PREDATORS
by Chimera Bloom
Part 6
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"We were at the club and she was dancing with that snake." Pedryn whispered realizing that they had obviously left Elila in rather dangerous hands.
"So?" Carielle asked not really understanding what her cousin was getting at. Carielle barely remembered seeing Elila at the club. She had started drinking very early in the evening.
"She must have been a cobra. I didn't even notice. I was too…focused on Elila." Pedryn admitted feeling rather foolish. She was widely known as her tribe's best hunter. And it was rather apparent that she had let a vicious snake pass right by.
Carielle walked forward finally taking in all of Elila's appearance. She didn't know much about the girl's physiology. And she really couldn't tell what condition she was in.
"Is she going to be all right?" Carielle asked wondering just how bad this situation was going to become.
"Yes, as far as I can tell. I had to give her a sedative to knock her out." Pedryn answered realizing that her cousin's concern came from the girl's rather passive demeanor.
"What happened when she saw you?" Carielle asked suddenly filled with an anxious worry. She wouldn't trade places with Pedryn for all the money in the kingdom. Carielle knew all too well what it was like to live with the guilt of her actions. Night after night, she was haunted by a beautiful jungle cat named Yamina. And Carielle would give anything in the world to never have to see her victim again. But Elila had showed up right on their doorstep. And now Pedryn had a world of trouble to deal with.
"She hasn't yet. I knocked her out before she saw me." Pedryn answered. Carielle glanced at her cousin and then done at the sleeping form of the girl. She knew it was for the best. If anything, they should stay as far from each other as possible.
"That's good. Well, can we get her back to her tribe?" Carielle asked wondering if it would be possible to move the girl before she woke.
"No, the next transport doesn't come till morning. And besides, we won't know if she can be moved until she wakes." Pedryn answered leaning against the table. It was so odd being this close to Elila. She could reach out and touch the girl and the young heron would never even know.
"She can't stay here. The repercussions of this will be unfathomable. We have to drop her off somewhere." Carielle answered, knowing that the daughter of the almighty Fasara Alpha could not be found injured and beaten on their tribe's beach.
"What do you propose we do with her? Dump her in the woods for another predator to happen upon? She wouldn't be safe. And then we would be responsible for anything that happens to her." Pedryn answered trying to balance her emotions with sound political logic.
"Pedryn this is bad. This is very very bad!" Carielle stammered running her hands through her hair.
"Yes, but besides pointing out the obvious to you have anything constructive to say?" Pedryn asked, feeling the sudden need to fill her lungs with water. She hadn't really thought things through when she treated Elila. But now that those actions had been carried out she certainly was going to put all her hard work in jeopardy.
"We have to call the Alpha." Carielle answered hoping that Pedryn wouldn't see her request as a lack of faith or distrust in her abilities, because that wasn't the case at all. Carielle had every confidence in her cousin's ability to lead the tribe. But some manners needed the council of a higher authority.
"I've already thought of that. Contacting the Alpha would be an inadvisable move from here. The Gallion Village isn't secure. Anyone could be listening in if we tried to contact her. I don't feel that we can take that chance. Especially, not with a delicate nature like this one." Pedryn reasoned, gesturing to the helpless girl laid out before them.
Truthfully, Pedryn wished that the Alpha were here right now. She would give just about anything to not have to make these decisions. But when her tribe accepted the invitation to compete in the Gallion, she was named as acting Alpha. So until they returned to their home in the Midali wetlands, Pedryn knew that all tribal decisions rested with her.
"Okay, you're right. So now what?" Carielle asked feeling the sudden need to hyperventilate or even faint. She knew it would be worse for her if Yamina lied on the table in place of Elila. She didn't think she could stand ever having to look at her conquest. But Pedryn seemed so calm and rational. It was unsettling how easy she was adjusting to Elila's presence.
"She'll have to stay, at least until the morning transport. We'll just put her in a room for the night and keep her profile as low as possible." Pedryn said, knowing that secrecy would be a must.
"Is that possible?" Carielle asked, hoping that only a select few knew that Elila was even amongst them.
"Maybe…" Pedryn reasoned knowing that stopping the never-ending chatter of Jaura would be a difficult task at best.
"But I need to tell you something." Pedryn turned to stare directly into her cousin's red-rimmed eyes. Carielle braced herself for something uncomfortable to be discussed. She could practically see Pedryn searching for the words that she wanted to say.
"I want to tell Elila the truth." Pedryn said softly looking down at the girl's injured form.
