“I’m glad you’ve been enjoying the trips out here, mother. …I mean, you’ve not said as much, but I remember. I remember how much you enjoyed telling me and the other kits stories. Braiding our hair, teaching us to brawl. I’ll be doing all that, you know. When these two can walk properly, I’ll teach them to fight. …Maybe even swing an axe, yeah? They’ll be strong, ready to join Chimera. And, aye, they do grow quickly…”
Never was the pale vagabond quite so talkative as when she was alone. Though, in this case, only alone as one’s limit to their imagination. Her words were not for decoration, talking to herself for comfort, no. The Ram’s Head of Chimera spoke to what she felt was the last remaining essence of her late mother, Ta'kala, nestled within the old axe she had left behind in her premature death. To Nhee, her mother lived on inside that axe, making the coping process of loss that much more bearable. The old axe, brittle and beyond perfect repair, was Nhee’s greatest treasure.
It was dusty country out here… A great deal to adjust from having been born to the snows of Coerthas, being raised by the seas of La Noscea, only to settle down in the hostile deserts of Thanalan. Still, it was better with family, and the more they grew in number and solidarity, the less anything else mattered. The culture of Chimera would press on and outlive her, she hoped. Many kits would be born and raised with the ideals and disciplines as she had been. They would grow to the deserts’ landscape and reshape themselves to rule it as they had the high northern mountains. Chimera was strong, again, albeit, still a bit shaken. Those joining from the outside would learn their place among the family, learn their roles and earn their keep.
Nhee stood tall and proud as the protector, having nothing else to offer her kin. Born weak and dying, Kheo, the reigning leader and Nunh, had taken drastic measures to save the infant life of his first born. One which robbed her of her rich, dark colours. She had once looked a great deal like her sire, skin dark and beautiful like his own. He had described her eyes as having shined like jewels, though now they merely reflected light in ghostly hues. No colour remained of her, now. And with the way her story began, he feared pregnancy would be too hard on her body and take her life. He feared her too weak to carry a child for Chimera. Her duty as breeder taken away, she held fast onto the only role left of her; the guardian.
Nhee certainly held the power for it. She wasn’t clever and charismatic like her father, or her sister, Rihn. Lacked the love and devotion her brother, Kazo, had. She was simple and strong. No self-sacrifice would prove too great for her to handle if it meant the protection of her people. She knew her place and held it with pride and dignity.
Ever since Kheo had told her of the kits Chimera had adopted, Nhee had taken a great interest in checking in on them and their caretaker, regularly. The poor things had been rescued from a cold, cruel place, bred strangely for a darker purpse, their bodies tampered with by chemicals. Monsters, in their own right, though innocent of any crimes. They were safer, now, kept in a quiet location with a wet nurse hired by the Nunh, knowing no female in the tribe currently could provide for them as they needed at the time. Nhee knew she would never have her own children and made a point to visit the adopted orphans, though she told no one of her ventures but her sire. The nurse keeping them safe and tended to had come to know Nhee well in the months and welcomed her presence and aid in handling the two when she was able. Often, Nhee was reminded of the days she held Rihn as a kit and helped around the tribe before the catastrophe which so severely wounded Chimera six years past.
Tonight was nothing new. Nhee had mentioned only that she would be training in the deserts for a few days and ventured off alone as she commonly had. Very likely, Kheo knew where she was off to. Tonight was nothing new.
Was supposed to be nothing new.
Tonight, everything changed.
From the moment her heavy, fur-lined boots touched down upon the doorstep, something felt off. Nhee had waited until dark to travel across the outskirts of Ul'dah to avoid the scorching sun whilst wearing her usual, thick armor designed for much cooler climates. Often, she would be greeted by the scent of camomile tea and roasted gourd seeds cooling upon the window sill. The young Seeker woman which lived here and took care of the two kits made the best of her desert surroundings. She was lively and welcoming. Once a part of the Drake tribe before deciding to see what more lay beyond the hunting grounds of her people. Nhee had always been a welcomed guest. The ivory Chimera had called ahead, informed her she would be there in a few hours… So why did the home smell of… a stranger?
