The exile looked ahead. They were both in stealth. After walking miles to reach something that wasn't a wasteland, they saw a forest. It had burned. Clouds of ashes and charred trees as far as they could see. Yet something stirred.

Unfortunate for us. It was barely discernable, but the hunter spoke english. She was surprised to see that her attempts at teaching him to speak did not fall on deaf ears. There was no time to say anything else. With the confusion from the forest fires making infrared useless, the hunter switched through many modes. It seemed that the creatures communicated with a form of silent sonar. A vision mode that was sensitive to sound he had customized into his mask was able to track them when they spoke to one another. The humanoids did not notice the camoflauged hunters, so they sat back and watched. They ran in packs, they were hunting. The hunters were only surviving.

The creatures they were studying began to act irratic and scared. A few of them even seemed to look straight at the hunters. They knew they were being followed. It did not matter however, they had found what they were hunting. The massive beast was feeding on dead trees. Sucking every last nutrient from the scorched forest. The pack leader was bigger than the rest of them. They fed like wolves, bringing the creature down with overwhelming numbers.

Neleh saw the hunter winding up a shot on the biggest of them. She stopped him from ruthlessly killing the big one. It was then Halkrath realized that hunting these things just to kill would mean nothing to him. So he steadied his hand. My name is Halkrath, shadow in spoken. A lesser son to greater ancestors. Though most of it sounded distorted, Neleh understood him perfectly. Their ways have forced me away from all I considered friends. His words were quiet. They seemed to transmit right into Neleh's refitted biomask. Instead of hunting these creatures for trophies, they decided to follow them. Perhaps they had water. Neleh was feeling weak. Halkrath could tell. Her bio-signatures were deteriorating.

As Halkrath watched them from a burned tree top, his weight caused him to fall. The stealth had malfunctioned. He stood up towering over the humanoids who had quickly surrounded him. They began attacking him like a school of piranha. It was now that Halkrath lost control of himself. His green blood was splattering around as he attempted to slice them apart in self defense. After most lay dead, the big one approached him. Halkrath was breathing heavily, gripping his hands until the knuckles cracked. He jumped at the pack leader, holding it up by its throat to a tree examining his skull structure. They had no eyes, just pits to sense heat and very large ears that looked like the side of its head. It was armed with razor sharp teeth and claws. It was tearing at the flesh on Halkrath's arm, desperately trying to escape. Halkrath calmly rose his other arm, as it flailed around in panic. The creature was no more. Halkrath left the body. There was no sense in taking it as a trophy. It was simply defending its territory. They were relatively harmless one on one anyway.

Halkrath showed no pain. He sat in a treetop alone administering medicine to his bite and claw wounds. Neleh climbed up the tree to help him. Let me, she said. This was a strange feeling for him. Never had anyone cared so much about him. It made him question the live he had lived for so many years. For pride and honor. Things that meant nothing to him anymore. He now was consumed with vengeance on the praetorian that killed his brother. Drawing it in the volcanic ash from time to time. Speaking about it in his own dialect when alone around a fire. Senselessly sharpening his wristblades. Lost on a world where they would surely both die if water was not found. They both were very weak.

Neleh awoke the next morning in the tree. Halkrath was nowhere to be found. He had left his mask, Neleh knew he would return soon. Little did she know that he was using all his energy to jump and sprint through these dismal forests searching for water for her. It seemed hopeless. Then he found a foul mud pit. He dug deep down into the ground. He had found water. He filled up every piece of gear and every container he could. He began running the way he came. Suddenly a large net carried him off his feet. The pack was back, they wanted to eat him. There were many more. A dark armored looking one approached. He exhibited behavior of there overall leader. Halkrath extended his blades and in one slash with both arms dropped out of the net. Before he could get his footing he was feeling woozy and collapsed. He had been poisoned. 

Halkrath has been gone too long, Neleh said to herself. She quickly made haste with all her remaining strength to a waypoint that was installed in her mask to find Halkrath if they had gotten separated for too long. She arrived at there village. It was lush and green. Untouched by the fires of the world. Halkrath was unconcious hanging precariously over a fire. She had to get him out of this situation. But how? She had to embrace his ways. More now than ever, for Halkrath would be eaten by the ignorant humanoids.

She had to make a choice now. A stealthy rescue or to destroy them and spread fear into their hearts, if they even had them..