Private Can I Crash at Your Place?

[RAV]

Sheer white ripped through Nyla's eyelids as they cracked open. Squeezing them shut again, found little relief from the penetrating light that paralyzed her entire body.

Heat. The sun. She couldn't...stay here.

Her neck swiveled weakly.

"Ollie," she moaned, barely a whisper. Her throat dry, cracked and raspy. "Get us...outta here."

Ollie, an HV-7 loading droid, hovered beside his owner as she slipped into unconsciousness. Sunlight blazed through the cockpit window, baking Nyla's pale face, not a drop of perspiration as her skin shriveled and peeled and turned ashen-colored, wafting faint tendrils of steam.

Ollie whimpered in concern. He wasn't the smartest droid, but knew to follow a command when it was given him, and had been programmed a little by Nyla to accommodate her basic needs.

With his arm, the Little Droid That Could dragged the young woman out by the collar. Out of the pilot's seat... Out of the smoking wreckage of the starfighter lying pummeled in the sand. Taking shelter inside another metal oven of one of the dozens of downed ships around them would not do to ease the Sangnir's temperature. A rocky cave - Ollie soon spotted - would be much cooler.

He tried to be gentle, holding Nyla's head up at least, as he dragged her across the abrasive sand and bumpy rock, her body suit protecting the rest of her from being scuffed up too badly. In the cold, dark recesses of the cave, Ollie released Nyla's collar, and glanced around uncertainly.

He hesitated to leave his owner alone with the elements, and perhaps dangerous beasts that would crawl out at night. But he had no choice. Plucking one of Nyla gloves and an ID tag, Ollie stowed these indicators in his compartment, and then headed for the mouth of the cave.

After all, Nyla didn't specify whether he had to get them out of there alive. Hopefully when the sun set, the desert chill would resurrect Nyla from the brink of death. Until then, Ollie would pursue the initiative down to his last power cell, to die trying.

And so the brave little droid floated his way across the desert, searching for help.

Ishani Dinn

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Asra peered out at the desert, using both his front eyes and his eye stalks to give himself a full view of the landscape all around him. Ever since the Sky Goddess and the God of War had raged through these lands, slaughtering the slaver tribes and freeing all the slaves, the Zaathri had been here at the edge of the Graveyard, watching and waiting.

He was given this guard post by the Sky Goddess Adamanthea as a reward for his bravery, along with a handful of others. It may have been boring, standing around outside in the desert heat all day to watch for falling stars, but he took his job very seriously. Religious devotion motivated him as strongly as the need to eat and drink and rest. He wanted to please the gods. Besides, the Sky Goddess herself had come down to them in this very region. Who could resist the chance to witness the arrival of another deity incarnate?

... Or the opportunity to catch a false god before they had a chance to wreak destruction upon the world?

Though he watched the horizon, it was from the sky that it came. All four of Asra's eyes jerked upward, following the path of the falling star as it streaked across the blue sky. Beside him, his partner's fur turned bright yellow with surprise. "Another one!"

When the star hit the ground, it sent a shockwave through the earth beneath their hooves. A towering cloud of dust billowed upward, though it dissipated quickly, scattered by the wind. Asra gestured toward four of his fellow guards, who split off from the rest and headed with him through rusting Graveyard.

Before they reached the wreckage, they stumbled upon a floating thing made of metal. Such technology, "droids" had been explained to them by the gods. It was like the creatures made of clay which served Desdinova, the God of the Underworld.

"Whom do you serve?" Asra asked the droid. Zaathri speech was a series of whistling tones, incomprehensible to outsiders, though he did point a finger in the direction of the smoking crash site.

R RAV

 

[RAV]

The droid Ollie did not feel fear, but proceeded with caution, slowly floating his way through the sandy, metal jungle of hollowed, groaning ships. Exploration was beyond his programming, his reactions delayed as a herd of vibrant-furred centaur-like creatures came suddenly upon him. His lenses zoomed and studied their four-eyed faces, one of them (Asra) pointing a finger in the direction where he had traveled from. The creatures whistled, and Ollie whistled back, not understanding their accent, nor having much reasoning capacity to determine if these strange creatures were to be trusted.

