Primal Instinct: Dawn of the New World

The ferret Scarclaw made her way over to the healing girl, a light smile sliding across her face.  Approaching her carefully, so as not to knock anything over or nudge anything, Rina reached the winged girl's side.  Her eyes wandered about her set up, looking at all things, including the bandages around her body, her book, water and bedspread.  While she had seen hospital tents like this before, she didn't often go into them and have this close of a look around.

"How are you feeling, Monica?  I have news for you, but... you first," she asked softly, her nose twitching about for smells of cleansing products and medicines.

As Rina looked around and twitched her nose she could smell the rather awful stench of alcohol and various disinfectants that were out and some that were being used. Monica seemed to have a bottle of what looked like spring water on a spot next to her bed and her book had a faded title that was too difficult for Rina to read with her eyes. She smiled and nodded to Rina's words.

"I'm doing okay now I guess. The nurse said I could try getting up and moving around in a day or two but flying would be off-limits for a couple of weeks." She told her, looking at the ferret girl with more interest. "So what's your news about?"

She asked innocently, putting a small, flat object into her book's pages to mark her spot as she shut it.

Rina frowned after picking up the bitter scents, wrinkling her nose and squinting a little before returning to Monica.  She didn't expect the medical team of this group to be able to heal her wounds perfectly, but if she really couldn't fly for a couple of weeks, that might be troublesome for the nightwatch.

"I see.  I hope it heals up soon, then!" she nodded with a light smile.  "I've just come to inform you that I've met with Catia.  I decided not to kill her, even though she's hurt and killed many others.  It turns out that she was just looking for her sister, who apparently was taken by evil Scarclaws.  She claims it was just for self-defense, and that she just wanted answers... even though I still found her actions of poor choice, I didn't want to continue the cycle of mindless murdering."

Rina took her eyes off of Monica the more she spoke.  She wasn't sure how the winged girl would react to this.  Scar may have found this to be the best choice, but what about his partner?  She might not agree.

"We've made a deal with Catia.  We'll help her find her sister, but only if she apologizes and stays within our sight at all times."

Monica sits back into her bed as she listens to Rina's report about what had happened before smiling and taking a deep breath.

"That's good. I'm glad that she's willing to stick with us for now. There are some pretty bad Scarclaws out there....they give everyone a bad name. They really do." She told her. "Listen....I know this is going to sound weird coming from me but I can't move to do this myself so....do you think you could try being her friend? I know you don't like her and she's not setting the best example but I think she's just scared. I bet if you give her someone to talk to that she can trust she'll open up to you a bit more."

She asks the little ferret girl, fully expecting the answer to be no.

((Hey, I just couldn't think of a way to respond, is all!))

Rina's expression contorted into a bitter glare.  Monica was probably right, that Catia just needed someone to trust and to become friendly with in order to open up about some other details.  However, the ferret girl did not feel that she was the right person for the job.  How could she be friends with someone who killed her group, self defense or not, and attacked her and her new allies?  The idea of that was just out of her bounds... but she could fake it.

"I won't do such a thing.  I can't lie to myself like that and betray my own feelings, but if you insist on it, I could always pretend," she told her, looking over towards the exit.  Now was probably a good time to leave before she got mad at Monica.  She sighed and walked around the bed in the direction of the exit.

"I don't understand how you can feel this way when you're in this situation," she said on her way out, gesturing towards her bandages.

(OOC: I was just concerned was all lol. I don't like being in the dark on a lot of things. ^^; )

Monica looked down at her bandaged up torso and nodded slowly.

"I know what you mean Rina....But think about it diplomatically. Catia is a Half-Breed, something that was created to kill all of us. It's in their blood. They see us all as threats to their existence so it only makes sense that they'd hate us and even try to kill us. And with Catia's past experience....it only makes that feeling worse."

She takes a deep breath and winces a bit before continuing.

"Years ago, a group of Half-Breeds nearly sent us into extinction. We had to do the worst thing imaginable to stop it from happening; we had to sacrifice our own kind and ambush them."