"You CAN'T!!!" Carielle screamed storming away from both her cousin and the girl. She didn't know what Pedryn was thinking. Surely, she had lost her mind.
"It was part of the treaty. None of us are ever allowed to say what really happened down in the water. No one can know. You know that." Carielle tried to reason with Pedryn. She knew her cousin would do what she wanted regardless of her statements. But she felt she had to at least try to convince her to see logic.
"The treaty specifically says that any member of the tribal council has a right to know all the facts. And that includes Elila. And Yamina…" Pedryn stated knowing that she was clinging to minor semantics at this point.
"You know that wasn't the intention of the treaty. Thash felt that only the warriors could handle knowing what really went on, not the women. And the Alpha has the right to make those decisions. Elila's own parents didn't want her to know the truth. It's not our place to second guess what they tell their daughter." Carielle answered feeling that Elila needed to be kept from all the sordid details of her kidnapping.
"Isn't it? Carielle we were affect too by what happened. Don't we owe it to ourselves to tell them?" Pedryn asked wishing that her cousin would take her side. She really was conflicted as to what would be the best course of action. If only Carielle would agree with her, this decision would be much easier.
"You want to tell her to ease your own guilt. And that's not fair to her. She's nothing but a girl. You're a changeling. You have to be the stronger person and keep the secret. Telling her would only add to her pain." Carielle answered. She had to believe that everything she was telling her cousin was really the right thing to do. It had to be. At times, Carielle felt like the only thing she could ever give to Yamina to make up for all the pain she caused was her own heart-wrenching silence.
"I think that if I were in her position I would want to know." Pedryn answered honestly. She felt that on some level no one could ever fault her for telling the girl the truth.
"Why Pedryn? Is this just to ease your own conscious? This is all done now. We can't do anything to make up for it or change history. All we can do is live up to the terms of the treaty. And you can do that by not involving Elila in your quest to lift your own burden. She doesn't deserve that." Carielle answered.
"Maybe not…" Pedryn muttered walking over to the door.
"But I can't even remember when we started the lies. At the time, they seemed necessary. We lied to the kingdom. We lied to the Fasara. We lied to our own tribe. We even lied to each other. And at the time, it seemed like we were saying them for decent and good reasons. But they changed me. I'm not the same person I used to be." Pedryn explained, feeling a bit of her old self begin to seep through the cracks of her soul.
"None of us are Pedryn. We were all victims in a way…" Carielle answered wishing that her cousin would drop this ridiculous idea.
"I'll think about it." Pedryn replied softly. And Carielle knew that was the best response she could hope for from her normally stoic cousin. She looked down at the small heron and hoped that once again, Elila wouldn't be the cause of her cousin very unraveling.
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"You'll stay with her?" Pedryn asked her cousin in a desperate attempt to leave.
"What??? Where are you going?" Carielle responded adamant that she did not want to be left alone with Elila.
"I need to go. I can't stay here. I, I need to think." Pedryn said with a soft unsteady tone that frightened her cousin. Pedryn was always in control and in command of every situation. But she was already unsure and meek after spending only minutes with the heron.
"Okay, I agree you need some time to think things through." Carielle answered calmly. She moved forward trying to embrace her taller relative around the waist. She wanted to seem supportive. She sensed how very much Pedryn needed that from her. But she couldn't agree with her cousin's desire to tell Elila the truth. And if some time away would help Pedryn think rationally, then she was all for it.
"But I can't stay with her. We'll get someone else, someone who doesn't know her." Carielle cautioned knowing how improper things might look. Her tribe wasn't known for being able to keep secrets. And if it ever got out that she had spent time behind closed doors with the Alpha's daughter, there would be serious repercussions for the entire Midali.
"It has to be one of us. No one else can protect her." Pedryn answered knowing that her cousin would have to see that she was the only choice.
"Protect her?" Carielle asked turning to really look at the girl. And for the first time Carielle saw the heron for what she really was, prey.
"Look at her� She wouldn't survive like that here. If anyone here finds out who she really is, her life would be in danger. Even if they don't know, it's her condition that concerns me. Any shark within miles will be able to smell her blood. And between you and me I don't think Elila is up to a frenzy at the moment." Pedryn explained saying all the words that her cousin didn't want to hear.
