Maeka- Fear

The Elder was worried. It had been only a few days since the cold season had finally ended. It was a bit worse than normal, he thought. Several of the more unlucky individuals had sadly perished, but at the very least the food stores that the hunters had acquired allowed for most of the village to not go hungry or want for firewood. 'Ka-lo-Rah has certainly blessed us in those trying times.' he thought sagely. But that wasn't why he was worried. He was worried for an entirely different reason. Maeka.

Knowing how sickly she had generally been, he had discreetly sent his son to check up on the girl. While traditions must be maintained, that didn't mean he was entirely heartless. If she had need of food, then he would have at the very least perhaps tried to sneak her something. But upon checking, she hadn't been present. There had been a little food, but only enough for a day or so. At first he had presumed that maybe she had gone out to try her luck scavenging or hunting, but in those early days of the cold season his Hunters had reported nothing around where she lived. It was as if she had simply disappeared. As the thaw came, he had sent his Hunters out again to search for a corpse; sad as it may have been, he still considered her one of his clan, and so would give her a noble burial if they had found her remains, perhaps. But nothing. Absolutely nothing. It vexed him. And of course, worried him. Was it possible that she had been kidnapped by another clan? He wasn't sure. Such a practice was almost unheard of in these days, but he had heard whispers here and there that Clan Beko had a particularly rough winter, and that many of their people had perished, fallen Lu-hin-Ra’s jealousy. If they were desperately looking to repopulate the clan, then...

“Father!” Immediately the Elder’s ears went alert. His son never called him as such unless absolutely necessary. “I bring news from the hunters. They have seen some strange beast in the northwestern woods. Closer to the empty lands, where the Great Beasts used to roam. We... We aren't quite sure what it is, although we have observed it briefly.” Coroka looked unusually solemn. “I propose that we reach out to the other clans and inquire if they know anything.”

For that, the Elder’s concern simply grew. To discuss this with the other clans was no simple ask, and he knew that where they to announce such an issue had befallen them, it was wildly impossible to guess how it would be received. They might agree to band together and investigate, are they might consider that a moment of weakness to take from their clan…”

“I will have to speak to the others about this. We cannot make this decision lightly.” Calling an Elder Council was not common, but he felt it worthwhile for situations such as this. “Keep the worry of the village as low as possible. For now… tell me what you know of this new Beast.” He would have to put his worry about the little one aside for now. His clan needed his guidance.

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Captain Louis was busy scanning a few data logs. It was boring work, but it was necessary. Especially now that the snow was finally going away and they could get some real work done. At this particular time, though, he frowned as he quickly tap his screen, looking for a certain set of data that he just knew they had, but didn't seem to see anywhere... ah. “I bet it wasn't uploaded yet.” He turned to his left, towards their shortest (unofficial) member. “Maeka, could you get me the data slate for sector 13B? Rodrick still has it, I think.”

“Yes!” It’d taken some time, but the little alien was starting to learn the language properly. Of course, they had to run into that one little negative loophole that the nanobots couldn't always fix; individuals can learn how to say the words, but they can’t always put the words together in a correct sentence. Context was something that even the nanobots couldn't exactly teach. So that, she had to learn the hard way- which was doubly difficult when her mind obviously had no real context to compare a lot of words stuff to. The end result meant that sometimes her sentences were a little...awkward. “God-Chief commands, Maeka-servant will do!” she was already off before he could correct her.

“Oh boy…” Louis could only shake his head. He was fairly certain it was that context problem, but he was still just a touch unnerved as to how she referred to him. By this point, she had similar names for pretty much all of the crew. Rodrick was God-Seer. Nancy was God-Hunter. Basil was God-Caretaker. So on and so forth. He'd be lying if it didn't give him a little bit of a glow inside; as far as he figured, anyone would flush at being called a deity, whether it was true or not. “Goodness knows Nancy takes advantage of the title enough for most of us…” he muttered under his breath.