Her face turned dark as she held herself for comfort.

"Rina....that event was almost a decade ago. I....I was apart of that ambush. If anyone deserves Catia's hatred....It's me."

She shakes her head and slowly sinks beneath her covers as she turns onto her side and closes her eyes, knowing that Rina wanted to leave.

"I'm sorry I'm asking you to do so much. If you really don't want to talk to Catia then...."

Monica is interrupted by the tent flap moving aside and Catia walking in. She turns and spots Monica, making the bird girl squeak and move the covers over her head in surprise. Catia sighs and slowly walks past Rina to sit down onto a chair near her bed. Reluctantly she puts her hand onto her shoulder and gives her a worried look.

"Are you alright? I can only imagine what kind of pain you're in."

She takes a deep breath and lets her ears move back into her hair as a very surprised Monica peeks out from underneath the covers.

"Y-You....you were worried about me?"

She stuttered, Catia nodding slowly as she gave her shoulder a gentle squeeze so as to not cause her anymore pain than she was already in.

"As much as I don't want to say it, I was. You were bleeding pretty bad when I shot you in the side like I did. I was worried that I might've killed you. I'm glad to see you're okay. And....I'm sorry about shooting you out of the air like I did. Although to be completely honest with you I think you paid me back when you screeched at me like you did."

She flinched as she remembered being screeched at by Monica.

"That really hurt my ears...."

She admitted, Monica slowly sitting back up and staring at her carefully.

"Then....why didn't you just yell at me to come down?"

She suggested, Catia giving a meek smile before responding again.

"I figured you would've attacked me had I just up and shown myself like that. I wanted to talk to you but I also don't like getting hurt. I had to be careful."

She explained, Monica thinking about it for a moment before nodding slowly.

"I guess that makes sense. Although flying's going to be off-limits for a while thanks to your pot shot at my wings. Ehehehe...."

She told the fox-like girl, Catia letting her ears flatten against her head and her tail droop with her head as she put her hands into her lap.

"I'm sorry. I wish I was more efficient with something that didn't just hurt everything I use it on. I would love to have some kind of stun gun or something but....I haven't had the chance to find anything like it."

She told her, Monica smiling gently and putting her hand on top of Catia's head and rubbing it.

"It's alright. As soon as I can fly again they're going to put me back to work anyway. I guess I have a sort of forced vacation right now thanks to you."

She told her, Catia keeping her head down as she was pet so gently. After another moment of a somewhat awkward silence, Monica looked over at Rina.

"Rina, can you....help her find something to eat? I'm sure she's hungry by now."

She asked her, Catia's stomach giving an embarrassing grumble in response to the prospect of food.

Rina stopped right at the entrance to the tent to listen to what Monica had to say.  She wanted to turn around and ask her more about that ambush, because even though she was around 10 years ago, she wasn't there, personally.  When she was 7, it was only a year after the death of her parents, and she was still traveling the country for a new life.  Not many others talked about it, when she moved from town to town, because there were so many other problems going on within them.

Rina new next to nothing about Half-Breeds.  She could tell you all she knew about the Humans, about the Scarclaws, but anything else would draw blanks.  It was crippling for a time like this, when she actually had to deal with one.  If there was one thing she knew about them, though, was that they were still mortal beings, just like her.  Just like everyone else.  Even if they were this "unstoppable" hybrid, they could still bleed.

It was then that Catia came in, and Rina stepped to the side, not even looking at her face.  As they conversed, the ferret girl watched them from the corner of her eye.  It seemed as if Catia was actually concerned, but Rina couldn't help but think in the back of her mind that she was trying to sucker in the heads of this unit with her kindness: Scar and Monica.  It made sense, strategically, but maybe that wasn't the case.  She snapped out of her thoughts when Monica asked her to bring food.

"Ah, sure.  That's fine.  Where is the kitchen?" she asked, looking up from the floor, hoping for some simple directions.

