RP:Khitti Meets Kitty, Spiderguts Ensue

From HollowWiki


Summary: Khitti comes upon Orikahn in the middle of dismembering and harvesting a slain giant spider. Over the course of their conversation, Orikahn learns about Khitti's unease around the arachnids, so he offers to help her clear out a den of them and help keep the population under control. The conversation is cut short when a bit of spider ichor splatters Kahn in the face, causing an adverse reaction. The two promise to meet again soon.


Forest of Abyssal Darkness

Orikahn grunts with every blow of his hatchet. The "splat" and "thock" of his repeated blows echoes off the gnarled trees around him as the massive sabercat labors to dismember the giant spider before him. The creature's hairy, chitinous shell is peppered with arrows, and it lays on its back, gemlike eyes gleaming emptily down at the forest floor and fangs still dripping clear venom. Kahn's opted to leave his hood down. The massive sabercat is clad from neck to toe in viscera-splattered armor; he stands over seven feet and weighs well over 300 pounds, perhaps closer to 500 in his platemail. His build is positively herculean, and each swing of the axe buries the granite head deep within the horrible arachnid's shell. "Ghhn!" His grunts are deep and carry too well through the dismal woods. Apart from his size, a couple other characteristics set Orikahn apart from other felines; two long, saber fangs protrude from his upper jaw to well past his chin, and a third eye, phosphorescently glowing, sits at the center of his brow. Just a couple paces away, his bow, quiver and pack sit on a bed of young ferns.


Khitti had been wandering through the forest, as she often had before she was pulled into the Frostmaw debacle. It had been a nicer time then to say the least. For now, she trailed along, somewhat aimlessly, though making sure to steer clear of House Dragana nearby. First the sound of hatchet blows find her sensitive ears, and then the smell of blood finds her nostrils. It was clearly animal, but even still with her lack of feeding, it drew her ever near. With the attack that had happened the night before at the castle during her odd meeting with the fallen warrior, Lionel, she had taken to arming herself with her bow and quiver. If those ghouls were for her, they would find her again. Several feet away from the massive cat, worn boots come to a halt. Still she wore her torn black dress, adorned with the red roses and scorch marks of some corrosive substance and enshrouded by her leather duster. The scent of acid follows the female like a sad puppy, her line of sight fixating on Orikahn, a crimson brow raised. Never having before seen one of his kind, she takes to staring, but also tries to remain partially hidden within the shadows of the nearest tree.


Orikahn grips a section of spider-husk and pulls, gritting his teeth and straining as the shell gradually peels away with the sound of tearing bark. With a sudden rending, it finally pops free and he tosses it aside, probing about in the abdomen a bit, apparently intrigued by what he sees. He holds up a handfull of... oh! Eggs, thousands of them. The cat samples a few, licking the sticky spheres off his fingers with a long pink tongue. Quite content with his discovery, he dips his hand in again, prepared to eat his fill. It was just then that Kahn paused, and his nose wrinkled, nares flaring. The hunter sniffs once, twice, then snaps his gaze around, scanning the perimeter of his small, fern-filled clearing. His maw wrinkles in aggression, and eyes narrow fiercely. "Does it hide because it hunts, or because it fears the hunter?" Orikahn's low basso rumbles out, addressing the unseen presence.


Khitti's body shuddered as the overly large feline devours a few of disgusting, ooze covered eggs. Yuck. Spiders just so happened to be on her list of beings she was afraid and or creeped out by, coming in third behind bears and Kreekitaka's rattling paddles. As the cat speaks to the Khitti, her dark verdant sight snaps back towards the beast's visage, red brows furrowing. "I fear nothing.", which was a lie of course, but she didn't particularly fear the feline. "I hide because I've never seen one such as yourself." Her accent was thick and very foreign, but seemingly understandable. The red-head steps forward from the shadows, the hood of her duster pulled up over her head to conceal the tired features beneath. "I frequent zhese voods and yet I've never set eyes upon you before. Who are you?"


Orikahn spots Khitti as she steps out from the shadows and, without taking his eyes off of her, the feline licks his gauntlet clean, letting her speak. He flicks the rest of the ooze off in the greenery. The saber cat is obviously evaluating Khitti with his stare. "I *don't* frequent these woods," the cat pointedly shoots back. "I'm here for another's sake, and when she leaves, so shall I." Perhaps sooner, he thinks to himself. The atmosphere of these aberrant lands has begun to wear on his nerves. "Who are you?" All three eyes flicker over the duster, perhaps looking for signs of unseen weapons or other sorts of trickery. "And what keeps you coming to such an awful place?"