"Fine go! I'll take care of things." Carielle answered suddenly wanting Pedryn as far from Elila as possible. She couldn't be certain but there was something alarming about how her cousin had mouthed the word frenzy. It was almost like the word had wet her mouth before ripping from her body. All Carielle knew was that her cousin wasn't herself. And she could only hope that distance would help Pedryn see things more clearly.
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Pedryn took the first exit she could find. She didn't want to risk wandering the halls of the Fluid languishing down through the easy wet levels. She didn't want to feel the cool sanitary water of the building. She craved the dirty, unfiltered, salty waves of the sea. And after a quick 30ft. drop off the nearest balcony railing, Pedryn found herself neatly crashing into the black liquid of the Gallion Ocean.
The water raised up to welcome her body into its depth. And as soon as her body rushed beneath the foamy surface, she started to rip at her clothes. She hated the feel of micro fibers against her flesh. And she simply couldn't stand anything hindering her movements in the water. She pulled the last shred of clothing from her body and regretfully threw the items away. It was such a shame; as much as she hated wearing clothing she rather liked that green outfit.
But now she was naked and gleaming under the silvery light of the moon. Often times she regretted their tribe's decision to move onto the land and join the kingdom. The water was their only true home. The ocean was beautiful, enchanting, and terribly deadly. And with those prevalent characteristics she had always felt that it was such a suitable match for her tribe.
She knew that her people were often seen as one of the most beautiful species in the entire kingdom. Pedryn couldn't even begin to count the number of times that she had been propositioned. She couldn't understand why a heated female so often singled her out. It didn't matter where they were, but even in a group of other shark warriors the women always seemed to flock to her.
And it wasn't something Pedryn was at all comfortable with. She had always had romantic problems. She never knew how to talk to women. She never knew how to touch them. And she certainly didn't know how to even approach a woman not of her tribe.
Women were gentle and delicate. Even those of her tribe didn't have anywhere near the strength of their fellow hybrids. And it was their fragility that had always frightened her.
Pedryn had always been interested in only one thing, the hunt. She never cared for the social graces and polite etiquette that some sharks adapted too. She wanted to be in the water searching for prey. And she was good at it, the best in her whole tribe. But such notoriety had won her the fellowship of many devoted females.
She started mating at an early age. It seemed only appropriate at the time. She was so accomplished in everything else of importance, why not this? But it had proved to be a near fatal mistake. She had honed her predatory instincts to the point of compulsion. And when she took a young beautiful Midali girl to her bed, the poor thing was never quite the same again.
Pedryn was overcome with hormones and the need to prey. Her mind was telling her to release her strength and give into the blood lust. And when the frenzy welled-up in her soul, she didn't even attempt to fight it. She wanted this. She wanted to prove her dominance. She craved the wild savagery of the animal spirit inside of her.
And the worst thing was, she didn't even know that she had hurt the poor girl until it was too late. Pedryn awoke the next morning to find the female near death. Her breathing was strained. Her eyes were fixed. Even the pallor of her skin had faded like ghost. Most awful was the blood. It was everywhere from the sheets to the ceiling. And Pedryn had never even wanted to hurt her.
She remembered all too clearly the feeling of intense horror. She jumped from the bed wanting to believe that there was some other cause for the gaping wounds. She didn't want to believe that she had done it. She couldn't have, all she had wanted was to be with the girl. She had wanted to touch her, to hold her� Pedryn had never meant for it to happen.
She ran through the entire rather large building in under a second. She had to get to her alpha, the tribe's leader. She needed help and with the condition of the girl, Pedryn knew that time was of the essence.
And her alpha took one look at her and seemed to know what had happened. They whisked the girl away, first to a medical treatment center. And then later, they sent the girl to a sister tribe all the way on the other side of the world. No one was to ever know what she had done.
But Pedryn couldn't forget. She had kept tabs on the girl. After all, she was the warrior's first. The poor girl had gone through years of painful procedures and therapy before she ever regained her true mobility. The healers said that if she hadn't been of pure shark heritage, she never would have survived.
After that, Pedryn had stayed far away from women. She felt like some sort of horrible monster that should be locked away in a cage. She didn't understand what had happened. And her alpha refused to even discuss it. So she was left to her own rather confused and adolescent impulses.
But later when her mind was calmer and wiser, Pedryn was able to truly analyze what had happened. She realized now that it wasn't lust that had driven her to take that poor girl to her bed. It was the hunt. In her young and foolish mind, she had never even thought to differentiate between sexual longing and the lust for blood. And to a shark hybrid, both desires are painfully intertwined.
