Unexpected

Inspiration: Kiiara- Intention

xXxXxXxXxXxXx

The room around me was quiet, the elders across the room talking between themselves in hushed voices, yet not loud enough for me to hear. I could see my caregiver giving me skeptical glances from the side, but I was too afraid to look up at her. I didn't understand what was happening. I was woken up early that morning, caregivers frantically forcing me out of my furs. I watched as every personal item in my designated room was shoved into a bag, and I was quickly ushered outside and into a transport ship. No one would talk to me, or tell me why I was leaving.

The room went quiet as the elders all turned to face me from across the room. I remember my hands sweating profusely as I shook in my seat. My caregiver refused to comfort me in the slightest as she normally would. Something was terribly wrong, and it involved me.

"As you know Dhi'rauta, your sire the Th'syra Sain'ja clan leader has taken your eldest kin with him on a clan hunt. While planet-side, they were intercepted by a clan of humans."

I wasn't permitted to attend the hunt as I was too young. I hadn't begun training yet, or even gone on my chiva. I'd had a terrible feeling about my sire leaving, but at the time I'd been too afraid to tell him as much, knowing it would have been taken as a weakness. I suddenly felt the same sensation in the pit of my gut as the day he left. Something was wrong, and I was right to begin with.

"None of your kin, including your sire, made it off planet. Their ship has been destroyed and all evidence has been erased. From this moment on, you will be living here until you complete your training. At which point when you take and pass your chiva, you will take over as clan leader for the Th'syra Sain'ja. That, or die trying."

My sire was killed by a clan of humans and lead my kin into the butcher, leaving our clan defenseless so-to-speak until I could take over. It explained the elders harsh words; my caregivers cold demeanor. They felt my sire had bad breeding, made reckless decisions and assumed he could pull others down with him. If I misstep in any way for the rest of my life, I will be seen as a failure by the elders and my entire clan. They expect me to fail, to prove I'm no better than my sire.

I felt like crying, but held myself back. I had to be strong, weakness is seen as the highest offense. I hadn't asked for any of this, and if I'd only told my sire of my feelings to begin with, this all might have been avoided.

"Do not disappoint us."

xXxXxXxXx

I sat at the head of the table as a figure was ushered into the room, listening as they exchanged quick words with one another.

I regarded his figure as he walked forward. He was average height, average build, and had a generally average look about him. The only interesting feature being the diamond pattern on his crest. He wore no intricate rank beads in his dreads, and had very few trinkets hanging from his armor. He was still young, most likely passed his chiva within the last century. He wasn't impressive by any standards, but he had information I needed and the means to carry out my orders. He continued forward, stopping in front of me at a respectable distance before kneeling and saluting me with a first against his chest.

"Yin'tekai Clan leader Dhi'rauta."

I rumbled low in my chest, gesturing toward the seat across the table.

"You may sit." I watched as he slowly sank into the chair, remaining stiff as if ready to bolt at my next breath. My mouth twitched lightly before I forced myself to hide my displeasure. I didn't need to scare him away before I'd had a chance to speak with him. I could still force him to do my bidding in the end, but I'd learned that compliant warriors made loyal allies.

"You have been informed of my kv'var?" I said, knowing he wouldn't be across from me if he hadn't. I watched his face for any subtle reactions. He was still young, and spent most of his time off the clan ship hunting for trophies. He'd not had enough experience around seasoned warriors to know how and when to hide his emotions; his weaknesses. His brow creased lightly, and his lower tusks twitched before settling into a neutral position once more.

"Sei-i, Yin'tekai." He replied. I instantly knew he was unhappy with my request, but he stayed obediently silent. Good. He at least knows his place well enough.

"And you believe you are capable?" Force him to prove himself to you. Give him a reason to try harder. His shoulders widened as he forced himself into a more confident position. I tapped my upper tusks together lightly, reminding him of whose presence he was in. It wouldn't do for him to believe I'd insulted him beyond benefit.

"I am capable. It will be done." He replied, standing from his seat before kneeling and saluting again.