His 'hand' reached into his compartment, and pulled out two items, waving them for the creatures' attention. For those who could not read or comprehend Nyla's portrait on the ID tag, then perhaps her glove would serve as a more primitive indicator of organic life. With urgent beeping, Ollie would turn around and lead the way, as speedily as he could, back to the crash site.

Traces of smoke, a blackened bed of ash, and the gleam of polished metal would stand out Nyla's freshly downed ship from the rest of the rusted Graveyard, a little ways from where Ollie diverted his path, locked onto the nearby rocky cliffs where his priority lied. He would motion his new company over to the cave, guiding them inside... where the body of Nyla Tacari lied undisturbed and unmolested. The missing glove was a match, her ID portrait less so, as the Sangnir's face had become shriveled and ashen, though the cool dampness of the cave had halted her decay.

Upon closer inspection, a faint pulse could be found. The sun had not yet set. Little did the Zaathri realize the ticking time-bomb on their hands, before the Sangnir awoke. The Red Hunger that gnawed beneath the surface, to replenish the life force drained by her ordeal...

Ishani Dinn

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Asra was dismayed by the state of the woman they found in the cave. She appeared to be dead and mummified. With that assumption in mind, they began to rifle around the shriveled corpse, searching for treasures they might present to the Pantheon. The ID tag, glove, and indeed the droid Ollie itself would all be taken with them as proof of what they had found.

But something didn't quite feel right about all this. Asra couldn't quite shake the gut instinct urging him to take a closer look at the body. It was then that he detected the faint pulse. But how was that possible?

Well, who was he to question the ways of the divine?

Assuming this was a goddess, and not an evil spirit. At any rate, she would have to be moved. "Lift her up onto my back," he commanded the others. "We must take her to the Holy City."

The withered woman was carefully laid upon the Zaathri's back for transport. Asra made sure she was secured properly, and in a last minute decision, he bound her hands at the wrists. The bindings were little more than rope, but it helped to quell that feeling of unease in his gut somewhat. He left his second-in-command in charge, then set off with two other men toward the City right as the sun began to set over the desert.

R RAV

 

[RAV]

Ollie waited patiently for the creatures to "help", even as they began looting Nyla's body. A few loose credits and credcards, pieces of gum and a comlink device, pooled from the pockets of Nyla's jumpsuit. Most of the woman's possessions were still on board the ship, including a few blaster pistols, some clothes, food items, datapads, a laptop, tool box, and a small stash of various currencies. Only a few days worth of essentials, packed inside the small space of the sleek and shiny starfighter; unlike the larger, more stocked and weathered-looking cargo, scavenger, or exploration vessel likely to be found in the Unknown Regions and the Graveyard; but rather an average civilian from the inner regions of the galaxy, someone who didn't plan on crashing onto a remote planet, lightyears away…

Ollie gave a few quizzical beeps, but did not have the capacity to judge what "help" looked like. So long as the creatures were standing around presently, he assumed they were, and would watch them do their thing.

Leaving the rest in the hands of the Zaathri, as they loaded Nyla on top of Asra's back, Ollie would deactivate, retracting into a more portable disc form for the Zaathri to carry back with them. The droid had done what he could. Now was time for him to power down, to conserve his remaining battery, for when his owner should need him again.

∙∙∙ ∙∙∙ ∙∙∙​

The last of the sun rays dipped below the horizon. The chill of night crept in.

In a dreamy haze, Nyla smiled. Eyes closed, her cheek pressed against the warm furry pillow that was Asra's hindquarters, rocking her in her slumber as the Zaathri caravan plodded on. She hardly felt the binds that strapped her to her captor, lying on her back, straddling Asra's. An awkward position to wake up in, when Nyla fully came to. But for now, too weak to even open her eyes, instinct compelled the Sangnir to sleep-feed, like a helpless blind babe, gasping for a drop of sustenance to restore her vigor.

Inhaling the scent of pulsating flesh - a bed made of breakfast - Nyla would stretch her neck and attempt to sink her fangs into Asra's rump. A full-on bite would be painless, numbing and perhaps even pleasurable at first. Though at this angle, she'd be lucky to stick one fang in, let alone two, without grazing the skin and alerting her prey.