Monica sat up carefully before pointing to the western direction in camp.

"The kitchen is over in the big tent on the west side of camp. Just follow the smells and you can't miss it."

She answered her, watching as Catia got up and silently waited for Rina to lead the way to the kitchen and mess hall tents in the camp.

With a simple, "okay," Rina quietly took Catia to the kitchen tent, following the smells, as it was easier to do so than to distinguish the tents apart with her eyes.

"Are you a carnivore or vegetarian?" she turned to ask Catia as they entered the tent.  "I only ask because everyone is different, and you're the first of your kind that I've met.  If it turns out they don't have what you need, I can help you find something in the wilderness."

While it was obvious that she still wasn't on the happiest of terms with the half-breed, Rina wanted to treat her fairly and like she would anyone else.  She wasn't sure if they could ever be friends, though; it was much too soon to decide this, anyway.

Catia gave Rina a fanged grin.

"I'm an omnivore but I like to eat my meats. Squirrel especially."

She tells her, looking around for any tiny animals that might be running around. Squirrel's were really quite rare nowadays thanks to the war but as long as there was some kind of forest or collection of trees around, they were sure to be skittering about collecting and foraging for their foods. The tent smelled of a kind of hearty stew with gentle seasonings and spices to give it a mellow smell. It smelled of carrots, peas and some kind of meat too, something Catia could sense and it made her tail wag back and forth excitedly as they walked.

Rina sniffed about again, her ashy black nose twitching as Catia mentioned her favorite meat.  She was more of a carnivore herself, but vegetation - especially broccoli and carrots - was always welcome in her diet, as ferret-people like her referred to them as treats (much like dairy and red meats were to humans).  She had to agree here; squirrel was rather tasty when it was available.

"I'm more partial to foul, myself, but don't tell Monica..." Rina said, wincing a little before peering inside the establishment.  "If whatever they're cooking in here doesn't satisfy you, then I'm sure we could ask to go hunting... I want to make sure at least Scar, Lissa or Monica knows we went somewhere, if not send someone to accompany us."

Rina began to look around the tent for the chef, still partially in the entrance way.

There was a rather muscular Scarclaw with very dominant lion-like features stirring a pot behind some glass and a counter. The delightful smell of whatever stew was being cooked for tonight's meal was very pleasantly thick in the air, making Catia's ears twitch as she listened for the sound of the water in the pot bubbling. The Scarclaw that was cooking seemed to have a long, thin tail like a lion's and the face of one alongside yellow fur with black stripes and large white patch of fur on his chest.

Compared to Rina, this guy was huge, but it didn't scare her too much.  She wondered more so why this guy was a cook, rather than be decked out in fighting garb and on the front lines.  Either way, his food smelled great, so maybe his talents would shine through here, rather than on a battlefield?

She approached the counter, a little weary of what he might do or say to them (believing that he would have a big, loud voice due to his species and size), but spoke up, nonetheless.

"E-Excuse me, sir.  We were wondering if we could get something to eat here... is it ready?"

The lion Scarclaw heard Rina's tiny voice and turned around, giving a hearty laugh as she asked about the food being ready.  His voice was indeed quite loud but he sounded very jolly as he hauled the steaming pot of stew over behind the glass and got a couple of bowls.

"You two girls are hungry are you?  Haha!  Here!  Eat as much as you like!"

He exclaimed, doling up two complete bowls of the nice smelling food for the both of them and handing it to them.  He even includes a very crisp looking biscuit on top of the stew, the flakiness on the upper part of it making it look mouth watering.  Catia happily takes it and wags her tail happily at thought of eating all of it.  She gives a small bow to the lion man.

"Thank you very much sir!"

She tells him, the lion man giving another hearty laugh as he handed both girls a small spoon to eat his food with.

"Please, call me Gerald!"

He told them.

Rina was surprised at his generosity, carefully accepting the bowl with wide eyes and a light grin.  Her nose twitched vigorously, absorbing the various scents before her, as she spoke up again to thank him.