"Good." I regarded him for a moment longer, before coming to a conclusion. He'd asked to leave the clan, find a new one to live among considering he had no familial ties to our ship, in the hopes of vying for new females. I could give him increased incentive, and in the end I wouldn't need him around if he is capable either way.

"If you succeed, I shall grant your request." His head shot up as his tusks splayed wide, before he lowered his head again and began emitting a pleased rumble.

"Ki'sei Yin'tekai." He stood slowly, before confidently making his exit.

"Do not disappoint me, Tarei'hsan-Thwei."

xXxXxXxXxXx

I gazed out the large windshield of the ship, eyes wide and in complete awe as we soared closer to the planet. It was nothing like how I'd imagined it would be, and yet everything I expected somehow. The large hologram they'd been toiling over for the last day since leaving the clan ship behind, hadn't nearly done the planet enough justice. Amani had warned me to be prepared for some truly strange planets.

Don't assume every survivable planet is going to be just like Earth. Gotcha.

The surface had looked initially red, and I was afraid we were headed straight for a Mars-like planet, but as we drew closer, I could make out bright purples and greens where vegetation presumably grew, and a strange shimmering teal where large bodies of water ran, almost as if covered in a metallic coating.

The entire planet looked like it was having a giant rave party; splashes of neon haphazardly thrown around . I knew I wasn't on Earth anymore, or couldn't be anywhere near it; the fact that I am in a ship with 3 giant aliens is testament enough. Yet that didn't stop me from being slightly perturbed by how BRIGHT everything was. Before I knew what was happening, a large lump began forming in my throat, and I could feel my eyes begin to burn in the beginnings of un-shed tears. I slowly began clutching at my chest.

This has to be it: The moment my life as an earthling truly ends. This pain in my chest, is it from despair? Should I be happy to be experiencing these new planets, sensations and cultures? Should I be screaming and fighting, demanding to be taken back to the safety and familiarity of my mid-sized apartment building with its shitty pipes and noisy neighbors? How do I tell myself that it's OK to be enraptured by my new surroundings, yet allow myself to mourn for the life I once had?

"Are you doing well?"

Kwei-Bhu'ja's voice breaks me out of my trance, and I force myself to release the front of my tunic. My hand aches as I bring it back down to my side, and I realize I've reached out to grasp his shoulder as well with my other hand. I release my grip, but keep my palm against his shoulder as an afterthought.

"I'm just...processing my feelings." I say, lightly stroking my thumb across his skin. I feel his purr begin immediately, and he lightly strokes his fingers over the back of my hand before re-assuming the controls.

"It will get easier." He chuffs lightly, his shoulders expanding with the breath. "Go find the others. We will be landing soon."

I laugh lightly at his change of subject, glad for the distraction. "Don't be Kuj'hade and slam the ship into the ground please. I like to be upright at all times." I walk toward the door, waiting for the wall to disappear and let me through, when I remember our doors aren't automatic. Oh, how spoiled I've become in the span of 3 days on the clan ship. I place my hand against the wall quickly, and as I step through the doors, I hear Kwei-Bhu'ja speaking to himself.

"When does she sleep standing up?"

I walk down the hall, wondering where I'm most likely to find Kuj'hade and Thwei-Sain'ja. Kuj'hade recently purchased his hounds at the market, so I figured the first place I should check was the room with the kennels. I made my way in the direction I remembered them being, toward the back of the ship, around a few other rooms I was locked out of on my first few days aboard the ship. I later learned that they were locked because those were the rooms they stored their prey. The humans and other species they captured to hunt on the reserve planet were drugged and placed in transport kennels same as the hounds. The sedatives usually lasted long enough for them to drop them to the surface of the planet.

Sometimes however, the species was resistant to the sedatives, so the doors were kept locked in case they were strong enough to break through the kennel. Thwei-Sain'ja assured it me it had only happened a handful of times, but none had ever been able to break the door down. The SY were a pretty confident species, but that didn't mean I wanted to be near the door on the exact rare occasion that something did succeed in breaking the impenetrable material. I quickly skirted around the storage room, making a beeline toward the door to its right.

