“Run.”
The word hissed through the air like the sound of the weapons below, camouflaged by the rising smoke and flames. A small girl, not more than twelve years old, clutched an even smaller Nexu cub in her arms. Its white coat was smudged with soot and it shook with fear in her arms. The two of them watched as their mother dashed off, her command still ringing in their ears as she disappeared into the smoke. Where would they run to? Would they ever see her again? These thoughts were interrupted by the sound of brush crunching beneath them. Very quietly, the girl backed against the trunk of the tree they stood on, hoping to hide them from the intruder.
"I know you're here, wildling." A voice called from below them. The two stiffened, trying to make them seem as small as possible. The voice was male, that much the girl knew. Though it had been many years since she'd heard the basic language, she understood what he had said loud and clear, and it had sent a chill down her spine. Mother had told them that these humans had come to kill and capture their Nexu pack. What had the pack ever done to them? The girl shut her eyes, preventing the moisture gathering there from spilling over. Aiya was still curled against her chest, and the girl vowed to do everything in her power to protect her. They would not get this tiny Nexu if it was the last thing she did.
Picking up a small twig, the girl tossed it far in one direction. its noise did just as she had hoped it would, and drew the man's attention. As soon as he had walked away, she made a run for it, leaping quickly from branch to branch in an attempt to get as far away from the hunters and their fire as she could. It wasn't long before she heard the man behind her again, running below through the burning thicket. She glanced down only for a moment to try to see what sort of weapon he had, though nothing appeared to be in his hands. She continued running, Aiya's tiny claws digging tightly into her chest.
Suddenly from overhead, she heard a crashing sound and looked up just in time to see a mess of tree limbs come crashing down. Their brittle and still flaming bodies managed to just catch the girl on her lower back, causing her to yell both in pain and anger. Losing her balance, she fell from the treetops, landing on her back with a hard enough impact to momentarily knock the wind out of her. The spot that the branches had hit had been burned, but she would rather fall on it than crush Aiya with the fall. Regaining her breath, the girl looked up to find the hunter just starting to appear out of the smoke. Ignoring the pain she felt, she stood back up and continued running, dodging through the now bare underbrush and trying not to get burned. The ground was uncomfortably warm under her feet, a drastic change from it's usual cooling temperature. She would have a few good injuries to nurse after this was over. If they managed to escape, that is.
She could feel her lungs starting to burn. She enjoyed running, and it was something she did quite often, but everyone has their limit and she was afraid she was reaching hers. She could hear the footsteps of the man behind them, hitting the ground so hard any creature would have been able to hear him from a ways away. There were no creatures here now. No Nexu, no bark rats. Everything had either fled or been killed, and the girl didn't want to dwell on which was more likely. Just as she felt herself start to slow, she stopped immediately. She hadn't realized how far she'd run, but glancing up at the obstacle in front of her, she had a pretty good idea.
The cliffs sat at the very edge of the forest. If you climbed to the top, you would be able to look out at the vast greenness of the planet. It was not something the girl had ever done, as she was adapted to climbing trees, not sheer cliff faces. She turned in every direction, frantically looking for another path to follow, but it seemed she'd run right into a dead end. Pressing herself against the cliff, she scanned the smoke, trying to find where their attacker was. She kept her arm protectively over Aiya, who glanced up at her in fear every now and again.
"I knew you couldn't run forever, Wildling." A voice rang out. A shadow began to emerge from the smoke in front of her, and she snarled at it as it drew closer. She did not have the spikes that the Nexu had, or the claws or the teeth, but she was still going to try everything she could to stop this man. As his image began to clear, she could see her appearance did indeed seem to throw him off. Her hair, though tied behind her, was a tangled mess, and had many singed areas. Soot and ash covered both her and the Nexu cub in her arms, and when his eyes fell upon Aiya, he grinned wickedly.
"All I want is that cub.The beast will fetch a high price to the right buyer. And who knows, maybe they'd pay just as well for the Wildling girl as well." He approached the two of them, slowly placing one foot in front of the other. The girl crouched, cradling the Nexu cub against her. Had she really come all this way just to fail? She thought of her pack. Of her friends. Of her Mother. At the thought of their mother in the hands of these monsters, a fire seemed to ignite in the girl. As the hunter's hand came down on her shoulder, the fire erupted within her, throwing him back. Just as he was beginning to sit up, he looked up in both shock and fear as she walked towards him. This was not the cowering, scared little girl he'd been chasing. She had the flames of rage in her eyes, and the looks she threw at him might as well have been daggers. It pinned him to the ground, and as her eyes narrowed, he felt an invisible hand close around his neck, cutting off his airway. She watched in satisfaction as his face turned from red to purple, and then to blue. His eyes bulged from their sockets, darting back and forth in terror as the last of his oxygen left him. Interesting, how quickly one could turn from predator to prey.