Ishani Dinn

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Something was wrong.

Asra could sense it, though he didn't know how to put into words what he was feeling, let alone the source of it. As the sun dipped below the horizon, he grew tense, anxiety creeping in. Was it something to do with the mummy strapped to his back, the withered woman who somehow still lived?

He saw the Holy City, Desdyrva, up ahead. Just a little farther, and he could divest himself of his burdens, laying them before the feet of his gods. They would know what to do...

A pricking thorn in his backside drew him out of his thoughts. Thinking it was some insect that had bitten him, he swatted his long nimble tail over the inflamed area. But instead of a bothersome bug, his tail struck the head of the woman.

His fur flushed crimson with distress. "She's biting me!" he exclaimed, instinctively trying to buck her off.

R RAV

 

[RAV]

The abrupt force to her head that dared to release her maw's grip from the hide of her prey, jolted her eyes open. Her irises black, possessed with Hunger, glaring furiously for being disturbed. The buck would not dislodge her, for she was still strapped to her captor's back. Her prey's panic, all the more exciting Nyla's hunger, bent on subduing her meal.

Wrestling against her bonds, she would attempt to plunge her fangs into Asra's rump again, to drink as much as she could, for a burst of strength to free and defend herself. Should Asra's tail swipe at her again; if her hands hadn't wriggled free by then to be able to grab it, she would snap at it with her teeth instead.

Enough blood loss might bring down her prey. Enough bucking and jostling might loosen the bonds for her to wriggle herself free. If only Nyla were telepathic, she might have pled her situation with her captors. But as of the moment, she was helpless, and entirely at the mercy of the others around.

Ishani Dinn

 

[Ishani Dinn]

By then the others had been alerted. "Stop moving!" someone shouted.

Though every instinct screamed at him to bolt, Asra forced himself to stand still. She was tied down to him, he couldn't buck her off. "Cut the bindings!" he exclaimed, his voice trembling with fear.

A tail blade flashed, slicing open the ropes. Another Zaathri's spear jabbed at the woman's throat, trying to knock her off him. Or impale her through the neck, if she refused to move.

"Look at her eyes! Her teeth!"

"Evil spirit!"

"We can't bring her into the Holy City!"

The troops talked amongst themselves, their weapons trained upon her as they surrounded the woman. Fur black and flattened with terror, Asra reached back to touch the puncture wounds on his rump, his trembling hand coming away bloody.

There was a sudden flash of light, and a figure appeared from seemingly out of nowhere. Holding a glowing blue lamp in her hand, Rhiannon stood just outside the circle surrounding Nyla. Immediately the troops all bowed their heads. Asra sank to his knees in the dust, overwhelming relief flooding his body.

"What's going on?" Rhi asked. She sounded grouchy, like she'd been awoken in the middle of the night and forced to leave her bed. As the Zaathri began explaining in their whistling language, her gaze fell upon Nyla. "Who the hell are you?" she demanded.

R RAV

 

[RAV]

She stuck like a leech to Asra's rump, consumed entirely on her prey, until pain and shock forced her to rip away, falling with a yelp. Her back hit the ground, cushioned by sand, and she rolled onto her knees, not crawling far. One hand shot up to her neck, feeling the hole in her throat, joined by the other hand in trying to keep pressure, as black blood oozed between her fingers, pooling onto the sand.

A sudden flash of light shrunk back the corrupt darkness in her eyes. Temporarily blinded, Nyla squeezed her eyes shut and flinched away. Words in her language echoed in her ears, glancing up at the strange woman as her vision returned.

"Blood. first," she whispered, all that was foremost in her mind. "I need... You." Her gaze briefly locked with Rhiannon's, begging the woman to come closer, as her Hunger considered the option. Though it was hard to focus on Hunger, when her life force was slipping away. Fear and desperation flashed through her eyes as she tightened her grip around her neck. All the energy she could muster to self-heal, weakening her immensely.

She could no longer speak. Her throat burbled, each labored breath leaking more and more blood between her hands and from the corners of her lips. She didn't know how to plead any clearer, raising a hand weakly towards Asra, her unfinished meal, the scent of his blood still fresh in her nostrils. Loss of blood was making her feel faint, kicking in self-preservation once more as Hunger dilated her pupils, lunging on all fours at the nearest Zaathri, like a starving dog. But her strength failed, and Nyla crumpled into the sand, coughing up blood that seeped through the cracks of her dry, ashen face.

