EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth took a long look towards Deerz as he was walking away, before turning her head away with a sigh. "I don't know what to expect anymore."

For much of the crowd, they were simply impressed that Julan was continuing to fight through his injuries, regardless of how the fight seemed to be going otherwise. Argrei had landed another cut on the same leg, which reopened the wound that had already partially closed. Julan had lost a not-insignificant amount of blood by this point, even if he was just going to start regenerating in short order.

Pain was also becoming more of a hindrance for Julan. He was starting to feel the wounds he had first received, and was less experienced at dealing with pain than his parents. Argrei would be able to see tears mixing with blood as they rolled down the side of his snout. Of course, with his pain came a fair amount of anger, and a desire to end this quickly. He knew he was going to lose if he did not do something soon, so almost by instinct, he fell back on something that Kaleeth had relied upon before growing her skills: pure, brute force. At the very least, he had the presence of mind to cast another minor healing spell before making his attack.

With every last bit of strength that he had, Julan let out a desperate scream as he swung towards Argrei's center. It was heavily telegraphed and easily reacted to, but that did not matter. Argrei tried to parry, but Julan adjusted to aim towards the spear itself. He used the unnatural amount of strength required to split the spear's haft clean in two, then twisted his wrist as soon as he heard the snap. Fortunately, Julan managed to turn the sword so that it was the flat of the blade that struck Argrei, because his swing carried straight through onto Argrei's neck. It would leave Argrei painfully bruised, but at least his head was still sitting firmly on his neck.

A shocked silence fell over the crowd, and even the fighters themselves. With the apparent advantage Argrei had shown throughout the fight, few had expected the outcome. It only took a few seconds for the Master-Hunter to speak, with little apparent emotion. "I judge the fight to be over. The hunter, Kaj-Julan, is victorious."

---

Ahnasha slowly shook her head, her eyes failing to hide her shame. "Not anymore. I guess some early memories still bother me, but the people I kill now are just...nothing."

Ahnasha turned her head away and unconsciously started to tug as his grasp around her. "He saw me kill one of the bandits. It was a Khajitt. She was screaming, terrified like they usually are when they see a werewolf and realize they can't do anything to stop us. I ended it quickly, just stepped on her head, but the way Rhazii described me...like I was an unfeeling monster. Is he wrong? Is he just naive, or...is there something worse about me? A mother should never terrify her son like I did to him."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Finally, Deerz bared his teeth angrily at Janius. If he was bluffing, it had obviously upset him to be found out. "This is not over, Human." He growled, storming off just as quickly as he had arrived.

While Zharanthixil had been unable to hear Deerz's threats, Kaleeth had watched Deerz nervously the entire time and concentrated on listening to the whispers. She moved closer to Janius, softly speaking as she watched Argrei even more closely than before. "Do you think he was lying? What do we do if he wasn't?"

---

"It was Rhazii." Ahnasha answered painfully. "We went bandit hunting. I thought it would be good training for him; a step above simple Falmer. But...I terrified him."

Ahnasha finally looked up from the ground to make eye contact with Fendros. "How many people have we killed, Fendros? How many lives have you taken, just by your hand alone? For a decade, we have fought, we have killed and will keep killing in every single battle. Do the screams bother you anymore? Do they ever make you hesitate, or make you feel guilty? Am I a monster because I feel nothing for them anymore?"

Last of the Jedi (EliteCommander and Sep)

Kresst let out a long breath, silently wishing that Mevenn had not returned to her old self quite so quickly. Still, he kept his emotions in-check, even if that meant behaving more like his fellow Jedi back at the Temple than he cared for. Contrary to Mevenn's perception of him, he did not enjoy their often restrictive, close-minded attitudes any more than she did. However, this situation, he felt, was one that demanded clear minds and level-headed thinking.

Kresst's even tone reflected the state of mind he was attempting to employ. "I am a historian, a scholar. One learns eventually not to make assumptions on what they do not know. There is wisdom in recognizing the limits of your knowledge or ability. If your assumptions are correct and this war is over...then we are in no hurry, are we? Perhaps I am wrong, but we stand to gain much and lose little by taking the cautious approach and ensuring we fully understand the situation before going anywhere potentially...dangerous."

Last of the Jedi (EliteCommander and Sep)

Kresst was not nearly as optimistic as Mevenn, though he could understand why she would be. Kresst could not pretend like he had all of the answers, or any of the answers at all, for that matter. He was not sure by what means one could be able to manipulate the clones to betrayal, but it had obviously happened. Just in the short time he had to think so far, there were a myriad of likely and unlikely scenarios he could imagine that could have caused it, from clever sabotage by the Separatists, and even to betrayal from within the Repbulic. All that he was sure of was that he did not know the truth, and that fact pushed him towards caution.

