[IC] Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth heard Janius' words, but she couldn't bring herself to believe them, not when she could feel its presence crawling under her scales. Panic had consumed her, so she kept running long after her father had been left behind. She ran in no particular direction, just wanting to get away from anyone she could hurt. She ran until her legs failed her and she fell onto her hands and knees. She continued to sob, her arms shaking and nearly causing her to collapse into the mud. Janius stood over her, and she was sure he was probably talking to her, but she could hear nothing over the sounds of her own cries. There was nothing she could do to stop it now. She finally looked up and made eye contact with him. "Janius, I...not werewolf."

The beast had weakened her mind to the point that it could finally emerge. She screamed out in pain as it started to overwhelm her body. Her bones began to break and reform as her body grew around them. Instead of fur, her scales thickened and her tail lengthened. Her jaws and teeth grew in size while her claws elongated. By the end of her transformation, her form was similar to that of a large daedroth; she was a werecrocodile. Her version of lycanthropy made her even larger and stronger than a werewolf, though not nearly as fast nor agile out of water. The bite force on her massive jaws were stronger than almost any other creature on Nirn, though her senses were not improved at all from her basic Argonian form. Standing to her feet, she looked down on Janius with a low, rumbling growl. As a crocodile, she did not have the same kind of pack mentality as a werewolf, so it was only the fact that she regarded him as her mate that kept her from attacking. She was not completely out of control like the first time she turned, but neither was she completely in control.

[Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth finally stopped, stumbling over herself and continuing to sob. Janius knelt down beside her and placed his hand on her back. "Kaleeth, it's going be okay, I promise. It can be overwhelming at first, but remember what I said, it's not something that has to rule you." Janius tried to comfort her, but Kaleeth didn't seem to react. By her body language, she might be close to transforming. Her final words took the comprehension from Janius' voice. "... what?" He whispered.

Suddenly, Kaleeth's back began to warp and change form before Janius' eyes, startling him. He got up and stepped back to give her space to transform, but what she turned into was not something that Janius recognised. "No. Surely not..." Janius said under his breath.

No wonder he didn't recognise the smell as a werewolf. This could only be one thing. A werecrocodile. Janius had only heard about such creatures in passing. He looked up at its face with astonishment, and a little fear. He did not know how to handle this. He couldn't read that face. He could only hear it growl.

"Kaleeth, I know that's still you," Janius said, keeping eye contact with the beast but rapidly unclasping his armour and his belt. He didn't want to have to transform to subdue her, but he was prepared to. "I know it may seem like you are a slave to your beast spirit, but it is simply an animal. A creature of instinct bound to you. It will only hurt people if it is desperate or scared, and it will pick up on your own fear. I need you to listen to me: Everything will be alright. I promise."

[EliteCommander]

Once again, Kaleeth heard the words that Janius spoke, but was too overwhelmed to comprehend them. Her mind was not entirely hers. It was not completely the beast's like last time, but she could not claim complete control of her actions. In all honesty, she could not tell where its thoughts ended and hers began; her mind was wrapped up in its instincts and basic desires. Fortunately, her beast did not have a desire to kill her mate, but it still wanted to kill, and it was not going to be denied. The best she could possibly do was to go along with it, but to direct it somewhere else, anywhere else.

After staring down Janius for a few moments, Kaleeth picked a direction and suddenly started running in search for prey, though she was not particularly quick in this form on land. It would not be difficult at all for Janius to keep up, but Kaleeth's conscious mind was doing the best she could to just ignore him. The less she thought about him, the less urges she would have to kill him. There were no scents of prey in the air that she could track, but nevertheless, she was moving with a rather confident purpose.

[Muttonhawk]

As if Janius' words were nothing, Kaleeth's lumbering form turned and ran. Janius figured that she was completely overcome. Thankfully it gave him just enough time to drop his armour and equipment, then transform into a wolf himself. He kept his distance for now, but still followed her, making sure she didn't get into any trouble. He kept the location of the river in mind for when they would head back to the village.