As she continued to focus, not allowing him any air, she decided quite simply that this wasn't enough. Simply killing him was not going to be enough. She needed a more satisfying form a revenge. Releasing his throat, the man coughed violently, sucking in air as though it was his first time needing it. Before he could fully recover enough to start trying to escape, the girl focused her rage elsewhere, easily snapping both of his legs. He screamed out in pain, the noise ringing through the destroyed forest. If he had any friends nearby, she hoped it brought fear to their hearts. She'd be sure to find the rest of them later, but right now, she had all of her attention on her previous pursuer.
His breathing had picked up quickly as he attempted to push himself away from her with his arms. She placed a foot right over the fracture in one of his legs, stopping him in his tracks. She couldn't explain what was happening, what this strange power was. It felt so instinctive, like it had been there all her life. Her gaze had turned from one of pure rage to now mild interest and curiosity. It seemed she had the perfect test subject to find out just what she was capable of. The man watched as her eyes narrowed, and all at once he felt a sharp pain split through his head. Memories flashed before his eyes, and he wondered if this is what death was like. He saw his deepest fears flash forward, and saw a smirk flash on the girl's mouth.
"You have a family. A family you love very dearly. That's interesting. So did I." She whispered, her voice devoid of emotion. "Imagine how you would feel, watching them die in front of you. Being left alone because someone thought they could come in and take everything from you. Perhaps this will be a warning to any of her friends who think they'd like to take up a similar profession." She drew upon her rage again, delving into his mind. This power had shown her his family. Fairly standard, two parents, two kids. She willed it to warp his perception of them, showing him their slow and painful deaths over and over. It didn't take long to break him, and he was soon a blubbering mess on the forest floor. He'd somehow curled into a fetal position, seeming to disregard his broken legs entirely. She saw him reach into a pouch at his hip, and she tensed, immediately shielding Aiya from whatever it might be. He slowly pulled out a blaster, his hand shaking tremendously. She watched with interest as he aimed the weapon not at her, but at his own head. Sobbing, he pulled the trigger.
Blinking awake, the girl sat up, rubbing her eyes. Aiya was still asleep next to her, now much bigger than she had been back then. The Wildling hadn't dreamt of the past in quite awhile, and it wasn't something she particularly enjoyed reliving. The two of them had gone on to kill as many as the hunters they could, driving each one slowly into madness. She'd decided to let one escape, his mental state questionable. Hopefully, he would be a warning to anyone else who thought they could come here and attack her home.
Though they'd searched for many days, they found no trace of their mother or any of the rest of the pack. She'd had to shield Aiya's eyes as they passed many dead Nexu, completely skinned of their fur and spikes, grinning widely even in death. They'd eventually come across the unburned part of the forest, still green and full of life. They quickly made their home there, finding a large and wide branch that would comfortably house both of them, even when Aiya grew to be as big as she was. Her white pelt had tanned with age, and she'd become a formidable accomplice to the girl's endeavors. They'd seen the occasional human come to their planet. They quietly monitored their actions, and if they meant no harm to the forest or creatures that made their home there, they were allowed to leave with their lives. Even with their previous warning, they had seen a fair amount of hunters still come to the forest in an attempt to catch or kill what was rumored to be the last remaining Nexu and her wild companion. They would never be heard from again, and eventually that seemed to slow the arrival of them. The two of them relished in killing each and every hunter that stepped foot onto their territory, especially with Aiya now big enough to get a good meal or two out of it.
The girl had been attempting to strengthen whatever power she'd used so many years ago, but it seemed to only appear whenever she was really angry or taking out the other hunters that had shown up on occasion. That was really the only time she needed it but she'd grown curious about it over the years. She hadn't questioned its existence too much but none of the other humans she'd seen seemed to posses it. Was she special? Were there others like her in the galaxy, or was she alone with her strange gift? Her thoughts trailed to her human parents, who she remembered only slightly, and those memories were nothing but bitter. She remembered them leaving her here on this planet. Had they known she had this power? Either way, she had very much enjoyed using it to her advantage. The rest of the hunters were all just as surprised as the first man had been. She enjoyed toying with them, breaking them little by little. Their fears were all so different, and each one eventually drove them to beg for death. She usually took her sweet time, and it more often led to the hunters taking their own life, as the first one had done. Sometimes Aiya got impatient and took them out herself.