As I approached, I could see the light above the space was lit. That meant Kuj'hade was inside. I placed my hand against the sensor waiting patiently for the door to open.

And I waited.

And waited.

And waited some more.

I tapped my hand against the sensor a few times, and nothing happened.

"You've got to be fucking kidding me. You're really gunna lock me out now?" OK, think about this logically. Maybe he's not just being a huge dick. Maybe he's working with his new hounds. He can't be distracted, and they have to start training immediately. Or maybe he doesn't want me to get hurt by them, or god forbid I hurt one of them by accident. That would be understandable. Safety first, right? I lift my arm and bang on the door, hoping its a sound that can be heard on the other side, and pray he doesn't throw the door open in irritation at me.

"Kuj'hade! We'll be landing soon. Kwei-Bhu'ja says to be ready!" I say, my hands cupped around my mouth, with my face practically pushed against the cool metal. When I receive no reply, I bang my hand against the door once more.

"Kuj'hade? I know you're in there."

Silence.

Fine. I'll play your game. He'll figure out we've landed eventually, at least I did my part.

I head toward the med room in search of Thwei-Sain'ja next. In this section of the ship, there are 5 rooms total. The med room, 3 rooms that have stayed locked, the contents of which I haven't been informed, and the Kehrite. As I walk along, I can start to hear what sounds like heavy grunting and loud footsteps. I whip around, afraid that somehow one of the storage doors had burst open, and whatever was in there has decided that I smell like the easiest snack on board. My heart beats heavy in my chest for a few moments as I realize the hallway behind me is empty, the only motion from the small clouds of fog settling around me. I turn quickly again as I hear a loud thump and a snarl coming from one of the rooms ahead of me.

I stand in place for a long time, weighing the options of investigating, until my curiosity gets the better of me and I approach the room. I stop just before passing by the doorway. Its wide open, and I can hear clearly now that Thwei-Sain'ja is in there practicing. I lean forward, and slowly peak my head around the corner, before stepping past the threshold completely, my jaw practically hitting the floor.

I watch as he steps forward, jabbing the spear in his hands at an invisible opponent. He's quick as lightening as he dodges a would be attack, before throwing a flurry of jabs and swipes one after another. He throws himself backward, landing heavily before crouching and swinging his spear in an upward arch. My eyes try to keep up as he practically dances around the room. Half of the moves he does I don't even understand the purpose of, but holy shit they look amazing. I'd never had the chance to actually observe any of them in action with weapons before.

On the reserve planet I had been too preoccupied with not dyeing -and being dragged around by a group of humans I hadn't actually wanted anything to do with- to take time and appreciate how any of them moved in full out combat. And on the trading planet, Kwei-Bhu'ja and Tarei'hsan-Thwei hadn't used weapons. Majority of it had been wrestling, merely trying to overpower one another. Amani had insisted I steer clear of the Kehrite on the clan ship, because there were so many males in there, that I would have been in the far back of each of their testosterone filled brains, most likely resulting in me getting hurt, causing Kwei-Bhu'ja to rampage in the end. Overall, it would not have been worth it.

I'm thrust out of my own mind, as Thwei-Sain'ja lands in front of me, thrusting his spear toward the center of my face. I can feel the wind of what would have been a blow powerful enough to shatter my skull, and I scream throwing myself backward out of the room. He stands there breathing heavily before he shakes his hand and the spear retracts quickly into itself, leaving it about the size of my arm.

"Have we landed yet?" He asks as I recenter myself.

"No. But we will soon." He turns away, walking toward the far wall to place the spear back beside an assortment of weapons on a rack.

"Don't you need that with you? Kwei-Bhu'ja said we'd be hunting while we're here." He regarded me for a moment, tilting his head to the right, before making his way toward me and slipping out the door. The moment his body passed through, the door slid shut behind him, leaving me staring at it's metal surface. I turned toward him as he began speaking again.

"No. They are for practice." And just like that he was walking away.