And yet, there was so much more to that terrible incident then a simple predatory impulse. She hadn't been ready for it. She really hadn't even had a single sexual thought of her own.
But her alpha saw what a hunter and leader she was becoming. And suddenly Pedryn had an image to uphold. Her alpha pushed the young girl on her without so much as an explanation or even a word of caution.
And as a loyal child, Pedryn had gone along with her alpha's wishes. She had taken the girl thinking that sex would hold no mysteries to her. After all, she was the best at nearly everything.
But she couldn't have been more wrong. Sex held nothing but painful questions, embarrassment and shame for her. She couldn't even control her own predatory impulses.
And the first time that she touched the girl, Pedryn had known something was terribly wrong. She had never touched a female before. Her own mother had died long ago. And she had no siblings. She simply didn't know how to mold her hands to their delicate bodies. She felt horribly gawky and awkward. And she quickly found that her strength was her absolute worst feature...
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Her strength was normally such an asset as she battled through the ocean waves. But now, it was coming between her and the intimacy that she craved. Even a casual touch on the shoulder or tap on the arm was something painful and difficult for her. She had hurt far too many acquaintances to ever be comfortable around women of any kind.
Even though it reinforced the idea that there was something inherently wrong with her, she tried to ignore it. Instead, she simply clasped her hands together whenever a female past her by. She never wanted to accidentally touch them; even such incidental contact could prove disastrous.
Once she had asked her alpha for help. She had come to her parent stricken with grief and loneliness. She wanted to be like the other warriors. She wanted to control her strength. She wanted to restrain her animal instincts.
But her alpha only turned a deaf ear. Pedryn could only guess that the situation was too painful to even be openly discussed. Her parent told her that she was normal. That her blood lust in bed was a natural part of being a shark. And that one day she would meet a woman who could handle her rather grueling sexual demands.
And Pedryn believed her. She was nothing but a young pup at the time. And she had wanted to believe in her own normalcy. But even though she felt uneasy and unsure, she shrugged off the slight tenor of warning bells and went off to find such a women. If only she had listened to her own misgivings, so much could have been saved…
But she ignored her own inner voice and went off to prove something to herself. Her name was Bandrie. And Pedryn had been taken with her from the first moment they met. It had been years since her last rather painful incident. And she felt like she was ready to move forward. Pedryn wanted nothing more then to show that once and for all she wasn't some sort of horrid monster.
She wanted to touch a woman with gentleness. She wanted to be tender and loving. She wanted to feel complete and whole. And above all else, she had this sudden craving to give herself over to the physical needs of her flesh.
And Bandrie seemed like the perfect woman. The girl's parents sat on the tribal council. Socially, they were perfectly matched. Bandrie was popular and outgoing. And it didn't hurt matters that Pedryn knew how many warriors were waiting for their chance with the girl. When she moved to the very front of the line, Pedryn couldn't deny how powerful it made her feel.
But there were problems, despite the many advantages to dating the young socialite. Bandrie was beautiful, in the classic shark way. She was tall and angular. Her cartilage was soft and tender to the touch. Her lips were full and her eyes were like liquid sapphire. Her hair was short blonde and wavy. And Pedryn couldn't deny how very much she wanted to bed the girl.
It would seem that fate had other ideas. Bandrie put a new spin on the term high-maintenance. And Pedryn didn't know the first thing about meeting her needs. Pedryn was strong and silent, like a warrior should be. But the girl wanted someone to take her out for romantic evenings and whisper sweet words into her ear. Pedryn had no idea how to accomplish either. And despite her best efforts, she always left the girl disappointed and longing for the majesty of a sweeping romance.
The worst was the laughter. Pedryn knew they were mocking her. Of course the other warriors had to respect her because of her physical prowess and battle accomplishments. But socially, she was quickly becoming a pariah.
And Bandrie wasn't helping matters. In fact, she was only making things worse. She would spread gossip that would shoot across the tribe like the hot flames of wildfire. Everyone would know of her pathetic attempts at being romantic. Everyone would laugh at what she had failed to do. Everyone would ridicule her ineptness and inexperience.
But what made it so painful was that no one had the nerve to do it to her face. It was the silent and questioning glances she received whenever she entered a room. It was the laughter that would stop as soon as she rounded the corner. And it was the phrases spoken all around her that quickly ballooned into some sort of cruel inside joke.
Yet, nothing could have been quite as bad as when her alpha discovered the source of all the tribe's amusement. Her parent summoned her down into their shared private quarters. And from the looks of things Pedryn knew she was in for it.