Nhee felt uneasy, lightly rapping her steel-clad knuckles against the door. When no answer came, she leaned in and listened, taking several sniffs of the air. Something about the scent felt familiar, though she would never place it in time. No roasting seeds nor tea. She wished, now, that she had brought with her the helm of her armor. It had been left behind because it scared the kits.
No sound beyond the door, no light from any of the windows, she tried the knob, steeling herself for the worst. The door was unlocked and opened easily, which came as no surprise. Curiosity and caution mingled in the air, hoping to find herself simply overly paranoid and needlessly defensive, in need of a calming, herbal tea.
As the door creaked open, Nhee kept back a pace so as to avoid stepping witlessly into an ambush. Her right hand reached back and grasped the worn hilt of her late mother’s axe. Though becoming fragile and unsteady, Nhee had managed to keep the blade sharp, despite the wear and weakening structure of the steel. Her fingers fell into place along the wooden haft, her mother’s trained grip having eventually worn into the wood of the axe over decades of use. Her daughter now mimicked these imprints. She stared for a moment into a silent, lounging room.
“…Uahla?” There came no answer, the room vacant to the eyes, though Nhee could better smell the stranger’s scent. Uahla was here, too, she sensed. The two toddlers, as well. Not a sound, however. One other scent struck her as she stepped inside; a scent she was not wholly familiar with, though recognizable, enough. It made her nose wrinkle in disgust, as well as flood her with worry. The stench of sex mingled in the air, and given all other clues, Nhee rightly felt sick. A foul odor, as well, accompanied the other scents, likely from another room.
She checked the sides of the entrance before finally stepping inside, fluffy tail swaying low. Gloved fingers gripped the axe, ready to free it of the buckles at her back and swing, should she need to. Finally, seeing nothing, she had decided to try being vocal, again, calling out into the darkened space of the home. “Come out! What business do you have, here?!” Her voice carried through the small house, checking behind corners and around doorways as she spoke. It was clear Nhee was heading to check the kits’ room first, much more deeply concerned for her adopted siblings than the Seeker woman. If anything had happened to those two…
Her ears twitched, movement from behind her, Nhee spun around and drew, raising her axe, defensively, the cry of metallic claws scraped along the sharpened steel of her weapon. In the dim lighting, her eyes struggled to make out the figure now leaning in with their full weight against her defenses. For the moment, neither spoke as they stared to one another, the tips of the attacker’s weapon’s curled claws resting against the blade of her axe sat ilms from Nhee’s eyes. The figure felt heavy against her axe, but Nhee was sturdy and stood solid.
It felt lazy, the attack. They hadn’t moved with more intent than to grab her attention, their gaze appeared empty, quietly observing her. A man. Miqo'te, even. He was tall, towering over her stocky, strong form. In contrast, he was lean, dressed in a lose shirt of dark grays, a cloth band around his waist which held two daggers safely against his body. His clothing wasn’t properly fitted, as if dressed quickly. The belt of the trousers was undone as well as the fastens of the shirt. This left little to the imagination, exposing his scarred, bare chest and dark hair beginning a narrow trail at his navel and vanishing into the partially opened trousers. The leggings of the black pants were a relaxed fit and gathered at the top of his boots. The rest of the legging’s material had been tucked into them. As for his scent… Nhee wrinkled her nose, again. This is where the scent came from. Both that of a stranger and… that other thing.
Finally, she stepped into their locked weapons and huffed, pushing him back from her, growling low. “Step into the light where I can see you! Who are you? What business have you, here?! Where is Uahla?”
“Can you not see in this much light? Or has the Seeker blood within you stolen your night eyes?” That voice… It was harsh. Gruff as if damaged with an old injury. Even his breathing had sounded vaguely like growling. Each word sounded painful leaving his throat, which would explain his low tone. It appeared the male had no issue seeing her, however, in this light. A Keeper, perhaps?
