Kripa Arc II

Makuta had been dragging the red priestess through the jungle for many days on end, hardly giving her time to rest and no goal in sight. She didn’t know what his plan was, he never talked about it, but she knew it couldn’t be anything good. At first she still tried to use any waking moment to escape his grasp, but soon enough noticed there was no way to run from the devilish hob. Without remorse he just urged her to move on and she had to give in. Finally, after what seemed like an eternity in his command, they reached his territory and he crossed its border with a smug grin in his face, immediately refreshing his long faded scent marks.

«Luck for you, princess. We’re home.»

Home. It wasn’t HER home though. During her journey she could never stop thinking about her whelps left at the temple, but especially Amadi, who had been killed ruthlessly by the monster next to her, taken before his time. And no one would be able to bring him back, not even her or the gods. She had to fight back the tears, trying everything to not let the beast beside her see she was vulnerable. And all that was left for her to do was try and protect her remaining offspring, at least as best as she could so far away from them.

Every night she whimpered hopelessly, seeing how the life vanished from her sons eyes in his final moments and every time this nightmare reappeared, she knew she was helpless, there was nothing she could do to safe him. The blood was sticking to her paws as it spread over the stony temple ground every time she closed her eyes. And she could still smell the copper in her nose. That horrible stench of death. She had known there’s evil in the world, and she hadn’t been the best she could’ve been either, but this the priestess would’ve never seen coming. The gods had not offered her visions or prophecies of such a horrifying turn of events.

After they had walked a while in the blood red hobs territory, they went around a corner and found themselves next to a rock wall with a large hole leading inside. The Mayur pushed her into it and the Tatra jill looked around in confusion, noticing with despair she was enclosed in a large cave with no other exit.

«I’m gonna need you a while longer, so you’re gonna have to stay put here. But I know you’d never do that out of your own will so…»

Her back was towards the caramel colored hob as she was still searching the wall in front of her for any way out, and at his words her ears twitched anxiously, but before she could turn around and look at him, she felt a strong hit on the back of her head and lost consciousness, everything turning black in the blink of an eye.

Makuta had planned this out in detail while he was on his journey, his ideas coming to life as his dark scheme unraveled. The cave he had found a long time ago, planning to use it as a trap in case someone would come and hunt him down for what he had done in his past, but it got more useful as a prison right now. While the priestess was out cold, he collected some vines from the trees of the area and wrapped them loosely around his neck while he continued to explore the territory, searching for some of the indigenous, poisonous frogs. It didn’t take long for him to find them, even though he had been gone for a while, but they were still right where he remembered the creatures to be. Without thinking twice, he rubbed the plant ropes on the backs of the amphibians, which he pressed down so they couldn't escape, drenching the vines in the frogs venom, making them dangerous to anyone who wasn’t a Mayur like himself. Only the end of the rope he kept clean, as to not kill his victim right away. He walked back to the cave and tied the ropes around the jills neck and tightly on some stalagmites on either side, even rolling a heavy rock onto it so she wouldn’t be able to move the vines anymore. As soon as she was caught in his trap, he lay down in front of her and waited for the priestess to wake up again.

It took her a while, the surprise hit having knocked her out quite badly. When she finally squinted into the dim light getting into the cave, she didn’t know where she was at first, looking around in confusion. She saw the blurry shape of the red hob in front of her, but it seemed like nothing more than a nightmare to her at first, only when he didn’t disappear and a deep, satisfied growl came from his throat, she noticed it was reality and her vision cleared as her eyes widened in fear, her body shaking uncontrollably.

«What…what do you want from me..?»

«Oh, I’m gonna tell you, now that you’re my prisoner I won’t have to fear you might take off on your own. Just so you know, those ropes around you are poisonous. Try to bite yourself loose and you’re gonna die, just like your stupid brood. I wouldn’t try it if I were you, just so you know. At least not if you wanna see your remaining whelps again.»

«But..but what’s the reason behind all this? What could I possibly do for you?»

«You have a link to the spirit realm. I need to make contact to my son who’s untraceable, at least to me.»

«If that is what it takes then I guess I can do that, but you don't need to keep me tied up like this. Will you let me go if I help you?»

«I can’t make any promises but…I’ll keep you alive if that’s what you want.»

«…»

«Of course I could look for someone else to help me out with this if you’re unwilling, but then you’d be of no use to me anymore. And you don’t wanna see what I do with someone who’s more of a burden to me than a help.»

«I understand. I will do as you please.»

«Good. I never expected anything else.»

He walked closer to her and brushed one of his claw along her chin and while her whole body screamed to bite him or step back, the red Tatra knew she had to endure it and the hob grinned widely as she snarled at him in response, but not moving a muscle.

«You know, I like my jills fiesty and you're definitely one of them. Don't keep holding back and acting so delicately, I know you're not.»

The priestess answered not by attacking or running, but by spitting him in the face, her saliva running down the side of his face, but his grin didn't disappear.

«See? Wasn't so hard, right? Now just wait here and I'll come back soon to tell you what you need to do for me.»

Another growl, then a defeated nod.

«Yes.»

As always the blood red hob got what he wanted. He could be very convincing if he wanted to be and he knew that fairly well.

And without one last glance back he exited the cave, leaving Melisandre behind, and proceeded to roll a large boulder in front of the entrance, taking even the last possibility of escaping and of someone else finding her as well. And as the boulder rolled into place, the last rays of light got shut out, leaving the terrorized jill in complete darkness...and even worse, in silence.

A bit away but in the same general location, the snake jill sat in front of her kobel and looked around, searching for her partner. Ishtar was growing restless, as Makuta had been gone for many quarter moons now and she didn’t know if something had happened to him or if he might have even abandoned her like any other female before her. Her belly had grown much rounder and larger with every day and it wouldn’t take much longer until her second litter would be born, she knew that.

As she was staring off into the distance like every evening, tears collecting in her eyes, thinking about how she’d lose her second litter as well if she wouldn’t have a hob to suckle them, she bit her lip in worry. But suddenly she heard a rustling from the bushes below her. Expecting to see a jewel stag or ibean magpie bursting through the ferns, she was caught off guard as a red, familiar pelt pushed through the undergrowth, the head of her partner looking up towards the kobel and smirking at her as usual.

«Hey babe, I’m back. Did you miss me?»

The tears disappeared and she jumped down from the tree as fast as possible despite her impairment, waddling up to him and cuddling up to the Mayur.

«Gods, I was so scared something might have happened to you! Is everything alright?!»

«I’m fine.»

«Did you…take Rahkshi with you?»

A sick feeling arose in her stomach as she spoke his name, hoping intently he’d say no and that the horrible torturer of her whelps would be dead and gone.

«Not yet but I’m on the right track to find him.»

«Oh…I see. Well…Our whelps are fine if you wanna know. I’ve had troubles hunting lately but the fish in the large river close by have been numerous so I have kept myself above water until now.»

«You’re not gonna have to bother yourself to find food anymore, I’ll serve you from now on till the birth of our whelps, my queen. You just stay in your nest and relax.»

His voice changed from the usual charming purr with which he wrapped every jill around his claw to a cocky and sarcastic tone as he winked at her mischievously.
«And don't you dare taking a walk through the territory on your own! I don't want you to get too exhausted. If I see you sneaking around I'll drag you back home myself if necessary.»

She giggled, sincerely believing he meant what he said in a funny and overprotective way. But behind Makutas grinning mask, his bad intentions unraveled.

And she had no idea about it…yet.