death at each other hands would definitely be honorable, but it was not something he wished to experience at the moment. There had to be some other way to bring this to an end.
He somehow mustered the ability to think rationally about his situation and knew full well that she could pull the trigger of her weapon about as fast as he could snap her neck or cleanly remove her head with his wrist blades. He had studied the tactics and command structure of these humans long enough now to know that when cornered like an animal, that they were vastly unpredictable. Even despite his vast experience in hunting creatures of various sorts, he still felt that these humans were something to be respected in terms of being dangerous creatures.
Hulij-Thwei noticed the strength of her will and apparent need to have his respect. Despite her lack of oxygen she persisted with her present course of action and held fast the gun to the side of his throat just under his jaw. He could feel the barrel press ever more firmly as the seconds ticked on, all the while sensing the rising of his pulse, as the flow of arterial fluid was threatened by the object impeding its typical course. He was wondering how much longer she could hold out before going unconscious. Of course he thought the same of himself considering the throbbing pain in his neck.
The air around them was silent and all who watched were nervous with the anticipation of seeing this physical conundrum come to rest peacefully. Neither side wanted hostilities to ensue especially with the knowledge of what they all faced in the months and possibly years ahead.
They both blinked simultaneously and mutually noticed this as a sign that the other was ready to withdraw from their current positions.
As if in slow motion he cautiously pulled her face close to his. They were only mere inches apart when the corner of his mouth began to twitch and tremble, with the slight crack of what could have been the beginning of a minute smirk. A deep growling began to emanate from his throat almost as a warning to her to not try anything stupid, as he released only a tiny fraction of his grip from her throat. It was at that same moment; as if on cue, that she did the same in regards to the placement of her weapon. It would have been impossible to determine which of the two actually submitted first, but both were secure with the fact that they had played their roles well in attempting to bring this scene to a close.
Slowly the pair began to cautiously reduce the amount of tension between them, as if some unknown connection guided them mutually to the next level of submission.
Morgan's feet finally withheld the full weight of her body as Crazy Blood began to free the reign he had on her neck. Consistent with the present understanding the two seemed to have for one another, she also slowly seized the pressure, which she was applying to the gun in the side of his throat.
It was as the barrel of Morgan's gun no longer made contact with Crazy Blood's skin that he fully released the grip he had on her. Still, the two remained firmly cautious of one another. Each of them was still dangerously close in proximity. Either one could easily lash out at the other with the confidence that they would still hit their respective targets.
Hulij-Thwei continued to keep his arm at length, and despite the fact that he had let go of her neck, his wrist blades remained a threat to her. It was the same for her in regards to the laser sighted red dot that now appeared squarely in between his eyes.
It was at this point that the two of them began to relax a bit. They again stood silently staring at one another without making a single move as if satisfied in some way with the decreased amount of tension among them. They mutually studied each other in what could only be described as cautious amazement, or maybe respectable curiosity.
Morgan first noticed his armor and took note of the elaborate carvings and etchings spread throughout the entirety of each individually plated piece; they were beautiful and rivaled anything the Earth's best artisans could produce. This armor covered parts of his chest, shoulders, forearms, and shins. Unlike his Yautja subordinates he had large boot-like footwear that was also armored and possessed a more concealing type of lion cloth armor combination. The color was nearly that of dark gunmetal blue on all the highly polished edges without inscriptions. The engraved portions were darker and at some angles reflected an almost charcoal hue with silver inlays. It was under this armor that she noted his skin was well tanned, it was obvious this man spent hours in the heat of the day out in the sun hunting God knows what.
His musculature was not like that of the body builders of Earth, where the ripples of muscle tissue show through the thin layers of skin in a sickly kind of way, his were large, and bulky, and each individual grouping of muscle moved and flexed in a way that was nothing short of captivating for her. His face was an attractive sculpture of pure ruggedness. He was no pretty boy by any means in her opinion; nonetheless there was something about his appearance that was quite appealing.
He had grown himself a fairly lengthy set of four braids along each jaw line, each one being about eight to ten inches in length. His hair was even longer, and reached downward nearly to the middle of his back from what she could tell, and was pulled tightly into what may have been the equivalent of human dreadlocks, only these were shiny and had been adorned with rings that were as eloquently marked as the armor he wore. She finally settled her vision on his eyes and realized that they were unlike anything she had ever seen before. They were bright and cast a light gold, almost yellow reflection in the beaming rays of the sun. She found herself melting into the idea of being highly attracted to him and in no way did she feel threatened by him any longer.
Hulij-Thwei first took note of her armor and was impressed with the simple functionality of said item. Though there wasn't much to admire about the plain black color of the armor and its lack of décor. Although, he had noticed that there were smaller patches of material strategically placed in locations about the arms and chest area that must have been symbols of her many achievements. This alone was impressive. If his assumptions were correct than she was quite experienced in battle and he would look forward to watching her train, and maybe get the chance to spar with her in the Kehrite, otherwise known in human terms as a training room, or combat ring. It was also apparent that she carried with her several other weapons. She carried two more guns, smaller than the one previously pressed to his neck, each one resting on opposing sides of her hips. Additionally there were the two large knives held in place in some style of sheath that loosely crisscrossed over her abdomen under her breast line.
At no time was any part of her body except for her face exposed to the atmosphere, for what lay under the armor was some kind of protective suit that all humans present seemed to be wearing. It also became clear that these humans were capable of rendering themselves nearly invisible to the naked eye and the raised thick lines of material that stood off the surface of the suit and the separate armor they wore suggested that this was the source of their ability to conceal themselves.