Nhee didn’t take kindly to his question and walked backwards until the glow of a nearby lantern hanging from the ceiling illuminated her figure and highlighted the metallic curves of her plated armor. A spotlight was cast upon her in the center of the small dining room. She hoped he would follow, despite the fulms she had pushed him back. “Answer me, do as I say!” Nhee readied her axe and waited, feeling confident she could handle this bandit. Whomever he may be. How he knew of her mixed blood was a question for when he was begging me for mercy.
The male closed the gap with an easy saunter, no hesitation in his motions. One heavy boot sounded with command after the other until he was fully standing in the light. Tall, perhaps as much as her father, Kheo. His skin like that of coffee and a touch of milk, crystal-blue eyes… Seeker’s eyes, though the slit pupil was rather wide, almost like that of the Keeper’s. A mix-blood, surely. His hair, a messy, dusty chestnut with auburn patches, tail as fluffy as her own. Five, slender scratches marked his visage at his left… They resembled the cuts from finger nails raking over his left eye, and down to his lips. Still fresh. Uahla’s doing? He carried himself with no regard to her weapon or intent to kill, the curved claws he gripped in his curled fists hung at his sides, at ease.
“My poor, little Nhee,” he spoke, eventually, “… I suppose your colour never came back, after all. Pity.”
Ghostly white eyes snapped wide as he identified her, strengthening her stance. Her natural build worked well with her choice of weapon, wide hips and strong thighs worked as her power behind swings as well as a counter-balance to the weight of the axe, itself. And as she bared her canines, Nhee flipped the axe once to appease restless muscles, watching him carefully.
“Who are you?” This time, her question held a great deal more weight, proverbial hackles raised and teeth gnashed with malicious intent. Nhee was already imagining tearing this male to pieces. Eagerly, she awaited his reply, shifting her stance from one strong leg to the other. While she held herself ready to cut into him, curiosity and impatience nipped at her heels, wondering, perhaps, if he had been one of the bandits she had turned over to the Yellowjackets in Limsa. Still, it wouldn’t explain the comment of her lacking colour. Very few knew of the events which permanently bleached her pigment.
His gaze was half-lidded, looking her over, carefully. “I’ll admit… It’s rather uncomfortable to speak so much… After what your father did to me, little Nhee.” He frowned, though appearing less angry than his words suggested, and far more bored, having long-since come to terms with the sentence served to him several years ago. “I suppose you wouldn’t remember me, not after all these years. Here, I had been assuming you would.” He paused and raised a hand to his throat, mindful to point the blades of his metallic claws away. Around his throat wrapped a bronze band, thick, and wide enough to conceal his jugular and trachea beneath the material. Where he rubbed, Nhee could catch a faint glimpse of pale scarring along his throat. Kheo had done that? Well, he must have deserved it. Before she could decide much more, her question was finally answered.
“Vinyrh… your father’s brother. ”
Nhee’s heart stopped. Could she have become more pale, indeed she would have. “You–?? Vinny! Y–” The woman had never been very eloquent with her tongue, and this moment made her appear hardly educated at all. She stumbled in her words as shock throttled her course of thought. “…But you… left us! He told us you left! Why?! Why show up now? What happened between you two that he would injure you?!”
The man rolled his eyes, then his shoulders as he began to close the distance between their bodies. “You were a child, your siblings kits– why would he need to tell you anything?” As he rounded on her, the berserker felt small in the shadow of her uncle, the way she adhered to her father. “But, you’re important now aren’t you?” He continued to berate her as he made a full circle around her, stopping once more before her, “With the family size cut down to a fraction. Suddenly, you have weight. Even I matter to him, now, I’d wager.” His voice grew more and more strained as he spoke on, the injury to his throat begging him for silence. “I intend to find out.”
She hadn’t realized it, but she was cowering, her axe lowered. Images flooded her mind of when she was small and he had set about teaching her to be strong… by bloodying her face and turning her pale skin black and blue. There was respect, here… and fear. And as he now loomed over her, Nhee remembered to breathe, again.