What little of Asra's life force she had sapped from him, had been used up to repair the damage on her neck, though it was not enough to fully mend the gaping wound. In no better state than she was at the beginning, Nyla hovered on the brink of death, rapidly fading.

Closing her eyes, she bent over and curled up on her side, lying in the sand, slowing her breathing to prevent further blood loss. All she think of was to hang on, as the void threatened to consume her again.

Ishani Dinn

 

[Ishani Dinn]

"Blood. first. I need... You."

"You can feth right off with that chit," Rhi growled, glaring at the woman. Chaos, her flesh was peeling. What was she? Some sort of vampire? "You attack me or these soldiers again, you die. Your corpse will be burned to ash. No one will ever know what happened to you."

Well, Rhi was something of a vampire herself. She couldn't exactly judge this stranger for getting a little bit peckish. The difference was, she had managed to institutionalize her appetites, feeding only on the worst elements of Zaathru society. Random feasting on ordinary, innocent citizens was unacceptable.

"If blood is all that you want, you'll have it—provided you can wait a moment for me to get you some more suitable prey," Rhi assured her. "These are my loyal soldiers. You understand why I can't let you kill them."

It seemed like the woman was already on her way out, though. She lay curled up in the sand, apparently unable to move. Rhi noticed the blood on the ground, and swiftly determined it was hers, not any of the Zaathri. To be honest, it wasn't her problem if the vamp died of starvation while waiting for a meal. If she got desperate, though...

Keeping an eye on Nyla, Rhi walked around to where Asra was kneeling. He watched her as she moved closer, the folds of her gray linen nightgown rippling in the desert breeze. She bid him rise to his feet, then examined his wound with the Force. No infection, but she didn't want to risk it worsening. From somewhere within her dress she produced a small container. Reaching inside it, she pulled out a handful of fine brown powder, spat in her palm, and mixed the dust with her saliva. Using her fingers, she daubed the mixture in his wound. Asra yelped in pain, but the mummia was already working, knitting his punctured flesh closed.

When he realized he had been healed, he turned to Rhi, whistling his gratitude. She gave him a hug, which startled the Zaathri so much he didn't know how to react at first. Finally he embraced her back, his arms trembling.

Pulling away, Rhi faced Nyla. "I'll take over from here, gentlemen," she said, stepping inside the circle. With a gesture of her hand, she teleported both herself and Nyla into the sacrificial chamber of the Temple of Death.

The chamber was dark, windowless, cold and dank, giving the impression of being located deep underground. Painted murals adorned the walls, depicting the slaughter of various offerings. Rhi pulled a lever, and a shrieking male Shaal prisoner was dragged inside by the Temple guards. They deposited the satyr at her feet. She kicked him in the direction of Nyla and said, "Drink up."

R RAV

 

[RAV]

The woman's threats fell on deaf ears of the Sangnir who was too far gone to reason. Nyla closed her eyes and gave into the darkness, yet even then, lying in the sacrificial chamber, Hunger fought for her will to live, long after she had given up. In a swift, contorted motion, she arose, lured by the prey dangled next to her, and latched onto the Shaal's neck. Though her bite numbed her prey physically, as the Shaal fell silent and buckled to the ground, the mind would remain alert, filled with terror until the end.

Fear made the heart pound faster, pumping the Shaal's life force into her, releasing a climatic burst as the organ gave out and filled Nyla to the brim. Gasping, she released her maw, backing away from the lifeless Shaal. Reeling from the narcotic high, she sat up and leaned her back against the wall. A dazed chuckle escaped her. Satiated, she closed her eyes, and fell silent with a look of contentment, breathing deeply.

If undisturbed, she would nod off, into a food coma.

When she opened her eyes again, she would appear much more sane-looking and human, Hunger having vanished entirely. The wound on her throat quickly mended, aided by the dark and moisture of the chamber, sealing the cracks and restoring her skin to its youthful suppleness.