"Thank you, Gerald!  It's greatly appreciated," she told him, spinning around carefully as to not knock over the contents and looked around for any tables or chairs for them to use.  "Such kindness at this place..."

it was shocking to her that everyone here seemed so happy, helpful and together... not that it was a bad thing! It was nice to see that for a change.

Catia nodded in agreement as the two girls went to go and sit down to eat their food.

"It's surprising to me....It's been a little while since I've felt like I could drop my guard around anything. It's a good feeling to have...."

She mentioned as they sat down, her big, bushy fox-like tail wagging lazily over the edge of her seat as she started to eat her stew. She let out a small giggle as she finished her first bite, her ears going up on top of her head.

"This is so good! I haven't had food like this in a long time!"

She exclaimed, blushing a bit in embarrassment after a moment, having realized that she'd said that out loud.

As Rina scuttled over to the seat, she licked her lips in eagerness, scarfing down the bread first.  When Catia exclaimed about the food, she couldn't help but chuckle.  It was true, poor-class travelers and nomads didn't normally get this kind of treatment as they moved from town to town.  This was the best she'd had in a long time, as well.

"Heh, don't stifle the truth; it's the same for me, too," she nodded to Catia.  "I feel the same way... and it's strange... here I am, sitting and eating with the one who got me here in the first place."

It was a strange realization for her.  She didn't know fate was this twisted, if there even was such a thing.  Still, what Catia did brought her a new chance at surviving this harsh world, even if she did put her life in danger in the first place.  Rina figured that she didn't need to thank Catia for this, as she did let her live.

"Not to bring up old topics," she started, taking a break to have another bite.  "but did you know Scar and Monica before this?"

Catia nodded in agreement with Rina as she continued to eat her stew, her head and ears perking up when she hears her question about Scar and Monica. She shook her head to her question.

"I met Scar but I just ran from him and the other Scarclaw's in his group so I never really took the time to meet him. But I've not seen Monica before now so she's a new person to me just like you are."

She explained, finishing her stew and going to eat her bread. While it was soft and warm, she much preferred the stew over it.

"I see.  How many other groups have you run into like this?" Rina asked her taking her second-to-last bite.  She wiped her mouth on her arm before continuing.  "I mean, clusters of Humans or Scarclaws.  You seem like you've been a lot of places in search for your sister.  Surely, you've ran into other groups like this."

She was curious to see what exactly Catia was like in a group.  It didn't appear - at least at current - that she was familiar with teamwork or at least cooperating temporarily with others.  Hopefully, if they were to work together, this would change; otherwise, this camp could fall apart.

Catia thought for a moment as she heard Rina's question. She could only really remember one other group of Scarclaw's that she'd met before and they were a second that were hunting her instead of the other way around.

"I only really know their name but....one group of Scarclaw's is hunting me. I don't know if it's out of spite or vengeance or some other kind of motivation but....they're dangerous. One of them looks like a white tiger and he thinks watching me struggle to escape him is...."

She shivered as she remembered the Scarclaw that had found much joy in chasing her through a forest before.

"...,he thought it was thrilling. I don't know his name but he's a member of a group that calls themselves the Order of the Black Fang. I don't like them."

She told her, finishing her food before staring into her empty bowl like she was expecting something to happen. She couldn't help but remember being chased through the forest, powerless to do anything to this creature as it quickly leapt through the trees after her. It was terrifying.

Rina put down her bowl and stared up at the girl with wide eyes.  Her ears circled back and down, and her tail flicked itself under the seat beneath her.  These could be the very people that have taken Catia's sister, and from the sounds of that one guy and his treatment of Catia, it didn't seem out of his character to kidnap and torture.  She wanted to ask this, but she was worried that she wouldn't get answers if she was upset like this.  Time to change the subject.  She can get more information another time.