Guilt pressed down upon her. As much as she loved her uncle, when he left the tribe, the beatings stopped and it had been a reliefe. But what he had left behind in her had been that violence and anger. Chimera were rough with one another so her uncle’s behavior hadn’t been too out of line. And as her little brother, Kazo, grew up, blue eyes like their uncle, she found herself serving the innocent boy with the same violent abuse, as if it were just. She had singled him out to unleash her anger upon him and labeled it as teaching him strength. Vinny had left when she was so young, and only now, looking into his eyes, did she realize the reason she had put Kazo through so much… And how utterly unfair and fucked up it all was. Nhee shrank back a little.
…I’m sorry, little brother…
An unsteady breath, Nhee tried to straighten up, “…Come back with me. Father will forgive you for whatever it was! Our numbers are so small, we need to stick together, Chimera will be a powerful tribe, again! We just need the time, we need our blood together! Please, Vinny, come back with us. These kits, here, they’re outsiders, adopted into the fold, but we can make them strong. We can… ” There was pleading in her voice, but there was no mistaking the reason. Half of her plea was indeed for him to come home with her and rejoin Chimera, while the other half was a plea for mercy. He had come here with ill intent and she hadn’t forgotten that. Nhee knew full well that she was in danger. The pearl to her family was at her left ear. No doubt he had seen it. Activating it before he caught her hand at this range wasn’t likely.
Stall him, get some distance.
Formulating plans had never been her strength, she was only the muscle, the one with the fortitude to place herself between targets and take the brunt of the damage. There was no plan, there was only drive. And now, how she wished her father could tell her what to do. Her commander in Limsa, even. She needed orders! She needed to know whether to swing her axe, run, continue to talk and hope this man comes around or… Anything! Which action carried the best outcome?! Could she win against him? Would Kheo be angry for killing him?
The kits, she thought, finally in perfect clarity. Protect them.
Vinyrh canted his head, shifting his weight in a manner no sane person would, naturally. There was indeed something about his balance that felt off, as if too rigid for the lazy gaze he offered her. Sometimes, he didn’t seem to fully look at her, only around or past her. As if listening to something she could not hear. After some jerky motions with his hands, he answered quietly, resting his voice. The ever-present growl lingering upon each word.
“Go back? …Yes. I will go back. I want to see my old brother,” heavy boots clod along the floor, Nhee having stepped back and toward the room with the kits, Vinyrh kept pace with her, not allowing her room to swing the axe or open a linked channel to Chimera with the pearl. “…I wish to speak with him, hmmn.” His pale blue eyes shot over her form, detailing every move she made, waiting.
There. Vinyrh hadn’t had to wait long before the woman took her chance. Unable to gain the desired distance, she simply had gone for it, lifting a gloved hand to activate the pearl. And her uncle had reacted in much the same speed, the claws at his fist weapon struck with a casual, swift motion, blood spattering her face. She hadn’t fully registered the pain, only that her ear felt hot, or, the base of it did…
She roared, right hand griping her axe as she leapt back from him, and reached again to the pearl attached to her ear only to attain empty space… Her heart leapt and her gaze shifted about in panic, noticing something in the floor. There, where she had once stood before him, was a Miqo'te’s ear, no longer milky white, but covered in her own, fresh blood. Nhee shook for a moment, taking in such a sight before forcing herself to come to terms with it.
Despite his size, he had been much faster than she anticipated. More leaner than her father, yet, he seemed no less powerful. “I will wipe away every last Chimera,” he started, “…until I am the last one standing. My children and I, that is,” his lazy expression managed a half-hearted grin. “I will pay a visit to Rihn when I am done, here. Picking you all off, one… by… one. You and these monstrosities you call kits can go together. A fine scene for Kheo to find.” His boasting cost him his comfort, coughing slightly as the sting in his throat wore down his words.
Nhee’s adrenaline pumped fiercely, now, settling into the pull of the receding sea, ushering in the tidal wave yet to come. Her ear would be a small sacrifice, she decided, his intentions clear, now. There was no turning away from this. While she had so many questions, they would go unanswered. The mention of Rihn, of the two kits she now stood to protect, not even aware of whether they were still alive, her blood boiled. The clarity offered by the single lamp faded into blurred lines. Only he stood out as something which needed to be crushed. Rage was a simple language.