If the Shaal's body was still there, Nyla wouldn't react, though somewhere within, there was a fleeting pang of guilt and shock, putting two and two together. It wouldn't be the first time she woke up next to a body she had fed upon, though she had prided herself on a record of not killing anyone in a while.

Her head was a blur, her violet eyes glancing around the room. The sand in her dream had disappeared, replaced by a bed of stone.

"Where am I?" Nyla lifted her head. There was no fear in her voice, mostly tiredness, as her senses came to. "What planet is this?"

Ishani Dinn

 

[Ishani Dinn]

Rhi watched as the woman proceeded to devour the sacrifice's blood, her eyebrows rising steadily as the feeding grew more and more gruesome. It was metal as hell. Gnarly, even.

Once she had gorged herself, the vampiress fell into a deep sleep. Thinking it was probably for the best to let her sleep, Rhi had the corpse of the dead Shaal removed and ordered the servants to bring her... a chair.

When Nyla woke up, she would find Rhi sitting upon a plush couch, flicking through a book. Roughly half an hour had passed, with Rhi foregoing her own rest in order to be there when the vamp awakened.

"Where am I? What planet is this?"

"You're on Zaathru, in the sacrificial chamber of the Temple of the Dead, in the Holy City of Desdyrva, within the domain of the God of the Underworld," Rhi replied, closing her book. "I am Adamanthea, Goddess of the Skies. But you can call me Rhi. Uh, who are you and how did you get here?"

R RAV

 

[RAV]

Nyla scoffed, rolling her eyes with her neck as she stretched it out.

"Wouldn't you know..? -'goddess'." She nearly mocked.

A moment of silence passed, realizing the woman wasn't kidding. Her eyes widened in alarm.

"Goddess," she echoed, staring at Rhi. "Am I... dead?"

Skies? Underworld? Might even explain the light in her 'dreams', earlier.

 

[Ishani Dinn]

If Rhi noticed the slightly mocking tone of the woman, she didn't seem to care. She regarded the vampiress with interest, and a tad bit of well-deserved wariness.

"Am I... dead?"

"No, although if I hadn't stepped in you probably would be," Rhi replied. She was becoming somewhat annoyed with the woman for refusing to answer even the most basic questions. "There seems to have been some misunderstanding. I want to help you. But I cannot provide any more assistance if I don't have all the facts. At least tell me what you want."

R RAV

 

[RAV]

"I—" She rubbed her face, still mildly confused as to her whereabouts. "I- I have to get outta here, I wanna go back home to—" Her countenance shifted, memories crashing down on her, in stunned realization. "...that jerk!" She growled. Her palm slammed the ground abruptly.

Anger flashed in Nyla's eyes as she arose, pacing about the room. While fuming, her head scrambled to gather its priorities, suppressing her frustration at the moment in front of this...Adamanthea. "Where's my ship?" She felt around with the Force, searching for any forms of tech that might tell her about her surroundings. "I was flying in my ship and I was shot down by some laser—Where are we? Zaathru?" She turned to Rhi with a sense of urgency, before hesitating. "Wait a minute, so I'm not dead? All this is real? I'm not in limbo or anything?" A look of wary concern crossed her face. With the whole "Goddess" title throwing her in for a loop, she had to be sure she was hearing things right.

Ishani Dinn

 

[Ishani Dinn]

"I- I have to get outta here, I wanna go back home to—"

"That can be arranged—"

"...that jerk!"

Rhi blinked, watching as the woman begin to pace. Before she could speak, the vamp asked a question.

"Where's my ship?"

"It crashed. My troops found the wreckage in the desert. You were—"

"I was flying in my ship and I was shot down by some laser—Where are we? Zaathru?"

"Yes, I already told you—"

"Wait a minute, so I'm not dead? All this is real? I'm not in limbo or anything?"

"... No," Rhi answered flatly. She pinched the bridge of her nose between two fingers, and decided to just cut to the chase. "I can provide you with passage to the nearest starport. Your belongings will be returned to you..." Now that she thought of it, she could find out who this woman was by looking at her ID. Although at this point, she didn't really care. She just wanted this crazy bloodthirsty harpy out of her hair. "... and you may go on your merry way. Agreed?"

R RAV