Janius' beast spirit was cautious about this new creature, if anything. It was big and dangerous, and it most certainly was not a fellow werewolf. Janius kept control enough to fight off the urge to avoid the werecrocodile. By its size and apparent strength, fighting the creature would be a bad idea without help. Both he and his beast spirit agreed on that much.

After a few moments, Janius realised that he would have some explaining to do as Zharanthixil would inevitably find his belongings strewn on the ground before his tracks turned into large pawprints in the mud. However, with what Kaleeth was now, he doubted that the fact of the matter would remain hidden any longer. Janius could only hope that Zharanthixil would allow Kaleeth to make the decision that was best for her.

There was also the question of how Kaleeth became such a creature, exactly. Was this by chance, or did Hircine hear her summons and force it upon her? What transpired that Hircine would decide to do such a thing. Perhaps Kaleeth was right, there was no knowing the minds of such higher beings.

While Janius tailed Kaleeth, he kept his senses tuned for any threats. Eventually, the scent of prey found his nose in the form of what he believed to be a monitor lizard. A small creature, but something that might tempt a hungry werecrocodile.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth ran through the marsh, trying her best to hold on to her own consciousness. Fighting her beast's urges were futile, and she knew it, so all she could hope to do was to direct it away from those she cared about. She knew Janius was following, and she wished he would go away. She didn't know what this beast was going to do if it couldn't find prey, and she did not want to hurt anyone.

Kaleeth's senses were not improved, but she did have her same sense of smell. She could sense something nearby, something small, but nonetheless alive. If nothing else, it would be an appetizer for her beast. She followed the scent to its source, but as she was none too stealthy at the moment, the small lizard easily saw her and ran, diving straight into the river. Unfortunately for the creature, that was likely the worst choice it could have made. When Kaleeth dove into the river, she went from being slow and clumsy, to being a fast and streamlined predator. While in the water in this form, her powerful tail could propel her at dizzying speeds and her natural camouflage made her near impossible to detect under the water.

From the surface, Janius would be able to see some motion, but the murky waters obscured exactly what was going on beneath. The only thing that was certain was that jumping into the water with a werecrocodile was likely the last mistake any creature could make. About a minute passed before she resurfaced, but when she did, it was in a much more spectacular display than one would have anticipated. Instead of a measly lizard, Kaleeth practically jumped out of the water with a regular, but fully grown crocodile in her jaws. The creature thrashed about in her maw, but there was no escaping the sheer strength of her jaws. The only chance it had to run was when she briefly opened them once more to bite down on it, but it was too slow to take advantage of the opportunity. Her jaws snapped shut with a bite force that essentially cut the crocodile in two. Its bones and organs were crushed in an instant, leaving only shreds of tissue and scales holding it together. As the beast started to tear away pieces of the meat, Kaleeth did her best to ignore Janius nearby and hoped that the crocodile would be enough to satisfy it.

[Muttonhawk]

Janius had to slide to a halt at the water's edge where Kaleeth had disappeared beneath the surface. There were only a few ripples and some swirling disturbed mud as evidence of her passing. Janius sniffed at the air over the water, then cautiously stepped back. The best option right now was to wait and listen for Kaleeth to resurface.

Janius did not have to listen too carefully. Kaleeth's explosive splash out of the water made Janius jump on the spot and his beast spirit stepped him back a few more paces. In Kaleeth's mouth thrashed a crocodile, fully grown. A snap of Kaleeth's jaws quickly put its movement to an end with a sickening series of snaps.

Janius continued to keep his distance. For the first time he could remember, he was afraid in his beast form. This creature was frightening in the water. He could only imagine how Kaleeth felt right then.