Nhee went off like a rocket, shooting forward and swinging her axe with speeds unreasonable for its size and beaten shape. Her throat burned, as if she were yelling, but Nhee couldn’t hear a thing over the static pumping of blood through her body, and ringing in her ears. She could only smell blood, she couldn’t know if it was her own, not in this state of combat. An enraptured, heavenly rush overcame her as her muscles ached with use.
In her wake, destroyed furniture, notches in the walls where the axe bit into the wood… She could only follow the male’s form and swing, her guard down considerably and any strategy she may have had was completely forgotten. Against most, a berserker was a fatal mistake to engage with… But, against those of higher skill sets and experience, it was but an obstacle to wear down over time. Vinyrh couldn’t get close enough to touch her as she was, but her body was burning through energy like a wildfire, ticking years off her life over time. He was smart to keep his distance and kept tabs of their surroundings, purposefully forcing her to embed her blade into the wall or a support beam. Anything to slow her and force her exert herself, further.
The constant screaming was quite difficult to listen to for very long, his ears tucked back in agitation. The frustration made him make irrational decisions now and again, sometimes nearly costing him if his footwork wasn’t quick, enough. And with two support beams now torn down, he was running low on ways to stall her attacks. The stone walls would have to do.
And as the blade of her axe came at him, striking instead, the stone, sparks flew, a momentary flash of light in the darkened home. She wouldn’t notice, but Vinyrh was leading the warrior in blind rage towards the kits’ room. She wouldn’t notice as she stepped over the body of Uahla in the hallway, Nhee’s boots now printing the floor boards in the other woman’s drying blood. She wouldn’t notice it as the source of the odor. She couldn’t notice.
As she came up on the doorway of the children’s room, Nhee would be unaware of Vinyrh’s plan. A bull in a china shop, or, a berserker lead into a nursery… A cruel turn of events and only fitting for a man of his variety. It would certainly save him the effort of doing it himself, and oh, the scene Kheo could find. What would be more sweet than to find his eldest child’s axe embedded in the corpses of the kits he had taken in?
Another swing just outside the room, her blade collided with the stone wall just before the doorway. Another swing towards the man, slicing air. Another step would lead her into the room. Vinyrh stepped back into the room, the sounds of the two kits trembling in their cribs the only bit of sound between Nhee’s strikes and howls in the otherwise silent household.
Nhee stepped toward the room, swinging the heavy, warrior’s weapon. The blade caught the doorway, first, sparks flying and scraping the stone. Her body jolted, unlike every previous strike, she hesitated, feeling hands upon her own for just an instant.
Steel flew in every direction. The blade shattering upon impact and the wooden body of the weapon split and splintered in her hands. It left her in enough shock to snap her into the present, cold sweat seizing her body beneath the the hot, heavy armor. The energy needed for those burst of attacks took their toll and left her vulnerable to any and all attacks as she regained her sense of self. But, no attack came. The two Chimera stood in silence for a moment, Nhee breathing hard and trying to make sense of what had just happened. Vinyrh stood with a hunch in his posture, looking down at something…
The warrior’s body began to tremble, the pieces of what Nhee believed had been the remnants of her mother lay scattered about the floor. Not a single piece of the shrapnel had struck her, despite being in such close proximity. Ghostly eyes were wide, now red with the onset of tears as she put everything of the last several minutes together. He had intended to lead her into the kits’ room… Her destructive path would have undoubtedly torn them apart. What timing for the axe to shatter…
The healthy cries of children broke her train of thought.
“…Mother? Did you--? ” she wept, suddenly. While the sacrifice wouldn’t go unnoticed, the devastation of loss now gripped her heart. The reward was great, the kits being given another chance of survival. But Nhee would have to fight without a weapon and at a quarter of her energy remaining.