He was yet again compelled to examine the structure of her musculature as difficult as it was through the protective suit she wore, but after careful scrutiny he was quite pleased with the curvature of her figure and in fact noticed that the suit hugged her body in such a way that it was truly more revealing than he had originally thought. Her legs were nearly perfectly shaped and appeared to be athletically built but not overly so, and he imagined being able to see her in the more revealing Yautja armor that he was familiar with females having to wear.
Her hips for some reason began to narrow out just above the beltline of her armor, more so than what he expected, and was further engrossed in picturing how that would affect him if he were to get the chance to see more of her. Her breasts were shaped quite differently than most Yautja females and proportionately larger as well, considering a human female's smaller frame. Moment by moment he sensed he was appreciating her presence and physical stature more and more. Her arms were smaller than Yautja females, yet larger and obviously stronger than most female humans. This was strangely appealing to him to the degree that he nearly shuddered inside by the thought of seeing them uncovered.
It wasn't until he set his gaze on her face that he was mesmerized with her appearance. She was…dare he use the word…beautiful. Her skin was perfectly toned, just a few shades lighter than the sand covering the beach near his home here on the Yautja Homeworld. There was no Yautja female that he knew of that could compare, or look so innocent, and yet still be so deadly by comparison. Her hair, what he could see of it was pulled back tightly behind her head and cast a slightly blue tint over the black strands that flowed in even lines over the top of her head. Only two small strands of hair seemed attractively out of place as they hung down on either side of her face from just over and to the sides of her eyes. He was then lost deeply in the blue-green aqua color of her eyes, as he became entranced with her overall magnificence.
Both of them set eyes upon one another in chorus and embraced the other mentally as they individually experienced a deep rising shiver up their spines.
Hulij-Thwei no longer held his jaw firmly locked in position as it was before. He felt it relax as he slowly lowered his blades to his side and felt them slide back into their mechanical sheathing on his wrist.
Morgan concurrently lowered her weapon and felt her arm come to rest at her side as the gun brushed against her leg in a fully tranquil state. There was no need to have shared any words between them at the moment, as their facial expressions spoke volumes. Their mutual display of acceptance and understanding shown upon their faces without a trace of doubt that the face off was now over, and that hostilities between the two of them would cease here and now.
Without taking his eyes off Morgan, Hulij-Thwei spoke addressing Lieutenant Colonel Alan Cantwell.
"Colonel. You and your men will follow in your ship." Spoke Hulij-Thwei in a plainly assertive voice.
"I take it then that you are Crazy Blood, Leader of these Yautja?" Asked the Colonel as diplomatically as he could, while vaguely remembering the mission summaries he had read through.
Hulij-Thwei was almost annoyed with the fact that these humans had surprised them the way they had, and it showed in the way that he snapped his neck in the direction of the Colonel in order to more respectfully answer his question.
"Yes." He replied simply.
As far as Hulij-Thwei was concerned this initial trading of observation of one another's skills was over and the humans had proven themselves somewhat worthy of possibly fighting alongside the Yautja. Still he was bothered by the fact that they were able to conceal themselves so well from Yautja sensors and that his own trainees were so inexperienced that they were caught off guard. He was not at all happy with the present circumstances and no longer wished to conduct any kind of formal introductions between his Yautja and the humans. He merely wanted them to be out of his sight for a while. His instructions to the Colonel were the means by which he would achieve the goal of separating the two species, at least for a while, until arriving back at the city Ro'Nok Deha Ta'as.
"With all due respect Crazy Blood, what would you like us to follow, your footsteps?" Inquired the Colonel.
"You will follow…that." Hulij-Thwei then turned his head and pointed skyward to his left when from out of nowhere appeared one of the great Yautja ships rematerializing from its hidden stature.
It was silent. There was no audible noise to be heard, and yet it seemed to float effortlessly above the ground without strain. It was enormous, and stretched the limits of one's imagination in regards to the very shape and structure that could be built into a craft of this size. Had it not been so strangely beautiful, one might say it was almost demonic looking. If nothing else, it was in the very least monolithically dangerous. There were several blade-like appendages that seemed to be strategically placed along the hull, and were raised away from the main surface of the ship with no apparent means of being attached in any way. The outer skin of the hull was a bronze, black color, highlighted by strips of silver and what may have been raw metal.
The humans were in awe; most of them had not seen such a vessel before. They were amazed, not only with its size, but the odd lines, the colors, and most of all its very menacing appearance.
Pok'de it'ktse then bellowed out orders to the rest of the Yautja that were included in the training session to begin boarding the newly arrived ship. It was as he did so that the craft began its cautious descent towards the ground near the far end of the clearing making the most of its graceful abilities during a turning maneuver, allowing it to avoid any collisions.
Colonel Cantwell then took it upon himself to issue orders to his men in regards to boarding the dropship.
The field formerly containing both the Yautja and human forces was beginning to empty as Hulij-Thwei stood on the ramp of his great ship and scanned the area in a rather foul mood. Despite his annoyance over the presence of humans, he watched Morgan as intensely as he could without making it too obvious, as his Unblooded trainees entered the ship.
Morgan was headed for the hatchway of the dropship as she felt the odd sensation of being watched. She turned nervously in Crazy Blood's direction and found that her suspicions were true. Oddly enough it was at the moment that she made eye contact with him that he appeared to lose interest and look away. His actions were almost too purposeful. He turned his head and barked something at one of his subordinates walking up the ramp, in a weak attempt to cover his true motives. Predictably though, as soon as the Unblooded youngling was past him he again stole another glance or two at Morgan who never took her eyes off him until she was through the portal of the ship.
Hulij-Thwei perceived her disappearance into the ship as his cue to do the same as the clanking of his boots contacted the metal ramp, and behind him the large hatch closed with a clang of metal and a pressurizing hiss.