Prey

Chapter 2 - Abomination

The tiny creature was hardly a threat. This ooman was puny. Unworthy of a proper chase.

I only felt rage when the ooman, human, appeared from the smoke. Among the mass of bodies that lay at my feet she was the last thing I expected to see.

This u'darahje, this abomination, this waste of flesh and bone was a stain upon the Yautja race. My kind are feared throughout the stars due to our genetic superiority. All this tiny creature did was muddy such a legacy with its inferior genes.

Humans can, and are, worthy game, their clever thinking giving them the edge over the brute force of the Yautja; this little creature was not worthy, however. I wanted to crush her right then and there, but I saw a fire in those weird yellow eyes, a mutation thanks to the human involvement. Killing the pathetic soldiers of this human facility gave me no joy.

It was too gkei'moun, easy. I wanted a challenge. A real challenge.

These soldiers were weak and inferior, their bodies too slow and their fear insulting. I am a creature born to enjoy the hunt but this was just a slaughter. They brought it upon themselves by attacking me. With their weapons they came forth, grossly underestimating my superiority. Even as more came I only felt boredom.

I could only snarl in anger that this was it so far. This was all that Earth had to offer.

It wasn't until she literally fell against me, appearing from the smoke like the demon she is, that I felt excitement. Inferior and weak she was, yes, but there was no fear in her weird eyes. She would give me a fight, even if it would be easy due to her tiny little body.

The Yautja DNA and blood had changed her body, though nothing extreme. Her skin had patches of light green scales around her neck and on her hands, the rest likely covered by the clothing she wore. She had tried to blend in with the other oomans but I could tell she was not like the others. The hybrid even had the nerve to growl at me.

If I wasn't so fueled with rage over such a boring hunt then I would've laughed at such a sight. Her actions were similar to that of a suckling, a child.

No creature would dare try such a thing. At least a creature with a brain. The hybrid seemed to have no such thing. When she questioned what I was, my mask translating it in real time as she spoke, I was slightly taken aback. Her voice was unexpected, sounding soft and feathery.

Hearing it made me want to cut her tongue out. No filthy abomination would dare speak to a Yautja with such inferior altered genes.

It was when she started the chase that I finally felt something other than boredom. The hunt was on. With a snarl I killed another soldier as he came for me and made myself invisible. Kicking down a door I stomped my way into the thick forest after her.

I took a few moments to clean my weapons, stalling on purpose so the hybrid could have a head start. She'd have a fair amount of time to have a false sense of security before I would go after her. Her scent was still strong so finding her would be easy.

Again she was like a suckling. A suckling knew not how to tread lightly, to climb a tree without making a sound, to hide one's tracks, nothing. It knew nothing.

She knew nothing.

She's the culmination of a science experiment. A lab rat.

Nothing more.

An hour passed before I set off in search of her. I quickly found that her scent was still strong, leading me on a winding erratic path. Perhaps she was smarter than I gave her credit for. The hybrid at least was attempting to make her trail difficult to follow; the trail was easy for me.

I've hunted much bigger targets, all hybrids as of late. My clan has Enforcers strictly for this purpose. Enforcers hunt down Badbloods, Yautja who have broken the honor codes, but my job is to hunt hybrids.

Again, hybrids muddy the waters of our superior genetics.

I shifted my attention to a bush to my left where I saw a faint heat signature. Staying cloaked I approached, switching through various spectrums of vision until I could see what it was.

A shoe as humans call it. Two shoes.

Switching to another spectrum, I could see the outline of her foot prints in the dirt. I followed them deeper into the forest.

The forest was quiet, very quiet, with only the breeze stirring up the leaves in the trees. Leaves shhhhed against one another in that breeze. Birds chirping was rare, most likely due to my presence. Hardly any noise being made by the nature around me made it easier to listen for the heartbeat of a human, one in particular. All was quiet, however.

The silence would've been eerie if I didn't enjoy it.

Earth was just another backwater primitive planet but something about it was beautiful, so full of intriguing flora and fauna. Yautja Prime is more of a jungle environment while Earth is cooler and temperate like this forest. This planet was also home to a cunning and sneaky species. To kill one of its natives in combat was a source of pride for many of my race.

Further into the woods I continued until I heard the familiar sound I had heard only two hours ago. The sun had sunk in the horizon and nighttime was here.

This was my favorite time to hunt.

I could hear her heartbeat not too far ahead. Ascending a tree, I jumped through the trees, being careful to quickly relieve the branch of my heavy weight. After testing my weight on a thick branch I sat and watched my prey from above.

The hybrid nestled herself into a natural rut in the ground where she had built a small fire. In the light from the fire I could make out her features more, the sight different than the typical hybrids I killed. For one, her hair was drawn back in two thick braids down her back. Another thing about her was the way she kept checking her surroundings, taking in all.

This abomination was a timid thing. Cautious about her surroundings.

I learned curious things about her when the breeze was suddenly not in my favor. I saw the moment my h' dui'se, scent, reached her. Immediately she was on her feet and surveying the darkness. Her nostrils flared as I watched her body heat increase exponentially. Typically a hybrid would be running at this point but she was not.

She stood there turning in circles.

I pondered if I should reveal myself to give her an excuse to run again. In the end I chose not to. Let her smell me and wonder what was out there in the darkness. Fear would eventually take hold of her tiny brain.

It always did with prey. A hybrid would be no different.

Her eyes wandered up into the trees. Those weird yellow eyes saw everything but nothing at the same time. She wouldn't be able to see me with the darkness enhancing my cloaked form. I chuckled inwardly at how much danger this creature had no idea she was in.

This hunt was proving interesting.

I wanted to curse when a stronger breeze made the branch I sat on groan beneath my weight. Said breeze also blasted the hybrid with my scent again, only this time she reacted differently.

She kicked out the fire and strapped a bag to her shoulders. The area was plunged into darkness. My vision didn't change. I could see her perfectly fine, her body heat the giveaway.

"Come get me, mother fucker." Her arms spread wide as she backed away before turning heel into a run. She was fast, faster than I anticipated.

I snarled in excitement and commenced the chase, dropping to the ground after her.