Through all this, Vinyrh had been silent. So much so, she had momentarily forgotten him. Slowly, her ghostly gaze lifted to her uncle, still hunched over and staring down. Her vision followed his, taking in the sight upon the floor, the sharp scent of iron. Blood. More dripped from above, from him. And, slowly, the man straightened up, a low rumble from his throat which could have been mistaken for laughter. Driven into his chest was the largest piece of the axe’s shattered blade, blood flowing steadily from the wound. His breathing became far more labored than before.
“For a moment,” he whispered, “…I could have… sworn I saw your mother. Kala.” another strained laugh left his lips. “Impossible, though… yeah? She’s dead and you look nothing like her, now, ” he grinned. Now he raised his claws, taking a more serious stance from his usual lazy posture. With a wound like that, he lacked the time to play around. He would need a healer the moment he was finished with her. “I’ve no reservations… About killing an unarmed woman. But we are Chimera, aren’t we? Well… you are. We’re never unarmed… are you? ”
No further warning came, the man lunged at her with a sleek movement, raking his metallic claws over her armor. Strike after strike, the cringing song of sharpened metal dragging against metal, the girl now fighting to defend against his blows. At the very least, she could lead him away from the nursery. For the moment, in this narrow hall, it was all she could do. Only once the room opened up with enough space did she move against him.
Baring her teeth, she came at him, using the heavy, plated gauntlets to swing at him in any opening she could find. He was fast, too, though, and lacking the extra weight she toted about. He understood his body’s range well, her swings just barely missing his figure. And just as a battle tank, Nhee allowed him to connect with her, counting on her heavy armor to mitigate the damage. For now, she could handle this devastation, though he whittled away at her defenses.
There was one point, however, he couldn’t properly guard. A place Vinyrh couldn’t risk getting too near upon his own body for concern he could damage himself, further. Upon the first certain opportunity, the ivory warrior went on the offensive, pushing into his space and spinning her body, catching his right hand’s claws in her left, plated boot, knocking away his guard. From there, came her right fist, driving against the large sliver of her axe further into his chest. Blood spattered her face, throwing the male back several steps. And as he moved to come back at her, blood seeping from his lips, Nhee refused to let up, spinning once again and slamming the heel of her right boot further into his chest.
He stumbled, but did not fall, though his onslaught came to a decisive halt. Now his breathing was ragged, his stare more awake than before and angry. A little shocked, as well. He grinned, blood-stained canines bared at his niece.
“My, how you’ve grown. ” Nhee didn’t let up, devastated by the loss of her mother’s presence, she acted far too swiftly for him to continue to speaking. She shot out with her left hand, triggering a spring-loaded mechanism within her the gauntlet, the male was caught around the neck by the chain kept coiled there. With one powerful yank, she drew her uncle forward and down, reaching out with her right hand to grip the collar of his shirt and throw him into the floor. A web of cracks erupted around the two of them as the force of impact ravaged the floor. The structure of the building had long-since been compromised when she tore down the support beams. Now, collapse was inevitable. It was only a matter of when.
Though it took a moment, the savage man rose to his feet, Nhee having no choice but to allow it, her own body, she could feel, was tearing at its very ligaments, the strain still lingering from her berserking rampage and carried over to the strength needed for that last attack. She had managed only to back away from him before her body had begun to tense up. Blood had begun to drain from her nose and mouth, even her eyes. Every muscle felt as if in a vice’s grip, too rigid to budge, and unable to move. He, however, seemed to be doing decently despite it all.
They say madness has a knack for allowing one to walk through fire without feeling the lick of the flames. And as he stood, there seemed a fluid motion to him even as his clawed weapons dropped to the floor in an ear-ringing collision. The chain around his neck hadn’t done the job intended, the one place he wore armor had been enough to save his trachea. The thick, bronze band had held up. Vinyrh had learned his lesson ages ago about an exposed throat. The chain unraveled frim his neck, and fell harmlessly aside. Her gauntlet’s catch also released the spent chain.