"They're laughing at you! What are you going to do about it?" Her alpha had hissed. When her alpha was angry there was no reasoning with her. It was her way or no way. And Pedryn couldn't help but feel a bit frightened of what her alpha might ask her to do.
"It's that little bitch Bandrie's fault!!! Well you have to put a stop to it!" Her alpha screamed far too loud for someone with hearing as sensitive as theirs.
"Yes, alpha." Pedryn responded saying the only two words that she knew her parent wanted to hear. Her alpha stared at her with a furrowed brow and angry stance. It was clear that her parent thought their discussion was quite over.
"But what do I do?" Pedryn asked sounding like little more then a young child. She hated to sound weak, especially in front of her alpha.
"Act like a warrior and go take care of that woman!" Her alpha hissed practically kicking Pedryn from the chamber.
And she had gone far away. She had swum a great distance that night searching for some kind of peace. She looked to the stars for guidance. But they were strangely silent offering her nothing. She knew she had to return to the Wet Lands. But all her problems would still be there. And her alpha and Bandrie would be waiting. She knew that she had to take care of this uncomfortable situation. But she didn't have the slightest clue where to start.
So, she turned to the waters of the ocean for help. And much to her delight, they gave her the confidence she needed. On her way back home, Pedryn realized there was only one thing for her to do. She had to show Bandrie just what kind of warrior she really was. She had to give the woman her passion and her need. And she had to take her body in way no one else ever could.
So with the purest intent of passion, Pedryn returned for the woman ready to prove herself once and for all. But such a thing was never to be. She got lost in the sensations. The warrior was overcome with need. And before she knew it, the frenzy was upon her. This time however, she stopped before the girl's life was in danger.
But the situation was still ripe for disaster. Bandrie wouldn't be silenced, not like the first girl. And her parents were far too important to just ship her off to parts unknown. Instead they had to buy the young girl's silence. And it cost them dearly.
As Pedryn swam in long clean strokes through the temperate waters of the deep sea, she really couldn't understand why she was thinking of her two past attempts at sexual love. She hated thinking of them. She despised seeing Bandrie. And she did everything in her power to avoid ever having to deal with either issue.
But tonight as she swam beneath the full moon, she knew it was the appearance of Elila that had driven those thoughts into her mind. Perhaps the saddest thing of all was the strange seduction of that night with the heron. She had raped Elila, forcing the girl into the water against her will. But despite the outward brutality of such an act, she had treated Elila with more tenderness then the two that had come before. The day after, Elila had walked away from the Wet Lands bruised and torn. But Bandrie and the other hadn't walked for months.
And now she had a difficult decision. For some unknown and phantom reason, she found herself desperately wanting to tell Elila the whole truth about that night. She knew her guilt was eating at her. And Pedryn wanted the opportunity to explain away her actions, if only a small part of them. She wanted forgiveness but she didn't even know if that was something she deserved. Or if it were something Elila would be able to give.
But she felt compelled to try. She knew all the reasons why the truth had been hidden from the heron. But Pedryn couldn't help but think they were constructed to protect Thash, not her injured daughter. And yet she knew Carielle had a valid point.
Besides their need to play act political niceties, she knew it might be futile to even open her mouth. She had no idea how Elila would react to her presence. And on top of that, there was really no reason for the girl to believe a word she said. They weren't exactly on the best of terms. Still, she couldn't help but think that there might be certain advantages to the alpha's daughter knowing the whole truth. There were certain things to be gained for the entire Midali tribe.
And Pedryn was never one to let an opportunity slip away…
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She walked over to get a better look at the girl. It's not like she was hard, vicious, or even cold. She was simply a hybrid who knew how dangerous this whole situation could become.
Carielle looked at Elila's beaten form. She needed to be cleaned up a bit. She had streaks of mud, sand, and dirt covering her entire body. Her wrist, though carefully bandaged, looked swollen and angry. What little clothes she had on were torn in several places. Her knee was cut, very deeply. And her legs were covered in a smattering of bruises. In short, Elila looked liked a victim.
And Carielle couldn't help but feel her blood lust rise in response. She finally understood what Pedryn had been trying to caution her against. It was such an inherent trait amongst all shark hybrids that Carielle had never thought that much about it. Wounded prey was quite possibly the most powerful aphrodisiac to any shark in the world. There was something painfully erotic about how an injured female moved through the air around her. Her motions were always choppy and short, and it sent potent imagery to any shark's mind. It made them think of blood and the sweet taste of smooth flesh. It made their already heightened senses go into overdrive trying to find even the tiniest drop of blood riding through the air.
