Grace of An Elder

Chapter 30

Tah'kath stood before the Council of Ancients, all of their beady eyes staring down at him from behind their aged faces. T'ahrou stood behind him, the large gash still prominent on his torso. It was not often that he was placed in this position, but it was never for a good reason. "What say have you, Elder?"

"Ancients, I come before you today on behalf of the Young Blood, T'ahrou. He witnessed another Young Blood attempting to escape after making an attempt on my daughter's life. This Young Blood then turned on T'ahrou and he defended himself as any of the rest of us would have in his situation. During the struggle, the rogue Young Blood lost the battle and in doing so also lost his life." The Ancients said nothing, and Tah'kath fought back the nervous clicks that wanted desperately to escape his throat. "As you can see by his chest, T'ahrou did not walk away unscathed."

"Is the daughter you speak of the pyode-amedha pup that you brought to our planet several decacyles ago?" Tah'kath nodded and the Ancient snorted. "I see no problem with what the Young Blood did, and I see no reason for you to label him as a rogue!"

"Regardless of her birthright," another Ancient spoke up, "she was raised in the way of the Yautja. She should be allowed the same rights as everyone else."

"She must prove herself in the chiva before she can be considered one of us! Until she bears the mark of a Blooded Warrior, she will forever be pyode-amedha refuse!"

A third Ancient turned his attention to T'ahrou now, completely disregarding his arguing companions as well as the Elder standing before them. "Will you be joining the coming chiva as well, Young Blood?"

"Yes, Ancient One." The Ancient clicked approvingly before leaning back in his seat. "Then we will allow the both of you to prove yourselves. Your ability, or lack thereof, to become Blooded during the chiva will show us where to guide our decisions for judgement."

"You can't be serious, J'nu!" The first Ancient shouted at the third, a low growl underlying his words. "You intend to let him walk away without punishment for his actions?!"

"At least until we have a chance to investigate the matter further. We have the Young Blood's bio-mask. Well will see first-hand what his intentions were." He turned his attention to the Elder and waved dismissively. "You may go, Elder. Take the Young Blood with you." The two males bowed low before turning on their heels and walking swiftly out of the council chamber.
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Dahdtoudi's grey eyes fluttered open as she took in the sight of a raised metallic ceiling. The smell that filled her nostrils was one of sanitizing chemicals and other strange odors. The sounds in the room were warped as her ears were submerged beneath some sort of warm liquid, and it felt as if something pulled against her skin as she breathed. Gently she lifted a hand from the liquid and moved it to her abdomen where she traced her fingers along a small pad-like device that was stuck to her skin.

The headache she was experiencing was excruciating to say the least, and she wondered how and when she got here. Dahdtoudi tried to stand up in the fluid, but her legs wouldn't respond. Just weak, she thought, I've probably just been in this for too long...

She tried again to stand, but again she failed. She lifted her head out of the liquid and placed it back down; no problem there. One arm already worked, so she moved the other to test its function: it was fine as well. She began to flex every muscle within her body as an experiment, only to discover that she could not move anything from the waist down. A cold, numb sensation began to spread throughout the parts of her body that she could feel, and her heart began to beat harder in her chest.

Broken memories began to flash in her mind, and she suddenly wanted to be out of this tank at all costs. She saw herself being forced beneath the water of the oasis pool and her chest began to feel tight. A beeping alarm sounded from nearby and soon she heard heavy footsteps approaching. A'ytu peered over the edge, concern clear in his expression.

"Please get me out of here..! I don't want to be here..!" Confusion graced his features for a moment before realization hit and he began to lift her from the vat, her legs falling uselessly over one of his arms as the other braced against her back. "What happened?!"

"You need to calm yourself. I can't understand what you are saying, child."

"Paya, my speech is broken too!!" A'ytu seemed to sense her distress and simply rolled his eyes. Females could be so damn dramatic.