Khitti tilts her head as he mentions that he is here for another and that other is a she. "At one point, I vas velcomed here and yet I remain nevertheless for someone as vell." She hesitates, a careful observation taken of the feline before she finally removes her hood, letting him inspect her as a show of good faith or something along those lines. Thankfully the attack at the castle last night managed to jar her out of her stupor, her mind a little more her own. Her mane of red hair was bit matted and tangled, the woman clearly unkempt as of late. "You...are you here for Hildegarde?" Certainly someone that had a dislike for the woods and subsequently the city wouldn't be here for Larewen. With her hood off, a the top of her bow could be seen and perhaps and arrow or two, but nothing more. There were not other weapons besides those that he could plainly see. "And...I'm Khitti." is finally allowed to hit his ears, a faint smirk forming as she introduces herself to the cat.


Orikahn keeps his feline ears upright and perked, and his eyes never fall from Khitti's form, eagerly studying her appearance when the hood comes down. Even though he looks directly at her, even though Khitti *knows* he's looking directly at her, something in Orikahn's gaze ensures she won't be able to shake the feeling of "being watched". Her guess makes his eyes widen, and he recoils just enough so that Khitti will know she's surprised him. Much more wary than before, the feline shifts his grip on the tomahawk. "I am Orikahn," he returns the introduction, "and I stand in Hildegarde's service. Are you a friend or an enemy of the Silver? You smile," the cat gives her a sidelong look, "so this means a friend?"


Khitti's smirk gains a bit more mirth as he questions her expression, a fanged grin replacing it, "A friend, yes, and 'tis just a funny zhing. Last night I met a Lion and today I meet another cat." Silly, Khitti. She's unable to shake that feeling of being watched, her grin fading and uneasiness soon taking it's place. The vampiress shivers, but tries to ignore it regardless. "I am awaiting to speak vith zhe silver dragon. I have news for her from Larewen, zhe mistress of House Dragana." She keeps the rest underwraps for now. Can never be too careful of course. The grip he has on his tomahawk is eyed carefully before sweeping across his kill and soon his own bow. "You are quite zhe skilled hunter, I see. I zhank you for ridding zhis forest of zhose horrible zhings. Can't stand zhem vhatsoever."


Orikahn allows himself to relax a little at her words, jut a little, and his eyes lower to the arrows in the spider's hide, giving Khitti a reprieve from the creepy sensation. He hangs the tomahawk on his belt and sets about yanking the arrows free, one at a time, and inspecting them for damage. "I am," he ignores her talk about Hildegarde and Larewen, choosing instead to vainly latch onto her compliment. "No prey is beyond my grasp," Kahn proudly boasts, and he grunts, yanking another arrow out of the hairy, armored plates to hold it up and study it in the dim twilight of the sunless woods. He wrinkles his nose and squints, holding the flint-tipped projectile an inch or two from his face, then carefully tosses it over with his bow and the other arrows. "You've got your bow. Why not rid them yourself?"


Khitti bites back her amusement at his vanity, a roll of her shoulders given in response to his inquiry. "I do, on occasion. Zhere is a nest, however, further north and I tend to stay away. I don't just despise zhem, zhey also completely creep me out." She tilts her head to the left, watching as he inspects his arrows keenly before throwing them to join the rest of his belongings, "I don't really hunt animals anyways. I tend to stick to hunting zhe undead and necromancers." She keeps the fact that she is a necromancer to herself. It's not like it was something that was always taken kindly to with most folk.


Orikahn shoots her an intrigued look a the mention of undead and necromancers (there's that feeling again!) and he scratches at his whiskers with the spiked knuckles of his gauntlets. "You hunt... undead." There's a superstitious weight to that last word, as though it holds some troublesome import with the cat. "Necromancers." Orikahn takes a slow breath and nods gradually as the gears in his head begin turning. "Maybe," he looks back down to his work and wraps his hand firmly and confidently around an arrowshaft, "you would like to learn to hunt spiders. We could help each oth-AACH!" Orikahn has just yanked the arrow free, and when he did, the freshly dead spider's body had spasmed, spurting a gout of yellowish bile across Kahn's face, prompting him to jump, thrash, and roll wildly in the foliage. A variety of truly bestial sounds escape him, and for a moment, he disappears among the tallest ferns, tearing through them before he emerges, roaring terribly, a sound to shake the very woods, as he struggles in vain to wipe his eyes clean on his forearms and shoulders.


Khitti had thought that that uneasy feeling was gone, but there it is again as they converse of the things that they two of them hunt. And then there's the explosion of spider guts and the massive cat freak out. A few steps back are taken, away from the bile and arachnid chunks, her eyes widened at the ferocious sounds that emit from the clearly unpleased Orikahn. As he reappears, and continues to wipe away the guts in dismay, she actually takes pity on him and removes her duster, handing it over to him. "Here." While it was leather, it was soft enough that it might actually do some good and help to get the gross stuff from his fur. "And, I vould like zhat very much. Even if it is just hunting spiders, I'm sure it vould help vith other zhings as vell."