Right now, all Carielle wanted to do was run away from the heron and never look back. She could suddenly feel the girl's blood swirling through the air all around her. Her flesh, though dirty and marked, seemed to be calling out for her touch. Carielle didn't want anything to do with Elila. Put once the frenzy had started, there was nothing in nature that could possibly stop it.
Running from the room with a heaving breasts and tightly mashed teeth, Carielle quickly found Zeranna. The young shark was waiting for her, sheepishly standing outside the door. Carielle knew the shark would never eavesdrop. But she could see the worry etched in Zeranna's eyes. And from that one expression, Carielle knew she could count on the shark's help.
"Come with me." Carielle commanded escorting the young shark into the room. She knew Zeranna would obey her commands without question. With Pedryn momentarily unavailable, she was the acting alpha.
"She's alive." Zeranna cried out rather happily. She rushed to the girl's side checking her body over with a studious glance. Carielle watched as her eyes took in all of Pedryn's hard work and careful ministrations.
"We're going to help her?" Zeranna asked hopefully. Zeranna raised her eyes to Carielle with a sweet naiveté that she could only wish to know.
"Yes, but I need your assistance." Carielle said not wanting to move any closer to the girl. She looked at Zeranna standing so very calmly next to Elila and she couldn't help but feel a little amazed. There was no evidence of blood lust anywhere on Zeranna. Carielle couldn't help but envy her a bit. Her own jagged teeth were primed and ready for the bite.
"Anything?" Zeranna answered quietly tenderly striking Elila's hair from her sleeping face.
"We need to move her. I want you to carry her." Carielle said quickly. Zeranna seemed to think of her instructions. Then she looked down at the girl and gently cupped her face.
"Is that okay? Can she be moved?" Zeranna asked politely. She didn't mean to be disrespectful; she just didn't want to risk further injury to the girl.
"It'll be fine." Carielle snapped wanting nothing more then to be away from the heady aroma of swamp blood.
Zeranna nodded sweeping the small heron into her strong arms. She didn't ask why Carielle hadn't just simply moved the girl. She assumed that if the alpha's cousin wanted her to know, she would have explained. Besides, she didn't mind this small task. Zeranna was relieved to know that the girl was alive and apparently being cared for.
She followed Carielle down the long hallway of the dry floor. Zeranna assumed there were accommodations here of some kind but she had never seen them. True to her heritage, Zeranna preferred to stay on the all wet floor of the Fluid. There was just something tedious about fighting gravity day after day, moment after a moment. Zeranna would much rather travel through the easy glide of the water.
"Put her in here." Carielle said standing aside so that Zeranna could enter the room.
Carefully, Zeranna placed the girl onto the soft wide bed. She couldn't help but notice how beautiful the small heron looked as her body rested again the dark green sheets. Zeranna turned back to Carielle wondering if she was no longer needed. But Zeranna could tell that she lost in thought.
Glancing around the large room, Zeranna noticed the presence of a dream chamber. It was smaller then the ones on the wet level quarters. But it was there nonetheless. And Zeranna couldn't help but wonder why. A shark certainly wouldn't need a bed and a dream chamber. If anything, most sharks adamantly refused to sleep anywhere but in the water.
There were other things of small oddities that Zeranna's quizzical eye couldn't help but notice. A large wooden armoire stood proudly beside her. Spilling from its drawers were silk scarves in every different color imaginable. There were large white and red tapered candles surrounding the room in lazy circles. But the item in the most abundant supply was the rollen juice, cluttering the very top of the large bed's headboard.
"What is this room?" Zeranna asked very confused by her surroundings.
"I think it's a mating suite of some kind." Carielle answered a bit annoyed to find that this rather romantic setting was the only place they had to keep Elila.
Zeranna balked at the other shark's statement. She had never been in a mating suite before but had never imagined one to look quite like this. In her rather lusty and romantic fantasies she had always envisioned a room with a large and luxurious dream chamber. It did only make sense. Zeranna didn't know a single shark that would rather make love out of the water then in it.
"Really? But what about this?" Zeranna asked pointing to the bed that was taking up most of the room's space.
"Interspecies mating…" Carielle replied slumping into the only chair present.