"That's as horrible as it gets, huh?  Being forever hunted down like that," she sighed, not finding it hard to believe her story.  "Well, you're not with them anymore, and I doubt Scar or Monica would recruit anyone as evil as that Scarclaw sounds.  Despite what wrong you've done before, that kind of horridness is what I want to stop."

She then got up from her seat and brushed off her dress with a hand, the other holding the empty bowl.  "Are you okay?  I don't want to have anyone yell at me for making you feel uncomfortable or stressed out.  I'll lay off the questions for now."

Catia snapped out of her trance-like state when she heard Rina ask her if she was okay, turning to the girl quickly and giving her a reassuring smile as she got up too, holding the last of her bread in her other hand as she spoke.

"I-I'm fine! But I guess now you can guess why I want to find my sister as soon as I can. She's the same as me, a Half-Breed. Well....actually she looks more like a wolf than a fox but you get the point I guess."

She answered her, going to hand Gerald her bowl. The merry lion-like Scarclaw gave a hearty laugh to both girls when he saw their bowls emptied.

"Ho ho! Did you girls want seconds? I've got plenty of food to go around for you if you want it!"

He told them both cheerily. Catia turned back to Rina and watched her to see if she wanted to stick around and eat more or just do something else.

Rina shook her head when Gerald asked if they wanted more.  "No thanks, but it was really great!  You're an amazing cook, Gerald."

She then put her bowl onto the counter and smiled to the Scarclaw, then turned to Catia.  It made sense, but it would probably take more encouragement for the half-breed to be willing to go back to those heartless individuals and demand for her sister... if they even had her captive.

"We should maybe see where Scar would want to place you.  You know, ranks-wise.  I know you've got a good shot with those guns, but..." she said, rubbing her cheek in the spot Catia shot her.  "What about your other skills?  How do you kill, a group of 4, per se...?"

She was referencing the killing of her previous group, clearly, but it was curious.  Did Catia just use her guns and pump them full of plasma, or did she do more?  Rina never did see their bodies, so it wasn't known to her on how they exactly died.

Upon hearing Rina's question and setting her dishes down with hers, her face instantly flushed red. She knew what the ferret girl meant by 'group of four'.

"I-I um....it's actually really embarrassing how I got found out at all by your group. I....Well I tripped on a branch in one of the nearby trees and fell out."

She look at the floor in absolute embarrassment, shifting uncomfortably. That whole thing with Rina's friends was just a huge mistake that forced her to fight. It was really rather embarrassing.

"When I fell I got questioned and I panicked. I started shooting them in places that temporarily disabled them with the intention of just running away but one of them kept dodging my shots. It got out of my control really fast."

She explained as she walked with her. Granted the last one of Rina's group had lived long enough to plead for Rina's life but at that time she was too riled up by the adrenaline in her body to think quite so clearly.

As Rina listened to Catia's side of the story, her breathing accelerated.  She knew they were already on edge since they were really far away from town and everything else was left with little ol' Rina.  They probably worried for her safety, as they often picked on her height and size, but knew she was quick when she had to be.  Instead, it was them who fell to someone who had stronger weapons and had the element of surprise.  Her temper might also be a problem, seeing as she was able to take on all 4 in a mad panic.  The more Rina thought about how this all played out, the more she felt heat rise to her head and face.  She quickly covered her face with her hands, smothering her vision in darkness in order to calm down.

"So, this doesn't happen all the time, I take it," Rina exhaled, a tinge of frustration in her voice.  "The one who dodged you was the leader.  He was doglike, wasn't he, with his brown perky ears and thin tail...?"

From the bottom of her heart, she hoped this would never happen again.  Catia at the trigger or not, she didn't want any sudden deaths like that to happen and hoped that it wouldn't occur here in this group.  "It doesn't matter now, I just want to know how you can improve for the better.  Let's see if anyone else has advice on what you can do..."

She released her face from the palms of her hands and sighed slowly.  She lead the way out of the kitchen.  Now that she knew, she wanted to forget, though she might not ever be able to forgive...