Orikahn feels the duster touch his hands, and he immediately seizes it, rubbing hurriedly, furiously at his face. When he pulls the soft leather away, the cat wastes no time, and he fumbling for his pack, blinking as he finds it and pulls out a waterskin, which he begins pouring into his increasingly bloodshot eyes. His roars, yowls, and hissing cease, and he takes a steadying breath, blinking hard and frequently beneath the trickling flow. "Very good, we'll kill out that nest," he calmly returns to topic, sounding a little winded despite his best attempt to don a casual tone. "Awful woods," Kahn adds as the waterskin runs out, and he blinks around himself, checking the different corners of his vision, "horrid ju-ju."


Khitti can do no more than stare at the massive creature as he tends to his eyes with the water, a frown forming. "Yes, ve can certainly do zhat. You don't seem to be in any state to do zhat now, however." She pauses, allowing a silence to linger between the two of them, her mood changing to a somber one before she continues, "Zhere is a lot of bad zhings in zhese voods. Monsters." Her words are almost ominous, almost personal. "If Hildegarde shall take me, I plan on getting rid of zhings like zhat in Frostmaw. I'm not about to let it become like Vailkrin." She shifts her position, moving to take her duster back from him, though she doesn't put it back on, of course. Now that it was removed, she didn't look much like any sort of hunter. The dark ranger had been thin and malnourished in her living life, but that's something that comes with not having a permanent home or money. "Are you finished vith it?", in reference to the eight-legged corpse.


Orikahn stands and resumes pulling out arrows, looking a little puffy in the face and a little more cautious as he yanks the projectiles free; there are only a few left to remove now anyway. "You fay you're going do Frofvmahw, fven?" Okay, so maybe more than a little puffy. "It feemf fvat we will be feeing eaf ofver foon, fven." One eye has already swollen shut as the cat's face continues to react to whatever was in the bile. "No, no not finiffed yet. Fill needf fome attenfion." Noisily, he clears his throat. His good eye (and his center eye, the odd thing) glance over to the ranger, and he squints, trying to see her clearly. "Fink we better poffpone the fphider flaying, yeff."


Khitti felt awful for the feline, but alas had no healing capabilities whatsoever. At least not the sort that he required. With the practice she had at deciphering Kreekitaka's odd Common, it didn't take much to figure out what Orikahn was saying, a nod given in return. She tried not to worry because he didn't seem ~too~ bothered by it, but she made it a point to say anyway, "I think you should get zhat looked at. Zhere may be a healer at zhe castle, you know. Someone zhat might be an expert on zhese sorts of creatures." The frown she held before returns, "And I have to speak to Hildegarde before I know for sure vhether or not I am to join you all." He's studied again carefully, especially that third eye of his, but for now it's not brought up. She wasn't the type to bring up such things with new people. Motioning then to the dead arachnid, she continues, "Zhen let me know vhen you are finished and I vill return it to zhe earth. More may come. Zhe dark magic zhat flows zhrough zhis forest is very much so in zhe vildlife as vell."


Orikahn takes out the last of his arrows and resumes dismembering the giant arachnid, his pink tongue flopping out the side of his mouth with every chop. "Fhould be pfinipft foon," the cat manages to articulate. At least it sounds like he's breathing alright. "Fwing bachk by in an hour or fho." Perhaps then she'll find him in better condition, but whatever the case, the industrious cat continues dismantling his kill undaunted. "Nafty ftuff. Bad vu-vu." The last of the legs fall free from the body, and in a couple more swings, he's got the head separated from the abdomen. "No doctorf," he simply objects to the notion of healing. Khitti will simply have to trust the cat will still be a warm body when she returns to lay the spider to rest.


Khitti heaves a sigh, her arms crossing over her chest. "Right zhen. If you say so." She was ever the worrier. A brief glance is sent skywards, eyeing the position of the celestial bodies in the heavens. "I vill return later zhen and I vill leave you to your vork." Clearly it wasn't really her thing, but she gives a sort of half bow to the cat-being nevertheless. "It vas a pleasure to meet you, Orikahn. If you and I cannot meet to rid zhis forest of zhose horrid spiders before Hildegarde's party is to leave, zhen I'm sure ve could find something else to hunt vithin Frostmaw. You'd have to lead, however. Zhe few times I've been up zhere, I tend to get lost."


Orikahn is plucking up firewood now, filling his arms with fallen boughs and branches and piling them in the ferny clearing's center. "Fee you very foon, Khitti." A glance her way, a moment's hesitation, and he looks as though he could add something, but he shakes his head instead and swallows thickly, tongue still hanging out the side of his mouth. It could wait until later. There was work to be done, and his face looks like some kind of decompression procedure gone horribly wrong. The two will have better opportunities for conversation.


Khitti tilts her head, eyeing him as he looked like he were to say something. She opts to not press him for whatever it was and instead heads back in the direction of the city. First Lionel, and now Orikahn. More allies were piling up, though it came to no surprise. Hildegarde trusted them, but did that really mean anything? Khitti's own trust wouldn't come easily. For now, she'd think on it. Wait and watch. It was so easy to be deceived. ~She~...was easy to deceive.