"What?" Zeranna balked. Zeranna knew that she was widely known for not exactly being up on the most common trends running through the kingdom. But she had no idea that interspecies mating was so common that they would have made a provision for such a thing here at the Fluid. It's not like the thought bothered her, she was really just curious.
"This is the Gallion Village, Zeranna. Anything goes…" Carielle politely explained.
"Of course…" Zeranna mumbled making for the door.
"Do you need anything else?" She asked with the slightest of a twitch entering her voice.
"No, thank you… Zeranna you can't tell anyone about this." Carielle said. She wasn't really worried about Zeranna. She knew the girl would never betray a single moment of this to anyone. Zeranna was nothing if not trustworthy.
But all too quickly Zeranna left, leaving her all alone with the injured heron. Briefly Carielle had thought about asking her to stay, but decided better of it. She couldn't risk having Elila wake up to a strange shark. The girl might start telling Zeranna things that she wasn't supposed to know.
Deciding that there was only one thing to do, she slowly set about the task of stripping of her clothes. Once she was naked, she gracefully walked down into dark waters of the tiny dream chamber. All she could do was wait and hope for Pedryn's timely return.
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All alone in the dark, she stumbled about her quarters trying to find some sort of light. After several unsuccessful attempts and few quite painful falls, Elila eventually found a light switch. Bathing the room in the soft muted tones of dim lighting the girl had no question where she was. She was still with the Midali, only sharks kept their indoor lighting so very ineffective. Elila knew it had to do with the sensitive eyes of night predators. She didn't really mind. Truthfully, she too preferred this muted softness to the bright bold lights of the jungle. Her own eyes were far more comfortable in the darkened shade of the swamp.
Looking around she had to admit that the room's décor did unsettle her a bit. She wasn't sure why they would have put her in a place like this. She was beginning to wonder what they expected of her.
Tentatively, Elila eyed the door wondering if she should make a break for it. But judging from the natural dimness of the room, it would still be hours before the first transport. She still had no place to go.
Walking back to the bed, she finally noticed the presence of the dream chamber. Elila recognized its purpose right away. She had spent enough time with the Midali to know how their kind preferred to sleep. She stretched her head to the side trying to peer beneath its water surface. But it was no use; she couldn't see the bottom. And Elila had absolutely no intention of getting any closer.
Slowly she backed away from the dark watery hole. Hugging her body to the wall she found the furthest point of safety that she could reach. Carefully, she folded her body into a small little ball pressing herself into the corner of the room. Elila didn't care that she was lying on uncomfortably hard white tile. Even though her wrist was loudly protesting such a cramped position, she vowed to pay it no mind. In fact, she deftly ignored all the painful sensations her entire body was sending her. She really had no idea how terribly bruised up her evening with Licara had left her.
But right now, the snake was the furthest thing from her mind. Her fear of water was outshining every other possible threat of mortal danger. All she could think of was that at any moment, a shark would rise up from the dream chamber. It would rush to the surface like some sort of liquid god. Water would splash and splay everywhere, leaving not a single inch in the room dry.
And she would be helpless as she cowered in the corner. She would fold her arms over her face trying only to blind her vision. She wouldn't want to look at it. She couldn't bare to see the delight in it's eyes.
Then it would grab her roughly around the neck. Hauling her like she weighed little more then air, it would move her around the room. She would have to keep up with it's near impossible speed. Otherwise, she knew her own sluggishness would cause her to choke.
To no avail, she would grapple and kick at her captor. She would feel the naked gleam of it's flesh against her own. She would hear the deep primal growl. And she would know that her very life was in jeopardy.
If she were lucky, it would take her in the dream chamber. To her, the tank appeared small and easy to climb. Elila knew she would feel cramped and crowded in it, especially if the shark tried to make her do things.
But it would be far better then the ocean. Because nothing could possibly frighten Elila more then the deep waters of a jet black sea. In the ocean, there was no orientation. There was no beginning or end. There was simply the sheer expanse of ever after as it rushed across the planet in a global crashing wave.
She remembered the water in her lungs. She remembered her futile struggle to stay afloat. And she remembered the sheer terror of the never-ending sea.
And on the flat bottom of the darkened dream chamber, Carielle mentally cursed her cousin from afar. She had awakened the second Elila began moving around the room. Truthfully, she had never really fallen into a restful sleep. Her mind had been far too preoccupied and worried.
But she had stayed there on the bottom of the chamber hoping that Pedryn would return. Carielle didn't think she could handle Elila on her own. She didn't think she could listen to the screams. And the shark knew she couldn't possibly stand the site of the tears.
