Private Tribal Hunt

[Jonyna Si]

​

Between the three of them, they quickly made short work of the hive that seemed to just keep coming. The two could see Jonyna effortlessly stride between kiltiks, wasting little energy with individual ones, slicing through them like butter with Lucy and Liz. Slowly, the Kiltiks started to ween down, but all three of them could feel the tremors of something larger coming. Something much larger.

The ground trembled, before finally...

Tag: Ko Vuto Rayia Si

 

[Rayia Si]

Jonyna Si Ko Vuto

---

‘These bugs just keep coming,’ Rayia thought to herself as she wiped a bead of sweat from her brow with the back of her hand. Light Fang’s heat was starting to get to her in this enclosed space. She considered turning the blade off for a moment before something occurred that made Rayia’s choice for her. A distinctive popping sound accompanied one of Ko’s explosions, causing Rayia’s ears to wince.

A curtain of dust and loose dirt plummeted from the ceiling, though the rest of the walls seemed sound enough. Instantly, however, Rayia extinguished her blade. She’d visited the mines of Vossport enough to realize what happened when dust and fire mixed under pressure. ‘Guess it’s time for claws and fangs then… Let’s hope the others don’t notice,’ Rayia thought to herself. She could hardly keep up her pretense if they saw her ripping off Killtik heads with her bare hands.

Awaiting the next one to break through the wall, Rayia swayed back out of its path as it darted by her. Sharp, chitinous spines scraped Rayia’s shoulder as she darted forwards. The beast within growled in annoyance as the muscles in Rayia’s arm spasmed. A moment later, she lunged forwards aiming her clawed hand at and then through the insect’s neck. It slumped to the floor with a thump.

Suddenly, Rayia’s tail convulsed and Rayia went white at the motion it sensed. It was so large it seemed to encompass the surrounding earth around them for many meters. “We need to go! We’ve angered the Earth-Mother,” she called out, calling upon the name of the goddess on Weik who dealt with earthquakes and collapsing caverns.

Rayia went silent a moment later as a massive bug erupted into the cavern chittering wildly. Rayia did not need to be told this was a Queen. Her instincts, tempered with the experiences of her tribe, told her so. “Uhh, Jonyna?” She called, dropping the usual form of address in the face of her shock.

 

[Ko Vuto]

Location: Cathar
Tags: Jonyna Si | Rayia Si

The formation of the cave was a wonder of natural engineering on part of the Kiltiks. But even it wasn’t made to sustain this kind of stress and activity within its walls. Ko could sense that parts of it were beginning to lose some of their structural integrity. Rayia was correct in her concern about them possibly getting buried alive within the hive.

To make matters worse was the new arrival of a very large Kiltik. So big it couldn’t even seem to fit her entire body into the cavern they found themselves inside of. “Seems like we earned Her Majesty’s ire…” Ko remarked, talking about the queen as though she was a civilized noblewomen. However, the Kel Dor’s more immediate concern was of the very earth that they stood on and surrounded them. Wondering how much more of their hive the Queen may have crashed through just to reach them.

Another loud rumbling quickly made its way to them. From above and the opposite end of the cave from the queen. Sensing it might be a chain reaction of cave-ins around them. From where they came, dirt and stone began to collapse and crash down, threatening to block the way the trio came in and bury them. Almost quite literally ‘between a rock and a hard place’.

Ko then decided to act, to try and keep his ‘sister and mother’ from getting squished by the collapsing earth. Gathering some invisible energy through The Force be telekinetically shoved both Rayia and Jonyna closer towards kiltik queen and away himself and the cave in. “I've cover you! Trust me I’ll be alr-” Ko didn’t quite get to finish his sentence as many tons of rock and dirt violently descended upon him. Seemingly crushing the padawan in an instant. But Ko trusted in his instincts and The Force, and with a bit of quick action managed to use his earth shaping to stop the cave-in just before it reached Rayia and Jonyna. It wasn’t like he got himself killed either, just finding himself pressed under many tons of earthly pressure. So as someone adept in geo-kinesis he was quite literally in his element. He just wanted Rayia and Jonyna to focus on the Queen.​

 

[Jonyna Si]

​

The falling of rocks and earth caused a stir within the hive. Suddenly, whatever kiltiks weren't immediately crushed now prioritized rebuilding the hive.

Jonyna gripped her blades, letting out a roar at the Queen, the Force infused within the roar. While it wasn't an attack, only pushing the queen back slightly, it was a matter of asserting herself. The queen let out an inhuman scream in response, rising high above the two in a stance of aggression. "Throw your saber!" Jonyna yelled, an order to Rayia Si that came with Jonyna's want to allow her to get the kill. It was a rite she needed, one that would earn her much respect.