"I cannot deny that as a possibility. We all know the devious nature of the Sith, but I think we should take care to avoid assumptions. The only certainty that we have is that we are in the dark. I propose we take a cautious approach. It can be difficult to get news this far into the Outer Rim, aside from priority military communications. Even then, who knows how long ago those messages were sent? I suggest we head for the nearest civilized planet in the Outer Rim with a functioning communication network and try to establish secure communications with the Jedi Order. Hopefully, the more-informed Jedi back on Coruscant will be able to shed more light on this confusing situation." Kresst suggested.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"Pretend all you want; it will not change reality." Deerz replied, speaking only just loudly enough that Janius could hear him. "It will be your last moments seeing him alive, so enjoy it. Argrei, you see, is...like-minded to me. This rite is an affront to this village, and the Hist. An outsider has no place taking part. The fighters are not meant to kill each other, but...accidents happen."

In the duel, Argrei's style had become more aggressive, though he was focused on taking advantage of his range. With his footwork now more agile than Julan's he was sidestepping and dashing out of range faster than Julan could keep up, though he had to remain conscious off the spellfire that Julan was capable of producing at any moment. He was keeping out of range of Julan's sword, and just looking for any point where he could find a clean thrust. At the moment, Julan did not seem to have an answer.

Deerz crossed his arms, still keeping his grin. "It's good your son is so stubborn. It gives Argrei plenty of time to find an opportunity to make an 'accident' happen. Your son is going to die, Human, and there is nothing you can do about it."

---

Again, there was a long silence from Ahnasha. Her expression was as intense as it was difficult to read, at least at first. She could not easily hide her inner turmoil for long before hints of her despair broke through in the form of tears in her eyes. Her voice was still strong and stoic, but Fendros could clearly see something was wrong. Her answer still avoided giving a clear and direct answer, but if Fendros was perceptive, it would still give him the answer he sought.

"Am I a monster, Fendros?" Ahnasha asked suddenly. "Is a warrior a monster for killing? Or am I something worse than just a warrior?"

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Deerz was slow to remove his gaze from the fight and give even a glance towards Janius, as if he were trying to take as long as possible. His words did not harbor as much emotion as the last time they spoke, but his tone was far from kind. "I said nothing to you, Human. Do not accost me with your assumptions. Besides, you should be focusing on your son..." He began, taking on a rather sinister grin. "...while you can."

In the fight, Julan, through his anger, looked to have a renewed vigor. He was still having trouble dealing with the spear's reach, especially with his now-slower footwork, but he was taking a sort of aggression that was taking Argrei off-guard. In all likelihood, he was expecting Julan to be more severely affected by his injury. Regardless, Julan managed to feint a swing towards Argrei's side, then quickly reach out and grab his arm, twisting it back as best as he could with the leverage he had. Julan's strength was not at its full height, given his age, but he still managed to get Argrei's arm near to the point of breaking before he managed to grab his bone dagger in his other hand and slash Julan's arm.

Julan backed off with a fresh laceration, though not one as serious as his first injury. While Julan was often getting the worse end of the fight, the exchange did show a potential path to his victory. Argrei was more skilled, but Julan could endure far more than him. If Julan could inflict even one of the injuries he had already taken, it could end the fight.

---

Although Ahnasha knew she needed the support of others, she was not particularly enthusiastic to talk about her experience. She did not reply immediately, instead sitting herself down at the edge of the bed and looking down at the floor in silence for a few seconds. "I am fine, it will heal. Rhazii wanted to be alone for a while, though I think he might benefit from your company. Much more than mine, at least. Maybe you should go find him. Might be able to find his scent at the front gates." She suggested with virtually no emotion in her voice.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth did look worried, though perhaps not quite as much as Janius. "I don't know. I...want to trust him. Hopefully."

Argrei was equally as surprised as the crowd to see Julan stand once more, though he could also see that he was concerned. Argrei did not yet make any move to attack. "You...can't be serious. You're just going to end up hurting yourself, boy. Just concede. Even the Master-Hunter didn't do it on his first attempt."

Julan did not respond, except by taking a few, uneasy steps forward, looking for an opening.

"Master-Hunter, he's injured. Surely you can call this fight?" Argrei asked, giving a brief glance over to Juran.

Though Juran surely held his own judgments about the fight, he did not give away anything with firm, but neutral tone. "You did not have a clear opportunity for a lethal blow. It is his choice to continue on injured."

Julan made his choice abundantly clear by opening up the fight once more, trying to force the opening he wanted.

Meanwhile, Janius might have notice some movement to his left, only a short distance away from him. The unpleasantly familiar face of Deerz had taken up the space just beside Janius. It was unclear why he would want to observe the fight so close to those he so clearly despised, but he did not yet acknowledge Janius, or any of the others.

---

For a while, at least, Ahnasha was able to focus her mind on the effort needed to hide her wounds. There was plenty-enough cloth at the bandit camp with which to make bandages, but she had to clean her fur thoroughly before putting back on her dress. With all that had happened she was not sure how much time had passed. It was still daylight, and it looked like it would be a few hours before evening, at least.