His head was tilted downward, but his pale, blue eyes were locked intently upon her, wide and focused. Blood dripped from his broken nose as well as several cuts to his face where the shattered tiles of the floor had sped past him. Both panted, now. Up until this point, Nhee’s armor had protected her body, the majority of the damage internal and self-inflicted.
“You…” He began to speak, that growling, scarred voice cutting through the darkness of the tattered home. One heavy boot moved closer, and then the other, seeking her out, raising his right hand slowly as he neared. Lazy as he had been, in the beginning, Vinyrh had become driven, and eager to finish this–he now carried a life-threatening wound in need of treatment.
He was upon her, now, and she felt she should be trembling if her body had not locked up, it was a wonder she could still stand. He curled fingers into the neck of her beaten armor and pulled, her body was at his mercy. She could feel a tightness in her chest as panic began to take a toll upon her. Her rage tapped out, Nhee knew she was low on resources and adrenaline hadn’t been kind, either.
“You,” he began, again, “…have a lot to learn. Still… So… inexperienced! So… young.” Vinyrh struck her repeatedly, bloodying her face and breaking her nose, though she still managed to stare him in the eye after every blow. Both Chimera breathed in shallow, labored breaths. The shard of metal forced into Vinyrh’s chest, earlier, had likely become very close with one of his lungs. And as he began to tire of swinging left-handed, Nhee’s body jolted to life one last time, accepting flight over fight.
Taking advantage of his slowed strikes, her weak hands reached up to her own armor and she was quick to disassemble the straps to slip free, leaving him with the, now worthless, cuirass. Nothing protected her chest, only her blue undershirt and chest bindings beneath that. But she was alive.
Vinyrh threw the damaged cuirass aside and descended upon his niece once again, just as the woman was getting back to her feet. A swift kick brought her back down, the sickening crunch of ribs unprotected by armor, Nhee fell back against the kitchen table and then to the floor. They were back where the fight had begun, having lead him away from the children’s room.
The ivory Chimera lay crumbled against the floor, curling into a fetal position as she felt the sharp pains of her ribs. Something must have been punctured by them, blood had began to fill her mouth. Yet, she was still of a sane mind, and she had planned to lead him out of the house, if she could stand. She had to stand. He would kill her, if she didn’t stand. He would kill the kits, and then Rihn, Kazo, Kheo. Yera, she would not be spared, nor the kit she carried within her womb.
This battle… It had to end here. Her life weighed little in comparison to all those he would proceed to hunt down. And if she didn’t make it out, and he did, they would have to at least be warned. They had to know what came their way. Nhee was not confident she would be there to stand with them when Vinyrh focused them down. Too much blood. She kept spitting to the side as it pooled around her tongue.
The door was not far. It she could get up, she could run. She may even make it to an outpost. She could be saved. He was just as badly injured, she could make it. Nhee was, in fact, very confident she could make it.
And leave him with the kits? No.
Her ghostly white irises suddenly caught sight of something just behind him upon the floor. He seemed unaware of it, even as she turned her attention to it, briefly. Covered in her own blood, the woman’s left ear, the link pearl still attached. Retrieving it would put her back into his range and without any energy left to fight. But, if she could send out the alarm, and save her remaining family, it was worth it. He would get a hold of her, he would kill her, he would turn around and finish the kits. And for this knowledge, Nhee abruptly wept in the moment. The three would die together and her sister, her brother, her father, the new Chimera blood coming into the world would survive. That was all she could ever want, now.
Her tears swam through the blood trickling down her face, standing out brilliantly against snow-kissed skin. Nhee suddenly cried out, grabbed a chair near the table she had collided with only moments before and snapped a leg from it, charging toward her deranged uncle, keeping low to the floor. She held the length of wood out in front of her horizontally. Twelve willing, he was slower, now.
A horrific crunch assaulted their ears as the male moved just too slow. Having seen her intention, he had attempted to avoid the inevitable. She missed his knee, but the wood broke over his shin, likely fracturing the tibia, his boot saving him from serious injury. The shock of pain was all she had needed, sliding along the floor on her armored knees, snatching up her severed ear, her heart racing and giving her throat little rest of the blood continually flowing through it.