She would be worried about Ko, if she couldn't still feel him in the Force. She trusted him, a padawan beyond his years. She knew that if he had gotten a master before her, he'd probably already be a knight. She was happy she had the privilage to be his master in that moment.

Tag: Ko Vuto Rayia Si

 

[Rayia Si]

Jonyna Si Ko Vuto

---

Rayia’s ear twitched as Ko’s quiet remark bounced around the cavern walls. She could certainly understand why Ko was assigning the tone of regality to the Killtik. Rayia gave Ko a tight-lipped smile, being more familiar with queenly rages than she cared to admit. “It certainly seems like it, yes,” she replied dodging beneath another swiping set of claws.

Rayia froze however as her tail bristled. Her feet were suddenly rooted to the spot. She didn’t need her tail to sense the tremors of movement coming from the opposite side of the cave. Rayia could feel the low, shuddering groan of rifts slowly opening in her bones. Like hungry mouths, they sucked dirt, rock, bugs, and stone down into the depths of yawning abysses whilst more piled in on top.

Rayia suddenly found herself propelled forwards and hoisted off her feet by an invisible hand. She landed deftly, twisting even in mid air to see a deluge of rock and stone plummet on top of Ko. “Ko!” She shouted, unable to stop that sudden spike of cold fear in her chest.

Rayia could sense that Ko was fine. Her tail could still feel him scrabbling under the dirt, and some mystical sense confirmed that he was still alive. But despite those facts, she had just seen her fellow padawan battered around by a mountainside. And that was all the opening the beast within needed.

Rayia’s breath came in ragged gasps as the blood in her ears surged to a pounding wave. Her breath steamed from between gleaming slivers of sharp fangs. She whirled around at the sound of Jonyna’s voice, golden eyes glinting wildly in the dim light. Rayia shook her head violently as if to clear it. The sharp sound of a slap rang out in the darkness as Rayia slapped her own cheek to get a grip. “If he survives this, I’m going to…!” She growled under her breath.

Finally, Rayia stomped forwards and then ripped Light Fang from her belt. She had heard Jonyna roar, and her ears had folded back protectively. Fortunately, the Queen’s posturing response meant that she presented a broad target. ‘…which was probably the intended effect. Normally I’d say throwing your weapon is a terrible idea. But Mentor did say there were times when we might need to when she taught us,’ Rayia thought to herself.

The familiar blazing tawny blade burst to life with a crackling hiss and a blooming of blistering heat. Rayia drew back her arm and cast. A fiery dart lanced through the air as if from a cannon, calling the flickering shadows of its light to dance. It was headed for the left eye of the massive Queen.

 

[Ko Vuto]

Location: Cathar
Tags: Jonyna Si | Rayia Si

By the time Ko had been buried alive he couldn’t physically hear Jonyna or Rayia anymore. But he could still sense them both in The Force. Which meant they were both alive, and that’s all he was concerned with. Now he had to make sure the two would remain that way so that they could take on the queen. He felt a bit guilty about leaving it to the two of them. Wanting to join them in the battle against the queen. But there still was a whole hive that needed to be managed as well, and he didn’t want them getting overwhelmed by more Kiltik reinforcements.

Bringing his focus onto his surroundings, Ko peered through earth and stone with The Force to get an understanding of his surroundings. Feeling the crushing embrace of Cathar across his entire body. The Kel Dor was deep in a sea of mineral and sediment, and he was a good simmer.

Harnessing a combination of earth shaping and alter environment Ko managed to burrow through the ground and walls of the kiltik hive, using The Force to see through all of it and notice when kiltik workers and soldiers were making their way to Jonyna and Rayia to protect their queen mother, the most valuable member of their colony.

Ko would try his best to act as something of an unseen vanguard for his Master and fellow padawan. Zipping around in the earth around them to fight off various Kiltik reinforcements. Quickly intercepting and crushing them with his earth shaping. Covering the feline women just as he promised so that they can keep their focus on the queen.​

 

[DeadpoolMLP]

​

The familiar blazing tawny blade burst to life with a crackling hiss and a blooming of blistering heat. Rayia drew back her arm and cast. A fiery dart lanced through the air as if from a cannon, calling the flickering shadows of its light to dance. It was headed for the left eye of the massive Queen.

A piercing cry rang through the cavern, as the blade soared into, and right through the eye of the mother Kiltik, before it lumbered, and fell onto it's back. Dead.