In concern, Janius looked to one side in the general direction of the river, or at least as well as he could remember. He considered running off to get help from the pack, but they were both so far away from both the other hunting parties and the village. He couldn't risk losing Kaleeth again. What were his options? He could try and get Kaleeth's attention, steal her kill and run. It would be risky, but once Janius was out of her reach he could outrun her easily. Even then, where would he go? Going back to the village would be too dangerous. There was no telling how much control Kaleeth had and neither of them would never forgive themselves if she hurt or killed anyone. What else? Well, perhaps Janius could hunt for something and give it to Kaleeth, hopefully if her beast spirit could be satisfied sooner then she could be convinced to come home sooner and the pack could help her. Again, it was risky. Kaleeth might be completely out of the area by the time Janius found something. He elected to wait around until she was done with her kill and see if that was enough.

[EliteCommander]

With how much she was tearing away from the crocodile at once, it did not take long for Kaleeth to devour the majority of the crocodile. All that remained of it were scattered shards of bone and a few scraps of tissue covering the ground around them. Both her jaws and the mud beneath her were covered in copious amounts of blood, further adding to the gruesome nature of the scene. It was a great relief to her when she felt her beast spirit start to calm. While werecrocodiles did not have the same pack instincts as werewolves, therefore making them more unpredictable, there was one silver lining to this version of lycanthropy. As cold blooded creatures, crocodiles possessed more efficient digestive systems than warm bloods, so it took less food to satisfy them. As a result, the meal was more than sufficient to make her beast spirit want to rest, giving her back more control.

Kaleeth's beast spirit contented itself in curling up on the ground to rest, with just a bit of a push from Kaleeth. After a few minutes, it receded enough in her mind that her body started to shift back into her normal form. It was a painful transformation, but while she was laying on the ground sobbing by the end of it, the physical pain was not what she cared about. She was a monster, and according to Janius, there was no way to fix it.

[Muttonhawk]

After a while of watching and smelling the scene in front of him Janius could feel himself salivating from the prospect of fresh meat, but he kept in control. Kaleeth's presence was too big of a threat to try anything rash.

It wasn't long before Kaleeth was finished with her meal and curled up to rest. Janius was surprised that the crocodile corpse was enough to satisfy the hunger behind her bulk, but not knowing about werecrocodile metabolism, he assumed that Kaleeth had eaten recently anyway. With its hunger sated, Janius observed Kaleeth's beast spirit recede and her form change back into that of an Argonian. She was in the same state that he and Zharanthixil first found her in, except this time blood was in the mix.

Now that it was safe, Janius padded towards Kaleeth where she lay. He held his head down and sniffed at her. She was still scared and upset. Janius could only feel pity for her, but right now the priority was to get her back to the village. She wouldn't transform again for at least the rest of the day, so it would be safe enough to help her and get explanations. Janius carefully scooped up her body in both arms and started towards the river in a bipedal jog without saying a word.

Even if she resisted, Janius would bring her back to the village, transforming back into human form before he came into sight. She needed to make peace with her family and allow the pack to help her. For the moment though, Janius stayed quiet and let her calm down in his arms.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth felt tired, afraid, hopeless, and about every other emotion that made her want to lay down and give up. Nothing could be the same as it was again, nothing would ever be normal. She hated what she had become and was afraid to even get up and move, for fear of agitating her beast. She gave no physical resistance when Janius picked her up, but she desperately wanted him to stop. She did not feel safe going to the village. And what of her father? They had easily outrun him, but he would not give up tracking them. He would end up finding Janius' things, and she did not know what he would do from there.

Looking up into Janius' eyes, she spoke weakly, in a pleading tone. "Please, stop. I don't want to go back, it...dangerous. I'll hurt someone. Father will hurt you, then I might hurt him. I don't want to hurt anyone, please." She begged. She did not understand all the details of her new condition, but she knew she needed to keep it from everyone. However, she was in no position to actually resist Janius. Even if she tried, he would no doubt overpower her.