Although she hadn't exactly started using the alien as slave labor, she had begun acting a bit differently; holding herself straighter than normal, and speaking in a loud, clear and formal voice- the tone she normally reserved for speaking to higher-ups. She'd occasionally have Maeka run small errands, but she would also have her do menial tasks like helping clean the mess area or making sure boxes of supplies were stacked and accounted for. She was the first one to realize that Maeka seemed to relish in these duties, actually, and when she was following her around and not him, they together reminded him a bit of ancient times; the legend of knights and squires still remained alive and well to this day. He had to say they seemed to be the embodiment of such a concept.

Letting loose a deep sigh, he shook himself straight. “Gonna have to come clean sooner than later. Won't end well otherwise,” he muttered to himself.

“God-Chief! Maeka-servant has returned with the slate!” before he could think any further on the topic, her scurrying feet and small voice heralded her return. In her tiny clawed hands was the data slate that he'd asked for. “God-Seer Rodrick wishes you well!” he took it, and almost unthinkingly he patted her on the head. The soft sounds you made in response was adorable, but he quickly caught himself upon hearing it. Fortunately, she didn't seem to notice as she kneeled deeply. “God-Chief is gracious, and humbles me…” The worst part about it was that she sounded so *sincere*. But he knew that if she didn't learn soon, then when she did...who knows.

And honestly, he liked her a little too much to do that to her. “Maeka.”

Her head shot up, meeting his eyes with quickness and sincerity. “Yes, God-Chief?”

‘All right. Deep breaths. You can do this.’ Making sure his voice didn't waver, he asked with a small smile, “How would you like to know the history of how we got here?”

Her smile practically lit up the room, and he hoped that once he was done, it wouldn't be as dimmed as he feared.

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Coroka considered himself a wise and strong Kai-Ai. Not out of any natural gift or anything, but out of effort of listening to his peers and elders, and a drive to do right by the clan. It had been drilled into him since birth; the Clan comes first. All his training and all his efforts were for the Clan's betterment, not merely his own. Kal-lo-Rah had seen fit to imbue him with speed and strength unlike other Hunters, and he utilized it well. It was by his judgment that the best herds were found for meat; it was his skill with the spear and club that kept other clans from attempting anything in particular towards his own. And that brought with it a certain sense of responsibility, as well it should, in his (and his father's) eyes.

So when word had reached him about some strange new Beast, it was of course obvious that his first duty was to report to the Elder. However, he felt that a second duty- a duty that nonetheless required him to perform such first was to investigate this thing himself, if only to verify the reports that he had been given. He was no fool; even if he had a clear shot, he wouldn't attempt to attack this thing by any means. He had to learn about it, see it's behaviors and patterns. If it ate much meat, if it was too rambunctious and dangerous, if it was simply careless. There were a number of reasons why it might need to be avoided, but in order to find those out, he had to go out himself. It was his responsibility.

And as he laid eyes on the strange thing, for a brief moment- just one- he regretted being given this responsibility. He regretted it deeply.

The creature was far beyond the size of any Great Beast that he had seen before. It vaguely reminded him of a large beetle; one letting out a strange, vicious and utterly grating yell as it dug its nose into the mountain nearby. Much as his Hunters had described, it seemed to shear away rock with an alarming ease; it was as though the mountain was reforming itself around it as it's strange, rounded feet moved forward in slow yet steady increments. Its carapace was something else, glistening in the sunlight with strange colors that he had never seen before, and all in a strange dull shine that only through experience and intuition he wagered was stronger than what it appeared. All in all, this was something entirely new, and he wasn't exactly sure how to combat it - if it could be combated at all.

As the Great Beast did its work, he decided it was time to leave. His father would have much to think about.

