Inanna Harth
Jedi Knight
Inanna sighed. “I guess that means I’m the one with a dirty mind, then. You got me.”
They didn’t have a whole lot of time to discuss a strategy, as the hunting party became visible riding across the dunes, using torches and other primitive means to light their way. But Cato seemed to agree with her plan, at least.
“All right. Try to act more godlike.” She shrugged her shoulders, exhaling a shaky breath.
At first, she thought the alien figures approaching them were other Zaathri, and that the one in their tent had been enslaved by members of its own kind. But as the group drew near—numbering roughly half a dozen in total—she realized that these Zaathri were being used as mounts by another species entirely. She wracked her brain, trying to remember what they were called… the Shaal? Yes, that was it.
Upon reaching them, the party came to a halt. One of the riders dismounted, holding out a torch as if to get a better look at Cato and Inanna. The Shaal were more humanoid than the Zaathri, at least as far as being bipeds, but like the Zaathri they had hooves instead of feet. Their satyr-like appearance extended beyond that, with large horns growing out of their heads and long forked tails. This one in particular had leathery gray skin decorated with luminescent white body paint.
As they approached, Inanna ignited her lightsaber again. The group startled, panic spreading through them. It was the same sort of fearful awe she had sensed in the escaped slave. She was beginning to suspect that these natives either had seen a lightsaber before, or at the very least had heard of them through stories and legends.
Once the initial shock wore off, though, the Shaal who had come forward seemed a bit annoyed. “Oh great,” they groaned. “More gods.”
“Careful, Usul,” another member of the party warned. This one’s body paint was more elaborate, almost completely covering their horns. “You’ll make them mad.”
Sighing, Usul adopted a more reverential manner, bowing his head and spreading his arms. “Divine ones, I do not know your purpose here. I only ask that you answer one question. I have lost the slave called Asra, but I know that he came this way. Do you know where he has gone?”
Inanna hesitated. Figuring that merely turning her lightsaber on would freak them out, she hadn’t expected to get this far. Now they were talking, and she couldn’t understand what they were saying—but Cato could. Not that he could respond to them, but at least he knew what was going on and could act accordingly, right?
They didn’t have a whole lot of time to discuss a strategy, as the hunting party became visible riding across the dunes, using torches and other primitive means to light their way. But Cato seemed to agree with her plan, at least.
“All right. Try to act more godlike.” She shrugged her shoulders, exhaling a shaky breath.
At first, she thought the alien figures approaching them were other Zaathri, and that the one in their tent had been enslaved by members of its own kind. But as the group drew near—numbering roughly half a dozen in total—she realized that these Zaathri were being used as mounts by another species entirely. She wracked her brain, trying to remember what they were called… the Shaal? Yes, that was it.
Upon reaching them, the party came to a halt. One of the riders dismounted, holding out a torch as if to get a better look at Cato and Inanna. The Shaal were more humanoid than the Zaathri, at least as far as being bipeds, but like the Zaathri they had hooves instead of feet. Their satyr-like appearance extended beyond that, with large horns growing out of their heads and long forked tails. This one in particular had leathery gray skin decorated with luminescent white body paint.
As they approached, Inanna ignited her lightsaber again. The group startled, panic spreading through them. It was the same sort of fearful awe she had sensed in the escaped slave. She was beginning to suspect that these natives either had seen a lightsaber before, or at the very least had heard of them through stories and legends.
Once the initial shock wore off, though, the Shaal who had come forward seemed a bit annoyed. “Oh great,” they groaned. “More gods.”
“Careful, Usul,” another member of the party warned. This one’s body paint was more elaborate, almost completely covering their horns. “You’ll make them mad.”
Sighing, Usul adopted a more reverential manner, bowing his head and spreading his arms. “Divine ones, I do not know your purpose here. I only ask that you answer one question. I have lost the slave called Asra, but I know that he came this way. Do you know where he has gone?”
Inanna hesitated. Figuring that merely turning her lightsaber on would freak them out, she hadn’t expected to get this far. Now they were talking, and she couldn’t understand what they were saying—but Cato could. Not that he could respond to them, but at least he knew what was going on and could act accordingly, right?