[Muttonhawk]

"It's okay. You are unlikely to transform again today." Janius responded as clearly as he could in his beast form. His eyes looked down at her momentarily before returning to his path ahead. "Running will not work forever. You will only end up hurting others unless you let us help you. Just rest for now. Your parents want to see you again. I won't let you hurt anyone."

After a few moments, Janius' curiosity got the better of him. It might have been better to leave his questions until they got back, but he asked anyway. "Kaleeth, do you remember what happened? How did you become a werecrocodile?" Janius tried to keep him tone comforting rather than demanding, but he had trouble expressing as much in his wolf face.

[EliteCommander]

"I remember, but...but what about father?" Kaleeth asked, shifting the subject towards what she was most concerned about. "He won't stop chasing, he will find out. Your things, you left them behind. You...you should get them, stop him from finding them. I don't want him to know. He will...I not know what he will do. But I am a monster, a terrible monster. I am a failure, I should not have talked to the Daedra, I should have just let myself die. What if father tries to kill me to stop my pain, or kill you for helping to cause it? I don't want him to find out, please help keep it secret."

Kaleeth's desperation was obvious.She was scared, confused, an just wanted some semblance of normality back in her life. Her father was the focal point of her concerns, and the most likely person to either cause her the most pain, or bring her the most relief. In her mind, everything that had happened was her fault. She wished she would have followed her father's advice, but now, it seemed like she was going to be forced away from her family, regardless of what she wanted. Whether that would be through self imposed exile, or her own death, she did not know, and oddly enough, she did not seem to care. With all she had done and what she had become, she almost felt that she deserved death.

[Muttonhawk]

At this, Janius halted, closed his eyes and breathed a deep sigh. He thought that at this point there would be no chance of keeping Kaleeth's secret from Zharanthixil, but Kaleeth was so worked up about keeping it from her father that Janius decided to turn the other cheek. He may as well try to keep control of the situation, after all there was no telling what the Master-Hunter would do if he found out about the pack's nature. In any case, he hated hearing Kaleeth berate herself like this. He knew it was partly his fault.

Janius placed Kaleeth feet first on the ground and took her by the shoulders in each of his clawed hands. He knelt down to look into her eyes at her level. He wished he could comfort her in his human form, but it would still be quicker to find his possessions and get back to the village as a werewolf. "Kaleeth, this is my fault. I should not have tempted you with all this. I should not have fallen in love with you, or allowed you to commune with Hircine, or even talked to you. But this is how things are: You are a werecreature. It will be difficult at first, but it becomes easier. With practice and instruction, you can control it and stave off its urges. This beast spirit may be wild and seemingly untamable, but underneath, you will also still be Kaleeth-Rei. A beautiful, talkative, sweet, and resilient Argonian woman. You father will still love you, and will never want or try to kill you. He will not try to kill me, either." Janius leaned forward and bowed his head, pressing his fur-covered forehead against Kaleeth's affectionately. "I will help you however I can. I will help to keep your secret if you wish it, you do not have to commit to any course of action yet. But please, I don't want you to die. I still love you. Do not say such things."

Slowly, Janius brought his arms around Kaleeth and pressed her against his body in an embrace that did not want to let go. After a few seconds, Janius picked Kaleeth up again and changed direction to go and find his equipment. He moved at a jog again, and finding the way to them was as easy as following Kaleeth's werecrocodile tracks back to where she transformed. If he was lucky, Zharanthixil had not come across them yet. Just in case, he kept his nose up for him and his hunters.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth was not entirely convinced, but she also did not argue. His words were kind, and she appreciated his affection, but her fear overshadowed everything else at this point. What her father would do if he found out about the lycanthropy was beyond anything she could guess, so for now, she just wanted to stop that from happening. She did not resist when Janius picked her pack up. In fact, were she not so distracted in her own thoughts, she would have urged him to run faster. They had easily outrun her father, which meant he had to slow down to track them, but he had plenty of time to follow, and he certainly would not have given up.