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As he finished up his tale, Captain Louis found himself nervous. Actually no. 'Nervous' wasn't really a good enough indicator for how he felt at that moment. He was terrified. He had told her... Well, not absolutely everything no. He'd left out a lot of general details, stuff that she wouldn't really understand anyway without a full history lesson in humanity (and even then she probably wouldn't understand some bits of it, goodness knows he didn't), but for the most part he'd given her the general gist of things. Humans weren't smart, became smart, fought a lot, became smarter, fought more, and then finally managed to get to the stars beyond their own home. It wasn't quite as clinical as that; Louis if nothing else prided himself on good and engaging verbal delivery. "And from there, really, our technology skyrocketed. We learned how to cure just about any disease, we learned how to dismiss gravity. We learned how to travel between the stars at will. We learned, because learning is in our blood. It's what we do. We're still learning. And with everything we learn, we get better. So... There it is. That's our history. The truth."

Maeka said nothing for a long time, and Louis could only hold his breath for so long. "I mean... I'm sorry if it wasn't what you expected, but- oof!"

That sound was the strange alien girl colliding with his legs in what seemed to be a strange combination of supplication and a hug. "Done so much...and have gained such great power!" Part of him wanted to refuse that... but he couldn't deny that Humanity had come quite far. "Gods arisen, and to raise all to such heights!" What? He wasn't entirely sure what that meant, but he wasn't confident in what it sounded like. "Kai-lo-Rah weeps at his failure, that he has been bested!" Okay, who was that? He'd never heard that name before.

But before he could ask, a voice sprung up over comms. "Hey, Louis? This is Nancy. Was wondering if I could get the little kitten for a while."

"What do you need help with?" Louis asked. He was only vaguely miffed that she didn't seem to stick to comms protocol. As long as they were in the base, they could be as casual as they liked.

"Nothin'. Just wanted to, uh, spend some quality time with the little gal." At THAT, Louis instantly grew suspicious. Nancy was generally a loner type; although she wasn't exactly one who avoided interaction, she wasn't one to actively seek it out. However, it seemed like even she didn't buy her own reasoning, and she quickly spoke up again. "Okay, actually I was hoping that I might be able to maybe give her another test or two."

"Oh! Yeah, I guess that makes sense..." Louis trailed off as he looked at Maeka, who seemed to have stars in her eyes at this statement. Nancy had been teaching the cat-humanoid alien a few hand to hand combat tricks in the name of ‘verifying physical health’. Maeka seemed to take to these lessons with aplomb and raw eagerness, as she did with most things directly involving the crew. He hadn’t exactly been down to see her in action yet, but he’d been assured that she was a quick and happy study, despite the bruises and bumps she took. "She certainly seems like she might be down for one. Where are you?"

"Cargo Bay 2," is her direct response. "Glad she's right there. Tell her to meet me down here ASAP." The line shut off, and Louis just gave her vibrating form a small and a nod. That was all she needed to take off like a shot towards the cargo bay.

He allowed himself a brief sigh of concern. "Hope she doesn't get beat around too badly this time..." If nothing else, he COULD be assured that her physical health didn’t seem to be temporary…

'Amazing. Amazing. Amazing.' that was all that ran through her mind as she raced off to the cargo bay. Humans weren't just gods, they were gods that had *earned* that position! To think, formerly simple mortals that had ascended beyond the rules of nature and it's way. They had imported their knowledge throughout their years, each subsequent generation becoming smarter and more capable- until nature itself had no recourse but to let them go and allow them to explore the heavens themselves! 'Kai-lo-Rah by comparison looks ever more the fool', she thought, 'for limiting us and insisting in unchanging ways!' Already she was livid, and wondering. 'My old Clan must hear this, somehow! Were they to bear witness to a race of supreme beings such as humans, there wouldn't be any doubt! They would see the error of their ways, and the error of dismissing me so! All I ever sought for the tribe was to help- and so is truth that my ways would have begun us on the path to True Ascension!' This thought roiled and turned in her gut as she made her way down the steps. 'I can't leave this alone now...I HAVE to show them somehow...'

As she stepped into the cargo bay, a frown of determination crossed her. "I am here, God-Hunter Nancy."

