He heard the click as the lock opened and his opponent ripped the door open with a fury he had rarely seen in the Kloxna. As far as he knew, their society placed great value on being in control at all times. Stoic, If you will. but what he was seeing in the door was about as far from a being in control as it could get. Her eyes had reverted to an almost animal-like state of being, her claws were extended and her laborious breathing spoke of a deep rage that would not be easily extinguished.

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted as he had to dodge a kick aimed at his knee and was forced on the retreat. she was quicker than he had thought.

Falling back, he dropped into a fighting stance and looked for an opening in her defense. weirdly, none could be found as she pressed the attack, trying to capitalize on the momentum advantage.

Eirik quickly fell into the groove of blocking, dodging, and deflecting enemy blows while trying to set up counters and switch the momentum in his favor.

As the seconds passed and her attacks did not lose any of their ferocity, he started getting frustrated and confused.

"She should be blinded by rage, unable to keep a coherent battle form that allows for fluent attacks and defense. But her attacks are precise, her defense is on point and her movement is as fluid and swift as a combat veteran. WHO IS THIS ONE?!??" He thought, as one of her claws made contact with his face and he felt the sharp pain of a claw ripping open the skin.

A deep growl escaped him and he decided to end this quickly. using his size and weight he jumped forward, trying to grapple her and drag her down to the floor where his bulk would make short work of his smaller opponent.

He saw her in front of him as he sailed through the air. His fingers started closing and he grasped on to......nothing.

The realization hit him a split second before something hard and scaly slammed into him, sending him sprawling across the floor.

He looked up, slightly groggy, and saw her on the floor, on all fours like an animal, her body twisted in a way that made it clear to him what had hit him.

"Did you just tail swipe me?" he sputtered out, completely dumbfounded as he slowly came to terms with what happened.

A wide grin appeared on her face and she seemed immensely pleased with herself for a moment.

Standing slowly, he couldn't help but smile a little "You really got me good there little one. A shame it won't change the outcome though"

He made another jumping motion forward, but stopped himself halfway through and broke into a run, straight at the young soldier, instead.

Now grinning ear to ear, he saw her spin around to slam him with her tail again. He had to admit, it was a clever technique he had not encountered before. She was far better than he had given her credit for, but he would end this here and now.

___________________________________________________

Her rage was a fire roaring in her head, But she kept it under control, despite her desire to let go and let the rage control what happened. Her instructors had made it abundantly clear to her, that allowing the rage to be in control only brought pain in training and death on the battlefield.

"How did this human know exactly what to say to push her buttons? it wasn't her fault that her mother had kept her away from the traditional military training and insisted on private tutors instead.

Yes, it put her apart from her fellow soldier. Yes, it marked her as a higher caste. Yes, it ensured that her skin remained light and delicate, as is fitting for a higher caste. And yes, it infuriated her more than anything else!! She never wanted pampering, authority, or anything else. But what she wanted, did not matter.

And so she was left here. Being... Fondled.. By this, seemingly, slightly insane human. her supposed prisoner charge. Even worse, he was mocking her openly, something never tolerated in her culture. The very idea was as foreign as the idea of being your own heat source, another difference between their species. "

But he was a good fighter, she had to admit. Despite his size, he was fast. Dangerously fast. So she smiled wide when she made a successful tail attack to counter his tackle attempt. Her teachers had warned her, that in combat, this technique was as dangerous as it was effective if successful. Their tails were almost all muscle which also added good weight. She had seen old veterans being visibly shaken after a tail swipe. It required both spatial awareness and perfect timing. Turning your back on your opponent in combat is never a good idea, no matter the potential gain.

As he slowly stood up, she was confused to see him smile. she didn't answer him, she just watched for any movement

..

THERE!! he was going for another tackle. she immediately made another tail swipe, but didn't feel it connect. Panic set in as she looked over her shoulder and saw a large human fist approaching her face way too fast for her liking.

________________________________________________

Eirik rubbed the left side of his face, that tail hurt like a slap from grandmother. Looking down at the unconscious soldier, he moved over and secured her firearm, and searched her pockets for anything useful. Looking around, he saw nothing to tie her up with, so he decided to leave her inside the cell instead. While moving her, however, he noticed a necklace chain that didn't look military issue. Ever the opportunist, he worked on getting the chain out of the armor. It was nice work and might fetch a pretty price on a different planet. Finally, it came loose and he saw the issue. a large metal seal attached at the base of the chain. he turned it over and froze for a second as he recognized the symbol for the higher caste within the Kloxna species.

"Fucking typical. most likely the only greenhorn on this entire base and you happen to be a bloody blueblood. DAMN MY LUCK!!!"

...

He pulled out an old-fashioned coin from Terra and looked toward the ceiling. "Odin, Allfather of gods, master strategist, High king of Asgard, guide my hand. Heads, she becomes my hostage to demand ransom from. Tails, she gets left here for exile because of failed duty" He muttered, flipped the coin, and took a step backward. There was a clink as it hit the floor and rolled to a standstill. He stared down at Heads.

"Damn you old One-eye. Damn you and your demand for entertainment" He spat angrily as he ripped his sleeves off his shirt and tied up her hand and snout before hoisting her up on his left shoulder, mounted her anti-armor weapon in his right hand, and slowly made his way down the same corridors he had been brought in through so many weeks ago.

But he was not after a ship or an escape pod. He was after a communications room. He needed his crew for this, and he needed them fast. He had a few hours before his escape would be noticed, MAYBE, and assuming the worst conditions, his crew would be 1½ hours away at least.

As he made his way down the corridor he decided on semi stealth instead of full stealth. He needed to move fast and now he was carrying a hostage on account of the gods. He knew it as soon as he saw that blasted medallion. There is no such thing as coincidence, Fate is all. The gods demand entertainment, and they will get it one way or another. Obey them and ride out the adventure, or, disobey them and watch your life go to shambles around you. He would know. But no use dwelling on what was. It's time to focus on what is.

He used the signs with the basic symbol language that humanity had introduced. he followed the arrows and the satellite dish symbol while avoiding random crew members going about their duties. he knew the communication room was going to present difficulties. he had to work smart to take it. sliding into an alcove across from the door to the blessed room he started brewing up an idea...

Trasti was enjoying the new heated seats that had been installed in the communications room. It also meant increased productivity " At least in the official reports," He thought happily as he found himself warm and cozy during work, a stark contrast to the last year. Sitting still for hours near the outer hull was cold and sad work. Now, it was nice to work again. And his colleagues were great as well. keeping the warm tea stocked up on the pot, always having a good joke to share. yep, this day was going to be a great day indeed.