Kaleeth tried to think about what Janius said as they ran along. He claimed that she could learn to control it, but she did not understand how. This beast in her mind was powerful and had even more of a direct influence on her mind than the Hist. She couldn't imagine how anyone could control such a force. Janius was obviously in control of his beast, but what if a werewolf's spirit was easier to manage than what she had become? Would that mean she would always be out of control, that she could never be around others again? The uncertainty filled her with fear, almost to the point that she did not notice a familiar scent in the air.

It was fortunate that they were running into the wind as they were running back to Janius' equipment, since it allowed them to catch Zharanthixil's scent before they could see him. They were close to where Kaleeth had transformed, which, unfortunately, meant that her father had likely found Janius equipment. "Wait, stop." Kaleeth said in a whisper. "I smell him, he is there already. You...you should turn back to normal. We can...talk to him or something. I don't know, what can we tell him? We need to tell him a reason you are naked now. Why would you abandon your things?"

[Muttonhawk]

Janius smelled it too. When Zharanthixil's scent came into the air, he became visibly more cautious. He cursed himself for not getting back to his equipment faster, but then he had to stay quiet to think. He could just walk out there in wolf form and come clean, but that was risky. If Zharanthixil spotted a large humanoid wolf beside his daughter that would be nothing short of a threat that he would lash out towards. No, he had to transform back. He placed Kaleeth on the ground standing again and was wordless as his body contracted and contorted back into Imperial form.

Now what?

He could say that he removed his armour because it was weighing him down? No, that's stupid. He didn't want them to corrode? There's mud everywhere anyway, it would be safer if it were kept on his body. Well, there was an obvious option. Janius raised his brow worriedly and itched the back of his head. Zharanthixil would be furious to hear it, but it might just be better than if he found out. Janius faced Kaleeth with wide, but clear-minded eyes. "We'll try to ignore it. If he asks, let's just tell him that we were looking for a place to... lay down together. He'll be angry, but... well, I'm not sure if it will be convincing now that I say it out loud." Janius exhaled through pouted lips, then pursed them together nervously. He couldn't really think of any other excuses. "We might just have to try."

Janius took Kaleeth's hand and started walking towards Zharanthixil and his belongings.

[EliteCommander]

Kaleeth took Janius' hand, but was hesitant to move forward. "I...not think that will work either. It doesn't make sense, I was running, I was afraid. Got to think, why would you undress? There is mating and...swimming. Maybe something with the water? Humans don't swim very good, maybe you can say that was why you left your things? You wanted to swim after me, or something? Do you think that would work better than saying we were mating, or worse? I don't know what he would believe. If you say we were mating, he might be too angry and yell at us too much to think too hard about it. He won't be mad if you tell him you wanted to swim after me, but he might not believe it."

While she was nervous and frightened, Kaleeth knew they had to hurry. If her father had not found her tracks already, he would soon. They needed to confront him before that. She could hardly think strait at the moment, so she did not know what to chose. It was a stressful situation, and she was not coping well. "I...don't know. I can't think of what to do. I trust you, though. You'll make the right choice."

[Muttonhawk]

Of course! Swimming! Janius wanted to hit himself. Why didn't he think of that? Perhaps the water was not on his mind because he didn't immediately see any ponds or streams nearby. I was probably because he was just absent minded in this situation. He stopped and looked at the ground more a moment, then looked at Kaleeth with a grateful smile. "That's a better idea, let's go with swimming. Easier to believe, less risky."

Janius turned and continued to Zharanthixil. Hopefully he wouldn't notice the larger tracks that Kaleeth and Janius' footprints turned into, but even if he did, they could be played off as other creatures. As the two approached Zharanthixil and Janius waved when they were within sight. "Master-Hunter!" Janius called out with a smile that tried to play off the deception that may have to occur.

[EliteCommander]

Zharanthixil's initial reaction was one of surprise and confusion. He stood up from examining Janius' belongings and looked at the approaching pair. Even more perplexing than the fact that she had run was that she was now returning seemingly of her own will. Such a complete reversal only added to how illogical the entire situation was.