"Glad that you're prompt." Nancy struck her as an imposing female; the title of God-Hunter was surely deserved with how she carried herself, and the occasional foray that she went out into the wild for- God-Seer Rodrick occasionally allowed her to see what the God-Hunter did while actually on the hunt. And what she saw astonished her. Nancy was quick and efficient; she moved as silently and as swiftly as any hunter ever did, and had often used some sort of sharp weapon in order to get the drop on animals. She had seen the occasional use of another weapon; some type of wand of divine power, that would kill with but a glance... but the God-Hunter seemed to prefer to take her prey up close. It was both amazing and frightening in equal measure. The first time she had come down here on Nancy's orders, she had been terrified- visions flying through her head of a recent vicious, stealthy kill on a lizard bigger than her, yet made to look effortless by the human.

Now? Now she was just thrilled and amazed at her body each and every day. There was pain, but it was good pain, and with every session, she felt herself becoming more. More...something. Everything, perhaps? Her core felt warmer each and every day after she settled down to rest, which always proved harder after those sessions.

This time however, as they took their positions, she realized something. There was a way.

As Nancy charged her and she successfully blocked a kick that would have broken several bones in her body not a year ago, she knew exactly how she could perhaps make them begin to listen.

The sessions were usually simple sparring these days; along with the occasional teaching of a new technique. Initially Nancy had simply taking her through various combat forms; Maeka herself felt rather honored to learn these - after all, they were the fighting techniques of gods. The style was brutal, and much more... What was a good word? It felt more pinpoint than what she'd occasionally seen during the Hunter's training. She wasn't sure quite how to describe it. Perhaps it was just naturally superior. With Nancy's greater height, however, Maeka had to do a little bit of improvisation in order to make some of the techniques effective. Others just wouldn't really work as well for her, and occasionally they would brainstorm something new just for her.

Another knee aimed for her head shook her out of her thoughts; almost by instinct now she grappled and swerved around to the God-Hunter's back. It was a technique that otherwise would have been affected on creatures her size, although Nancy being who she was, she was able to shrug it off and with a twist of the hips, sent Maeka flying end over end.

She hit the ground, rolling back to an upright position as she had been taught. ‘I will learn much, today,’ she thought lightly.

And so she did.

Today's session was a rough one, full of rapid kicks, furious punches, and a myriad of attempts from Nancy to pin down Maeka in the training dance that she had only been able to be a spectator of before, as Maeka pushed her body to its new limits (something she had only done rarely as of recently). Admittedly, it was her own resolve that caused this new strain- Nancy had taken things just about as usual for her, and this sudden new surge of drive proved to be something she hadn't been expecting; a quick feint to her left leg had Nancy lifting the limb up, only for the spry young alien to deliver a full-bore strike into the abdomen that actually caused Nancy to let loose of small breath of surprise as she reeled back briefly. It hadn't actually done any physical damage, but the sheer surprise of it caused her to react as though she had been dealt a grievous blow. "That doesn't usually happen," Nancy observed, a curious look in her as she observed the reaction of the young alien.

Indeed, the small one looked shocked for a brief moment, before suddenly dropping to her knees and bowing deeply in what Nancy could only presume was apology. "Sorry, sorry, so very sorry!" Her head was actually hitting the ground, she was kneeling so deeply.

Honestly, Nancy kind of wanted to laugh. In a good way though. She didn't, though. "What? It's fine. Didn't hurt me at all, and it's good that you're willing to strike without reservations. I told you that before, but this is the first time you seem to have taken it to heart. And I'm glad, so get up." As she did so, she got another good look at the girl's face- although nervous, there was a very familiar look in her eye that Nancy could identify even without pupils. "You're looking like someone with a goal in mind, not just someone who wanted to learn. What changed?"

Maeka opened her mouth briefly, before shutting it again, and shaking her head. "Maeka-servant has...made decisions, inside." She left it at that, and although Nancy was curious, she didn't press the issue. Wasn't her place.

As they walked out, however, Nancy couldn't help but try to figure something out. "So...this have anything to do with you and your feelings for the Captain, does it?" she asked with a grin.