Jonnya gave Rayia a congratulatory pat on the back, before turning around. The kiltiks left in the cave seemed to be being dealt with by Ko. She had trained a fine pair of hunters. She took a breath, the rest of the kiltiks seemed to be thinning in numbers, Jonyna throwing her own saber to cut through three more, before looking to Rayia.

"Find your Light Fang, then we'll go regroup Ko."

Tag: Ko Vuto Rayia Si

 

[Rayia Si]

Jonyna Si Ko Vuto

---

Rayia’s heart hung in the silence as the fiery dart of her saber crossed the cavern space, headed straight for the Queen. It sizzled as it touched the flesh of the Queen’s eye, sending plumes of smoke from roasting bug meat wafting through the air. Molten, brackish, green blood splattered the walls and steamed gently from the carcass as it toppled over. Rayia felt a momentary elation that she had completed her hunt when a realization struck her.

‘Oh no. I’m going to have to dig through that aren’t I? Just my luck. I have to go squelching through a bug corpse to retrieve my light fang that’s probably wedged itself under that carcass,’ Rayia thought to herself. Gingerly picking up the Queen’s arm, Rayia started to slowly shift it so that she could scrabble underneath without staining her fur with any more blood. It almost dampened her spirits following Jonyna’s pat on her back. But not quite.

Luckily, Jonyna and Ko seemed to have a handle on things here. What few Kiltiks remained were swiftly dealt with or seemed to be fleeing, disoriented with the loss of their queen.

Wrapping her fingers around Light Fang’s slick hilt, Rayis wrenched it free. Her expression soured as she noted the thick, heavy splotches of green on the weapon. ‘What a wonderful new coat of paint,’ she thought sarcastically.

“Got it! Let’s go,” she called out, rushing back to join Jonyna. When Rayia next saw her Kel Dor fellow padawan, she would immediately and insistently try to barrage his shoulder with a flurry of light punches. Rayia held back if she connected so the punches were more like light baps pushing the Kel Dor towards the exit of the cave. “Wh- That was… I was… You jerk!” She cried, with no real venom.

 

[Ko Vuto]

Location: Cathar
Tags: Jonyna Si | Rayia Si

Ko’s focus was almost entirely fixed on combating any of the other kiltik guards and workers that tried to get back and save their queen. Blasting through stone and dirt to come in from many angles of attack. The nature sensitive Kel Dor held no contempt in his heart for the gigantic bugs. But we're just doing what they were supposed to do. But they did threaten the balance of the environment. They were already causing desertification around their hive.

Although Ko wouldn’t say this outloud, he largely held the local populace responsible for this situation. As sapient stewards of Cathar it was supposed up to them to manage the natural health of their homeworld. Although he didn’t doubt there was a reason for how the situation got this bad.

He knew that Raiya and Jonyna were successful in their battle. Sensing the sudden disappearance of the Kiltik queen through The Force. Soon after, seemingly off of instinct, many of the guards and workers began to withdraw. Possibly to maintain more of their numbers until another queen could inherit the colony. At least that’s what Ko predicted.

Once things eased up he tried to clear up some of the tunnel they were in to reunite with his master and fellow padawan. When Ko was finally in view he was breathing fast and heavily through his antiox mask. Having physically strained himself more than he’d meant to. He was also very dirty and dusty from all the earth shaping he did and getting buried by the cave in.

The next thing he knew Rayia was upon him. Quickly peppering his shoulder with a dizzying array of light jabs. Each impact knocked out a small cloud of dust from his dirty robes. Hearing her words, Ko couldn’t hold in a soft chuckle from behind his mask. “Heh, I’m glad you're okay too Rayia, and you as well Master Si. Sorry I didn’t mean to give you a scare like that.” In hindsight he supposed seeing him suddenly get crushed by several tons of rocks was concerning.​

 

[Jonyna Si]

​

Once it was done, Jonyna let out a sigh. That was that. They were now, in the eyes of Cathar, young adults. Ready to take on the world, and contribute to the tribe.

She couldn't help but chuckle. Normally, a whole generation of young Cathar would take on this task. They took it on as three jedi. Many jedi of Cathar had done it before but now she had full claim to having led a Blood Hunt. She felt a little bit more secure in her title as Sage, but now she had a new title to worry about.

Mother.

As she led them out, Ko could sense it. A soft pollen escaping the cave, coming from the Kiltiks. What it was? He couldn't tell. Jonyna didn't seem to even notice it. She was more preoccupied with her own thoughts.