Both of them had grown a lot since the night of the fire. Aiya was almost fully grown, able to support the girl as a rider if she so chose, and the wildling had aged another sixteen years or so. In the eyes of the hunters that arrived, most of them male, she was a pleasant sight to behold, and that was often their undoing. She had no problem using her physical looks to her advantage, especially because it was the last thing they were expecting. The forest had been quiet recently, no unwanted visitors. Just how they liked it.
Until this morning, that was. Though she'd woken naturally, the girl sat quietly, taking in her surroundings. She could feel something she hadn't ever felt before. There was definitely someone on the planet, but they felt different than the others. She didn't want to get her hopes up, but it seemed that they too possessed whatever fire burned in her. She woke Aiya silently, communicating with her through mostly body language and small, chittering noises. The two of them silently slunk through the treetops, making sure they stayed hidden. They stepped over spots that their shadows wouldn't be seen until they finally reached a nearby clearing. it was often the spot that ships chose to touch down, and this time was no different.
It was a much smaller ship than usually held hunters, and didn't seem to be as highly armored or weapon filled. It's hatch touched down to the ground, and both of the silent watchers were surprised to see a woman step down onto the planet. She wore a fairly revealing outfit, and the girl noted that it must be very easy to move around in. The woman scanned the edge of the clearing, almost looking right at the two of them a few times. Aiya had to pull her companion back to the shadows by the hair a few times in an attempt to keep themselves hidden. The girl hissed slightly, swiping a few times at the Nexu, who merely rolled her four eyes.
"Excuse me." The woman called. Her voice was strong and confident, and the two of them exchanged glances before creeping to peer out at her again.
"I've come a long way to meet you. Word has spread through the nearby cantinas amongst the hunters. You're causing them quite a bit of trouble." She continued, turning in their direction. They two of them grinned smugly, continuing to listen to her.
"You have an ability, don't you? Something you don't understand."
This drew the girl's curiosity again. She had been right. This woman knew about the power too and seemed to possess it as well. This assumption was confirmed as a purple energy of some sort erupted from the woman's fingertips. The two of them flinched back but watched in awe as she seemed to control it to form different shapes. The girl slowly slid down the tree, landing softly on the grass of the clearing. She had Aiya stay back just in case, but couldn't help her desire to get a closer look, even if it meant exposing herself. The woman looked up, her eyes piercing and victorious.
"Do you have a name?" She asked, folding her arms and looking her up and down, the purple energy disappearing. Technically she did have a name, it was the name her human parents gave to her, but it wasn't used here so she shook her head.
"Excellent, then I get to give you one. You've been protecting this planet very well. Did the hunters do something to you?" the woman asked. The girl nodded, looking at the ground bitterly.
"They killed my family." She said quietly. "Or took them away somewhere. I don't know. We didn't find them after."
"Oh, you do speak. Wonderful, that simplifies things, doesn't it? Now, they killed your family, so it's been less protecting and more revenge. Malicious little thing aren't you." Her eyes gleamed with realization and she spoke up again. "Malice. That's what we'll call you."
"Malice." The girl repeated, nodding.
"Good. Now, you have two choices. You can come with me, and I will teach you to strengthen and harness your abilities, or you can stay here and never grow any stronger."
Really, there was only one choice. Selika Roh was someone who got what she wanted, and right now, she wanted this girl as her apprentice. She had raw, untrained potential, and Selika could only imagine what kind of weapon she could shape from her given the right training.
"As long as Aiya can come." Malice said, motioning toward the treeline. The Nexu responded, jumping down to join the two of them. "I promise she's strong too, and we work best together."
Selika considered the feline for only a moment before nodding. It would be foolish to deny the girl her companion, and she was actually looking forward to seeing them in action. The Nexu would also serve as a constant reminder of the girl's lost family, and that would be a constant source of power that could be tapped into at any time. The two looked at each other, seeming to communicate silently, before Malice nodded again.
"We'll come with you. We want to get stronger."
Selika grinned, looking down at them both.
"Trust me, my dear, you've come to the right place."