The response was immediate; Maeka's cheeks flushing and her immediately stumbling over a simple stair. Fortunately, she was at least able to catch her own fall, though it was a close thing. Her vocal reaction was no less unexpected. "W-what do you speak of, God-Hunter? I...I seek no romantic interaction, I assure you!" Nancy decided to not dignify that with a response, merely snorting in amusement. Reaching down, she simply patted the young alien's head, and lengthened her strides.

"You're done for now; you've got free time," was all she said as she left the cat alien behind. "Spend it however you want."

Maeka could only stand, embarrassed, yet at the same time heated. Of course they would know her deepest secrets; chances are they had determined it long ago. Their cleverness and wisdom truly knew no bounds, and she wouldn't be surprised if she was soon to learn that she was easily figured out to their divine minds. But then...if they knew, then...oh dear.

She raced off to her quarters faster than she had ever moved before, her head flush with thoughts that she had only truly let take root in the past few weeks. In truth, for some reason finishing up a sparring session as of late always seemed to do this to her; made her hot, heady, wanting even. Perhaps it was just the fact that the cold season was ending- it was always around this time where several females- the breeders in particular- got hot and heavy with desire for a male. She had never really been healthy enough to let those thoughts truly overtake her, her weakness causing her body to redirect its efforts elsewhere most days. Only rarely had she had this opportunity before, and now...now she was burning. And she knew of only one way to sate that need. Well, two, but surely the one way was far too blasphemous, so for now...she had to make due.

She had very few clothes when she had first arrived, and they had taken note of this. She had been granted a few simple yet strange articles of clothing that she tended to wear around now; they seem to be more ceremonial garb than anything particularly for hunting or other purposes. They certainly weren't the second skins and headwear that she often saw them in, especially if they ended up going outside for long. They had called the chest covering a 't-shirt'; she had liked it due to the strange, flower-like inscriptions on the front of it. There was also a much more traditional skirt for her bottom, although this one was made of a strange fabric that seemed both light and durable at the same time. It went down to her knees, but it still allowed her quite a bit of movement and she was normally rather fond of it.

The skirt went flying as she revealed her nethers to the thin air, panting as she laid back and sank herself into the blissful cloud feeling that was her bedding. Performing this, this..act...wasn't look highly upon in the tribe- to resort to pleasuring one's self generally showed a distinct distrust or selfish dislike of the males who's duty it was to use that desire in order to properly mate with a female. After all, that desire was the natural the currents for this time of year, a design by Kai-lo-Rah to indicate when the prime breeding times were. If one was to independently satisfy that innate desire, then not only would less children be born, it ran the risk of those that were born being born at bad times, such as the cold season.

Knowing this, doing it anyway... she had to admit she took a strange, perverse glee in it as she gently sought out her treasured area with shaking digits. She wasn't even exactly sure what she was doing; she just knew that she needed relief. Something to calm her addled mind and heated body. As her finger graced her petals, she let out a small, lurid moan of satisfaction, so pent up was she, even the slight touch did wonders. But she needed more.

It was a gentle rubbing that started her off, humming a tune known to her and her alone, treating her body as only she could. Small circles that was how she stirred her honeypot, thin streams of juices sluicing out of her heated center and making rivulets stream down on her wound-up body. Small fangs were bared as she smiled drunkenly, her self-ministrations causing jolts of pleasure to run through her with delicious regularity. Her circling sped up, and her ministrations grew more eager as she applied more pressure to her quivering sex, her moans only growing in intensity. Her tongue; long as with most Kai-Ai, supple and flexible, wet her dry lips as the squelching of her sweet quim reverbrated in her ears, soon giving way to heady panting as she closed her eyes and let her desire take her away.