"Tell Kwei-Bhu'ja I will be ready."

xXxXxXxXxXx

"Is Kuj'hade OK? I haven't seen him at all, and when I went to get him he was locked away in the kennels." I said, as I walked toward Kwei-Bhu'ja and Thwei-Sain'ja. Everyone had gone to get geared up, and now they both stood at the entrance of the doorway, tinkering with their wrist devices. They had their masks securely in place, and they were quietly chittering away at each other. It must have been their species way of whispering, because the translator in my neck wasn't picking up a word they were saying.

"He is busy with his hounds. He will be going on a separate kv'var to train the new pups accordingly." Kwei-Bhu'ja answered me, giving his wrist a few more taps.

"What are you doing?" I looked up from adjusting my tunic. I had rummaged through the wardrobe in my room looking for something suitable to wear, before deciding on a thicker tunic and sturdier closed toed sandals. I wasn't sure what type of weather this planet had, and I haven't been given anything to wear that could possibly act as armor in any way. I looked between the two, feeling uncertain.

"I'm...getting ready to go with you?" I replied, dropping my hands to my sides. "I thought we were going hunting."

"We are going on kv'var." Thwei-Sain'ja said, reaching up and tapping at his helmet.

"You are staying here." Kwei-Bhu'ja finished, mirroring my stance. I didn't know whether to be upset that I would be missing out on the opportunity to explore a new planet, or relived that I wouldn't have to run around said planet, forced to keep up with two 9 foot aliens, or worse yet, be bait again.

I blew out a heavy breath, rolling my head along my shoulders. "Fine, whatever. I guess I'll just...touch stuff." I said. I could see Kwei-Bhu'ja hold his hand out in my direction, and I rolled my head along my shoulders back in his direction, before perking up at the small device resting in his palm.

"What is it?" I asked, gingerly taking it from him. It looked like a small USB plug for a wireless mouse. I was surprised he was able to tinker with technology so tiny. I laughed quickly to myself, before clearing my throat. Don't piss off the giant alien, Grace.

"Thwei-Sain'ja is setting up a link now. You will be able to see our movement through his awu'asa. You will be our hult'ah." He said. I turned the device in my hands a few times.

"So I get to be your eyes and ears then?"

"Audio has been disabled on your end. Help is not necessary, we are still alive for a reason." He said, finally lowering his hands and turning toward me.

"Well that's lame." I whispered, only slightly disappointed that I wouldn't be able to talk to them. Although it was probably for the best. They were going on a hunt, hoping to either capture something alive, or kill it to eat- or even just for the skulls- and me talking to them would just be another distraction. Thwei-Sain'ja, always one step ahead of the game.

"OK, so how does it work?" I asked, holding it up in front of me.

"Take it to the Master Room, and attach it to the controls. A light will appear when it is working correctly." He told me, before placing a hand on my shoulder and pushing me in the direction of the front of the ship.

xXxXxXxXxXxXx

Alright everybody! I've had so much stuff going on lately, that I haven't even had to time to think about getting on the computer and writing. So officially my internet in my house was crapped out, so the only thing I could do with myself was sit down and write my heart away. And I have finally worked out a plot for this story. It started as just random chapters pieced together however I wanted, but there is actually a method to my madness!

Also, thank you to everyone who has reviewed, favorite-d and followed my story. And to everyone who reads this chapter, thank you for hanging in there. I can't guarantee that the chapters will be out any quicker than they have been, but just know I haven't forgotten about you.

PS: As a side note, the 3 rooms that stay locked are their trophy rooms individually. I only mention this because I'm not sure if she will ever delve further into these rooms. Just know they are there, and they are a thing.

Awu'asa: Armor

Chiva: Trial hunt, needed to prove themselves as warriors

Dhi'rauta: Cunning

Hult'ah: Observer/watcher

Kehrite: Training room

Ki'sei: I understand

Kv'var: Hunt

Kuj'hade: Destroyer

Kwei-Bhu'ja: Sly-ghost

Sei-i: Yes

SY: Super Yautja

Tarei'hsan-Thwei: Scorpion-Blood

Th'syra Sain'ja: Skull Warriors

Thwei-Sain'ja: Blood-warrior

Yin'tekai: It means Honor, but I used it has a way to say honored one/honorable.