They would need to get their tattoos, and now they'd need to worry about-

No. That was for later. At least, she hoped. Oh lord, she would have to worry about that. She shook her head, looking to the two with pride in her eyes. "You both did good. I couldn't ask for a better set of padawans."

She couldn't ask for a better son and daughter.

Tag: Ko Vuto Rayia Si

 

[Rayia Si]

Jonyna Si Ko Vuto

---

Ko’s labored breathing was enough to snap Rayia from her furious badgering of her fellow padawan. Considering he had survived a mountain collapsing on him, she didn’t want to be the one that sent him to the medical bay. Now that her initial shock and anger had faded, Rayia couldn’t prevent a grin from slowly spreading across her face.

“That was some stunt you pulled. Illuna’s light, I really should slap you for it, you little molbat you,” Rayia explained, her words not matching with the expression on her face. Thanks to her tail, she had felt Ko swimming through the dirt around them during the battle with the queen.

Ko’s new nickname was a colloquial moniker of critters in the Weikian plains that would fly through the air before plummeting in a dive to burrow underground. They were regarded as graceful burrowers. ‘Hence, it’s very appropriate,’ Rayia thought to herself.

Turning to regard Jonyna, Rayia beamed with pride at the compliment. Rayia didn’t miss the contemplative expression Jonyna had put on just before this. There was more going on here than she was aware of. But Rayia did not want to ruin the mood. They needed to appreciate the small moments of victory after all.

So instead, Rayia asked what she thought was a simple question. “What now, mentor Jonyna?” And then to deflate some of the tension, she followed up with a joke. “Are you going to show me how you get blood out of your fur?” Rayia asked, raising her hands that were drenched in brackish, green blood from where she had pulled Light Fang free of the Queen’s eyeball.

 

[Ko Vuto]

Location: Cathar
Tags: Jonyna Si | Rayia Si

It sounded like high praise coming from their Master. As an apprentice Ko never thought of himself as all that special. Even now after taking on a whole kiltik hive with the two of them. Perhaps it was because the cultural significance was a bit lost on the Kel Dor farm boy. Who mostly viewed it as ecological protection.

“Well I didn’t quite plan on getting submerged like that. Nor did I really think about how it would look for the two of you. I just kinda knew that I’d be alright. But uh… What’s a Molbat?” It sounded like a creature he wasn’t familiar with.

He then listened to Rayia ask about the how to go about their hygiene later Ko thought about how awful my must look right now as well. He wasn’t quite covered in the icky blood of the kiltiks. But he could feel how dusty he was from moving through all that soil. “I know I’m certainly gonna need to clean out my antiox mask’s filter back on the reaper.”​

 

[Jonyna Si]

​

“What now, mentor Jonyna?

Jonyna let out a breath. It was over.

"Now, we go back to Ran Dom Kuun, and do some paperwork, and get you both your tribal tatoos, if you want them. By the standards of Cathar society, you are both adults now. You succeeded in your blood hunt, and now...now you're officially part of my family line."

It felt strange just to say it. She'd never led a blood hunt before, and now...

Now she was a mother.

Tag: Rayia Si Ko Vuto

 

[Rayia Si]

Jonyna Si Ko Vuto

---

Rayia’s ear perked as she heard her mentor sigh. The tension seemed to leave momentarily before coming back in full force. Straightening as Jonyna began to speak, Rayia listened carefully to what her Cathar mentor had to say.

Rayia found the idea of getting the proper tribal tattoos as intriguing. Beyond the cultural significance of being accepted into the community, it would always remind her of this day. There was just one problem…

‘How in the kriffing galaxy am I going to get a tattoo?’ Rayia thought to herself. For obvious reasons, the pain of the inking and setting process presented a barrier. ‘I mean, sure, we had scarring rituals back on Weik. But those were relatively secure with plenty of guards to keep people away,’ Rayia continued, shuddering at the thought of an unleashing in the middle of a crowded tree-top city whilst she had little control over herself.

Rayia’s ears twitched as she heard Jonyna’s final line. She stared, dumbstruck as joy and fear or shame seemed to war over which would be the predominant expression. Her ears were full of cotton. Her tail twitched erratically, indecisively between retracting into its sheath or curling happily.

Rayia felt her knees buckle, and she landed with a hard thump onto her rear. She had not told Jonyna everything. Not yet at least. But it wasn’t difficult to see that Rayia had an abrasive relationship with her own family. To be offered a new one here and now was exhilarating, and terrifying. Rayia didn’t think she was ever more scared of disappointing Jonyna in that moment.

“W-what?” she asked, mostly just to have Jonyna repeat herself. Just to make sure Rayia had understood her correctly.