So she waited on the bottom of the liquid floor. She inhaled the water, taking deep liquid breaths. The water gently trickled down her throat filling her lungs with its fluidic grace. It felt better then breathing air, though her lungs were equipped to breath either. At times she felt sorry for those species that couldn't live in the water. They certainly had a distinct disadvantage considering that most of the Earth was covered in it. But she supposed it was a trade off of sorts. There were many species yet to leave the ocean. And at times, she wished that the Midali were still amongst them. If they had never made the journey up onto the Wet Lands, none of this would have ever happened.
But despite her wishes to the contrary, Carielle knew she had a very real problem. The heron was growing restless as she searched the room above. She could easily hear her movements from the beneath the water's surface. She was ready to move when she heard the heron hover near the door. But thankfully for whatever reason, Elila seemed to return to the bed.
Suddenly, she detected the unmistakable scent of fear. It was arousing and seducing her with its primal call. It wasn't the act of being afraid that attracted the shark. It was the aroma of the fear itself. It was like some sort of natural trigger, as old as the hunt itself.
Briefly, Carielle felt her hopes rise. She didn't know why the heron had suddenly become so frightened. But the logical explanation was that another shark had entered the room. Yet despite her fondest wishes, Carielle realized that after several lengthy minutes she was still very much alone with the girl. And as much as Carielle didn't want to, it would seem that it would be up to her to greet the young heron.
Deciding that there was no time like the present, she slowly surfaced from the water. Her first instinct was to jump out of the chamber but the shark realized that those types of fast movements might frighten the girl. Carefully, she walked out of the chamber letting her body enter the air with a thick silence. She looked at Elila. And the girl only stared.
Carielle was surprised when the screams never came. She was even more shocked to find the girl's face, almost calm in appearance. There were no tears. And there were no accusations. There was nothing.
Elila nearly lost the very beat of her heart when she saw the water move. At first, she had thought it had been her mind playing tricks on her. But soon the water was trickling onto the tile. And all too quickly, she wasn't alone any more.
She recognized the shark immediately. She knew her name was Carielle. And her first thought was one of gratitude. Elila was terribly thankful that Yamina wasn't with her. She knew her friend would never have been able to handle having to stare at her attacker.
Her next thought was of question. She wanted to know where Pedryn was. She wanted to know if the alpha shark even knew that Elila was in the building. And more importantly, she wanted to know what kind of danger she was in.
Carielle was simply staring at her. Elila could watch the rise and fall of her chest as the shark let her lungs reorient to breath the thin air instead of the liquid water. The heron didn't know what the shark was thinking. Carielle was keeping to her side of the room. She wasn't making any sudden moves towards her. But none of it really did much to put Elila's mind at ease. The girl could only rest her body against the wall, while her mind clung to a silent hope for mercy.
"One of our scouts found you on our beach." Carielle finally managed to say. From her words Elila could tell that the statement had been hard for Carielle. It was almost like the shark was afraid to even speak to her. Carielle couldn't look at her. She kept her eyes firmly focused to a spot on the wall just above the heron's head.
And Elila found the situation a bit odd. Even she, a mere bird, could brave a solid glance at the naked shark. Elila was beginning to think that Carielle was fairly disturbed by her presence.
"We'll take you back to your tribe when the transport starts again." Carielle gasped out still trying desperately hard to sound like a strong warrior. But she couldn't help the slight tremor in her voice. And she knew that if she looked at Elila it would her own undoing.
Suddenly, she understood with crystal clarity why Pedryn wanted to tell Elila the truth. Carielle had an unbidden desire to rush across the slippery floor on bended knee. She wanted to beg for Elila's forgiveness. She wanted to tell the girl everything. She wanted the heron to know that she wasn't some sort of evil creature. Carielle was a warrior. And more then anything else, she wanted the heron to know it too.
Carielle realized how much worse this must be for her cousin. Carielle had never touched Elila. She had attacked the other girl, Yamina.
But in some way, she had the strangest thought that in the great sweeping scale of things, it didn't really matter. Even if she couldn't tell Yamina... Even if she could never receive the forgiveness of her victim... She could still talk to Elila. She could tell her.
Slowly, she eyed the heron with timid unblinking eyes. Elila didn't look away. She only stared back with a quiet expression and a humble posture. Taking a deep breath, Carielle braced herself for the sudden impact of honesty. Because now without a question, she knew what she had to do.
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CONTINUED...