Vinyrh grunted and bellowed in anger, stumbling in his stance. He turned to face her, blocking the exit, now. But that had been expected, she knew exactly what she had done. He stood with a crooked stance, drawing two short knives from his waist. Crippled and exhausted, he was on her faster than she would have liked. With his injured leg, he slammed his heel against her collar bone and threw her onto her back. Nhee retaliated with her right leg out to try and knock him back, but he had been ready and instead, slammed the same heel against her attacking knee. She cried out as the joint bent back before colliding with the hard floor. She was out of time. There was no leaving this house, calling to her family was all there was left to do. Clutching her lost ear, Nhee activated the device attached.
The link pearl came to life, every member of Chimera’s pearl would crackle with the sounds of her own, damaged by blood and impact. No time for lengthy conversation, the sound of daggers sliding along one another. Her voice finally came over the waves, sounding as if drowning, constantly spitting the blood from her mouth. She struggled to breath through it and speak at the same time.
“The ki- … The kits are… in danger…!! He’s–”
The open link fell silent, her hand trapped beneath the man’s heavy boot and the pearl crushed. Defeated, Nhee stared up to her uncle and smiled, despite it all. “They are… not far, Vinny. You won’t… survive like this… Father will… finish… it.”
His expression darkened, staring down to his niece with a hatred she had never understood. Why had he hated her all these years? She had never done anything to him. She couldn’t help her lack of colour. She had wanted nothing more than to look like all of them, to belong with them. It was easy to say she worked the hardest to receive praise and acceptance. But, Vinyrh had never been able to accept her. He hated her, always, and she just didn’t know why.
“I’m so… grateful I could see… you, again. …I’m so sorry. I was never …good enough. But, to be killed… by Chimera… That is… favorable.” Her breathing slowed. She had begun to ease herself and fade, calm in the acceptance of her end. She’d done all she could and she only hoped it would be enough.
There was some conflict in his own, bloodied face. His eyes were far less empty than when he originally struck at her. Beyond the agony and loss of blood, behind his hate and anger, something seemed lost. He wrinkled his nose, thinking more than he wanted to. A few moments passed as he stared down to his broken niece. Long, wild, cream-coloured tresses were matted with blood, the braid only barely holding together after such a trial.
Shallow breaths, hers much quieter than his own, now. He only stared for what felt like eternity. Crystal blue eyes set upon her white gaze as it began to dull. Nhee spoke no more, her words spent and without the energy or mind for it, she simply began to let herself slip away. Quietly, he sheathed his daggers, realizing he had no need for them; this fight was finished.
Vinyrh was a thinker, like his brother. It was reflected in those pale blues as he watched her die. His wound beckoned he leave and tend to it, his instincts told him to leave before Kheo appeared. In this condition, he would be no match for the Nunh. Instead, he chose to kneel down, slip his hands beneath her body and turn her over, allowing the blood to drain from her mouth rather than let her simply choke on it. Perhaps to prolong her suffering, perhaps to allow her the chance to say goodbye to her father when he arrived. She would die, either way. The damage was done. Only a talented healer stood a chance at saving her. And they would need to act fast.
She watched him for as long as she could, but her world began to grow dark as her consciousness withdrew. Vinyrh simply turned and began to limp from the house, certain he did not wish to be there when Chimera came around. The kits were left alone, perhaps as some act of mercy or the rushing need to mend his own injuries and not be caught unprepared.
Despite the pain of his vocal cords, he spoke out into the night sky as he left the house behind. “Brother… because of you, they will all suffer. But, don’t fret for your oldest daughter. She chose her death, something denied to many. Be proud of her willpower and strength. As for you… I will take every one of your children and your mates from you. Just as you took mine from me.”
[[ special thanks to @prozdvoices for Vinyrh’s voice! ]]
@chimera-tribe @madmeanderings
kaledo-art
andulkaphoto
yousharknotpass
kianamaiart
blakekathryn
2087
gummygunk
theartofmadeline
janainaart