"Looouiiisss..." the name was hissed, carefully, yet wantonly. The God-Chief had enticed her so, his strange features and kind bearing having been the catalyst for their meeting in the first place, and it was he that treated her ever so nicely from then until now. His touch, his blessed touch was the highlight of her day whenever it happened; his skin was not like those of the Kai-Ai, and she delighted in how unusual it was. He did not have much fur on his body; indeed his hands were bereft of any, and that led to his touch being deliciously rough. Every time he touched her- every time his delicious skin made contact with her own fur-covered self, she had to repress a shiver of desire, resist the temptation to beg and plead- touch her more, pet her more! The strange, yet delectable smells that he gave off during those times only furthered that incredible desire, and she let herself gasp loudly as the memories came flooding back to her. Her fingers grew frantic now, rubbing in a myriad of ways, as her fantasies ran away with her- oh, how she would gladly subsume herself, surrender anything and everything of her own being if only he would touch her and taste her and never stop!

Her fingers pressed in harder, and almost by accident one found its way inside of her core, inserting with a wet, lurid sound that didn't escape her ears. She imagined that it was her human- that it was Louis, her God-Chief, her desire, her center, that was touching her, that was pleasing her in all the right ways to make her moan and squirm and pant and writhe and beg for him. “Please...more…”

She had seen parts of their glorious bodies before; the amazing figures that was the gods at their core. She had yet to see one fully revealed, but she could imagine and she could dream and hope, and she fantasize herself, her Louis pinning her to this amazing bed, his torso on full display, and that maddening scent of his, that scent that begged her, pleaded with her to throw everything thing of herself away and submerse herself entirely into her gods' service- because all that he did for her was good and felt good, and surely if that was so, then dedicating herself to them fully would end up in pleasures untold! She imagined him touching her in all places, whispering sweet nothings in promises and praises for her. Another digit joined its brethren inside of her as she thrust in and out of her sex with a feverous passion, silence no longer possible and her yelling her passions out for any to hear as she arched her back in her throes. Were the rooms not soundproofed, she might've been in store for embarrassment.

All she knew at the moment however was pleasure. Her lax left hand, which had been idly helping rub the outside while the right took care of the inside, traveled upwards just a bit further, she could feel her nipples poking out, ready and waiting for young to suckle them. She let her hand drift over them idly, licking her lips at the added pleasure the feeling brought before traveling up to her main two breasts, gripping and pinching one ever-so-nicely. The thin line between pain and pleasure was straddled as she rolled it in between her fingers, while her other hand was busy pounding away at her now gushing snatch.

Out of some instinct that she didn't know she had, she rolled over, her small, thin tail raising up in the air as she exposed herself for any and all to see, her hand still working harshly on her sex and causing its fluid to drip, drip, drip onto the bedding at a steady cadence. Her panting came hot and heavy, and her eyes were clouded as her mind was elsewhere. "Mmmmaaate meee..." she ground out in a gutteral moan. "My God-Chieeefff...mmmmMMMATE MEEEE!"

Tears in her eyes formed as her crescendo approached, envisioning his divine essence flowing into her, a dream she could not resist. In her mind he was bent over her, and she could practically see him leaning into her view, shining, smiling so nicely and so gently as the pleasure wrecked her mind and soul. And in that moment she heard him.

'Are you mine?' He asked it so simply, so calmly, as though they both already knew the answer. And she did.

"YyyyyYYYYEEES, MASTER!" She exploded then, eyes widening, back arching, and that phenomenal smell around her, her sex loosing a flood of juices on the bed, her mind going white hot as she peaked, her mouth opening in a silent scream, which only ended up as small, desperate squeaks as she rode out her orgasm to its fullest. Her hand was exhausted, and quite damp, but she paid little mind to that as she continued rubbing, slowly, more calmly. Her panting eventually abated to more manageable believing, and her eyes began to focus once more as she brought herself down gently, not quite wanting the pleasures to fade entirely.

But fade they did in due time, and as she allowed herself to return to normal, exhaustion overtaking her, she found that her mind was far clearer now. She knew exactly what she would do, how she would do it...and most importantly, WHEN she would do it.

She would make the clan understand and praise the new gods. After all, the Ceremony of the Sun drew near, when all and sundry celebrated what their god had brought them through.

It sounded like a most fitting situation, if you asked her. She had much to be thankful for- and hopefully by the end of the day, she would show everyone else that they had nothing to fear from beings that could outshine the sun.