"Kaleeth..." Zharanthixil began, but before he could say any more, she ran up to him and hugged him with tears in her eyes.

"I...I am sorry I ran, father. I was just afraid, and confused. I thought my mind was trying to trick me again. I have not eaten or slept much, and I have just been so frightened. I...I haven't been able to think clear and..." Kaleeth began, only to be interrupted by her father gently placing his hands on her shoulders and looking her in the eyes.

[i]"Kaleeth, be calm. It does not matter now. You have been starved and stressed for a few days now. I don't understand why your ran, but I also don't care. Now that you are here, and you want to go home, that is all I care about." Zharanthixil explained, but behind his understanding expression, there was also a hint of suspicion. He had been investigating Janius' belongings before they arrived, and was still quite curious about why he would abandon them. Like everything else in this situation, it made no sense. There was something more going on here.

"Before we go, why did you leave all of your belongings here? I don't know why you would waste the time to remove it all while following her." Zharanthixil asked Janius somewhat accusingly.

[Muttonhawk]

Janius responded without so much as batting an eyelid. "Kaleeth was going for the water. I can't swim very fast in all this, so I had to remove it." He walked up to his belongings and began to don his clothing, then his armour over the top, though not securing it properly for the convenience of heading back. "It may not have been the best decision at the time, but she didn't get far before stopping." Janius stopped there before he let his mouth run more than it should have. "Anyway, let's head back."

While he retrieved everything, Janius didn't make eye contact with Zharanthixil to make his lie easier to deliver. The more conscious he was of what he was telling the Master-Hunter, the more he realised that there were still clues he might have picked up on that had remained unexplained. Their running speeds, the tracks, the smells, this situation and even Kaleeth running off. Hopefully he wouldn't find out the truth by the time the pack moved on.

[EliteCommander]

The promptness and confident tone Janius used in his response was certainly helpful, but Zharanthixil was not entirely convinced. He still has the suspicion that something was awry, even though what Janius said sounded perfectly reasonable. After all, he knew Humans had poor swimming skills, so he would probably need any sort of advantage he could get to even think about keeping up. A part of him wanted to keep pressing the issue, to keep asking questions, but an even larger part of his was simply concerned about the safety of his daughter. He just wanted to get her back to the village to help bring her back into good health.

"Very well, let's just get back to the village. The other search parties should be returning in a few hours." Zharanthixil responded. All of the inconsistencies, however, were not out of his mind completely. He was not thinking about most of them at the moment. The speed his daughter was capable of, her sudden decision to run, Janius' peculiar decisions in chasing her, all of those elements could lead to certain suspicions. Even if he was distracted for the moment, his mind would not ignore those issues forever.

[Muttonhawk]

As they began to head back, Janius' shoulders relaxed in relief. It appeared that Zharanthixil had swallowed the lie for now. For a moment, Janius didn't think he still had it in him since the last time he had to try and convince someone's suspicious father.

Janius slid his hand around Kaleeth's and brought it up to shoulder height for a moment, smiling at her encouragingly. Apart from questions that would be best to ask away from Zharanthixil, there were no words Janius particularly wanted to say. He just wanted to keep Kaleeth reassured.

After a while, the party approached the village again. The desperate mood of a couple of hours ago was now a distant memory to most of them, but the issue of Kaleeth's new condition was still pressing on the mind of Janius. He had no doubt that it was similar for Kaleeth. The sooner they addressed it, the better, but Kaleeth needed some food and rest, and perhaps some family comforts. Janius stopped for a moment at the edge of the village. "Go and see your mother, get something to eat. I'll go and talk to Meesei about this." Janius looked at her and wanted to kiss her softly, but for fear of raising the Master-Hunter's ire, he only hazarded as much a hug. While he held her, Janius whispered to her, "Come to the common hut when you can."