There were no distractions on the way back to Cheydinhal for Ahnasha, which made the walk seem all that much longer. She felt lost, and confused about her own basic judgment. Even she knew that she had a reputation for being harsh, but it was warranted, was it not? They were, after all, fighting a war over their own existence, and failure would result in a fate worse than death for them all. A part of her wanted to tell her that Rhazii was just being naive, or idealistic. In reality, their situation did not afford them the luxury of avoiding tough choices. And yet, something about the way her son looked at her made her feel like she was as much of a monster as he thought she was. She had always thought her emotional detachment was an advantage: something a person should want to have, but now, she had nothing but doubt.

Ahnasha returned to the inn, not sure of what to say to whoever she might first encounter. However, there was one certainty in her mind: her family troubles were trivial compared to what was now weighing on her shoulders.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

They might need to maintain their look with really major injuries and such, though lycans probably wouldn't get scars as often.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Whatever brief advantage Julan had, he did his best to push. He made a jab towards Argrei's hand, but it was deflected. He tried to push closer to be able to reach Argrei's body, but the reach of the spear forced him back. Ultimately, Julan was having a hard time getting any sort of opportunity to strike his opponent without exposing himself far too much. Although, for much of the crowd, it was making for an exciting fight. There were cheers from some, and gasps from others each time their weapons came close to connecting for a significant wound. They did both pick up a few scratches: some surface cuts on Argrei's right arm and one shallow jab into Julan's upper thigh, but it did seem like the fight could go either way.

Eventually, Julan did see what looked like an opening. Argrei over-committed into a thrust that Julan sidestepped, and it allowed him to step past his weapon, with nothing between him and Argrei's unarmored body. He thrust down towards Argrei's thigh muscles, though in a real fight, any number of lethal blows would have been possible. However, either as a display of adaptability or planning, Argrei was ready for it. Taking one hand off of his spear, he managed to grab a hold of Julan's blade without any major injury to his hand and pushed it just enough to the side to avoid being hit. At the same time, while Julan was focused on his own sword, Argrei managed to pull back his spear, then thrust it straight into Julan's left leg, almost hard enough to go clean through his calf muscles.

There were a few cheers, and a few sympathetic gasps, from the crowd as Argrei pulled back his weapon and stepped back into a ready position. Julan did not yet feel the pain, but he quite involuntarily fell down to one knee.

Zharanthixil let out a sigh. "Well, at least the boy fought well..."

After taking such an injury, Zharan, and most of the crowd, clearly expected Julan to conceded. Most combatants in such a duel likely would, but to the visible and audible surprise of many, Julan slowly stood up, gritting his teeth in determination, despite the blood pouring down his leg. As a werecrocodile, he could endure more pain and injury than even most lycans.

---

"Wait!" Ahnasha shouted back, though she was quick to continue before Rhazii could have time to get upset. "The spot where we left our things, go there and find my bag. There are healing potions inside. Take them and heal yourself; I won't follow you, I promise. I just don't want you to suffer anymore. I'll...go back to the bandit camp. Stay there a while; maybe...clean up the bodies. If I don't see you for a while, I'll go back to Cheydinhal. To the inn."

Ahnasha winced as she looked away from Rhazii. The pain of her wounds was starting to catch up to her, but she would survive. Neither of their injuries were particularly threatening to a regenerating, disease-immune lycan, but she wanted to at least let Rhazii get rid of his pain. For herself, she felt she might deserve it. Regardless she started her slow walk back to the camp with a great deal to occupy her mind.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

For the next minute or so, the fight proceeded slowly, with both fighters mostly just testing their opponent's defenses. However, as they became more aggressive, it also became clear that Julan was on the backfoot. Beyond a few clever moves, his tactics were mostly predictable, and he had not been able to put himself in a position to take advantage of his superior strength. By contrast, Julan had a hard time predicting Argrei, and was relying on quick reactions to protect himself.

Once he started getting worried, Julan finally took his father's advice to heart and tried to end it quickly. He swung towards Argrei's shoulder with the intent of just using brute force to push through his defense. However, Argrei parried with his spear's haft, deflecting the force of the blow off to his left instead of trying to absorb all of the force directly. In fact, the force of Julan's blow only assisted in swinging the blunt end of Argrei's spear directly into the side of Julan's snout, followed quickly by Argrei jamming the haft hard into Julan's abdomen.

Julan had a bloody nose and bruised stomach, and was certainly not at the advantage, but Argrei too showed himself not to be a perfect fighter. Seeing his opponent off-balance, Argrei wanted to push his advantage, but the act of spinning around his spear to bring the point to bear on Julan took far too long. It was enough time even for Julan to charge and launch a fireball straight at Argrei's chest. Given the nature of the fight, it was not a deadly spell, but it still left its burns.

---

"That never stopped." Ahnasha replied, slowly shaking her head. "I love you, son. I love you, always have loved you, and always will love you. Nothing in this world, or any other, could ever change that. And...I have been ready to slay anyone who would try and take that away from me."

Ahnasha brought her gaze up towards Rhazii once more. "I don't know how to start feeling again for the people I kill, but I need you, Rhazii. I want to make you happy, and I want to make sure that I never terrify you like this again."