Interstellar Misconceptions

The Stressful Life of a Giant Cat-Dad

Compared to most A'zawa would like to think he is well informed of the effects of the Nepru's gas. It would be hard for him to not be knowledgeable about it as Nepru gas was constantly used by criminals to incapacitate their victims, whether the Nepru wanted to or not. It helped that he happened to be friends with a Nepru who was completely willing to answer almost any questions he had.

Knowing what he did he knew that logically the Deathworlder shouldn't have been awake as soon as it was. Even if the Deathworlder had been completely unattracted to the Nepru that knocked it out it should still be out for at least a hida, yet it started to wake up after just one hika. Luckily it seemed like the Nepru gas still had a lingering effect on the Dankuth so it wasn't much of a threat at the moment.

Scratch what A'zawa had previously thought. It took less than five bunutes for the Dankuth to fully wake up. As soon as it did it started looking around, but it hadn't noticed A'zawa and the kit yet. He made sure the kit was hidden behind him before looking back at the Dankuth.

He was just in time to see exactly when the Deathworlder realized it wasn't alone. The Dankuth's eyes widened and it stared at A'zawa for a few bunutes. It seemed to stare at his tails and eyes the most, looking for weaknesses if A'zawa had to guess. Then the Dankuth's eyes moved downward which confused A'zawa until he saw that the kit had stuck its head out from behind him and was now being examined as well. The Dankuth seemed particularly interested in the Kit's vine-coated horn. This action confused A'zawa as Dankuth were assumed to be carnivores based on their violent attitude. Maybe plants confused it.

Once the Deathworlder's attention turned toward the guards A'zawa took the opportunity to examine it. It had a small clump of green fur on the top of its head, maybe for camouflage purposes. Otherwise, it didn't seem to have any sort of armor against attacks or temperature. Its front-facing eyes helped cement the fact that despite its appearances it was a predator. There seemed to be dots all over it but A'zawa couldn't tell if they were natural markings or some sort of war paint.

"Kit be careful. That's a Deathworlder," A'zawa says.

"A Deathworlder?" She asks.

"Yeah kit," A'zawa says. "Their species is called Dankuth, and they are very dangerous. If we aren't careful it could attack us. Just stay by me, I'll keep you safe."

"Okay sir."

"Don't call me sir, kit. My name's A'zawa."

"I'm Eri."

After a few hidas the guards came around with their meal. The Dankuth immediately went to investigate the food, making it impossible for A'zawa to go and get his and Eri's food. The Dankuth wasted no time grabbing their bottle of Metai, then it moved onto the bowls. As he watched it stir the food he could tell that the Deathworlder found the substance in the bowls to be visually unappealing, and given that it was probably Metayu he understood. The Deathworlder lifted the spoon to its mouth and was about to eat the Metayu but suddenly stopped and put the whole bowl back on the food tray. It retreated back to the corner after that.

A'zawa quickly grabbed the tray and dragged it over to Eri, keeping a few eyes on the Dankuth not trusting its apparent peacefulness.

"A'zawa why did it not take any food?" Eri asks.

"I don't know kit," A'zawa says.

The Dankuth's actions over the next few hidas seemed strange to A'zawa. It spent a few days watching the guards, and it even reached out of the cell to mess with the lock a few times. It would occasionally glance over at A'zawa and Eri before going back to whatever it had been doing before.