Finally. I know I know, this thing is over half a year overdue, but school just wouldn't give me a rest. Anyone who tells you summer school is easier than the regular fall/winter terms is lying. Hope you enjoy.
"...What happened next...I almost couldn't believe. All of them, even Elder Niko...they joined me. Or rather, they tried to."
"Tried to?" Eric asked.
Kita nodded, pulling her knees closer to her chest. Strangely enough, the telling of her past had calmed her down considerably from when he'd first woken up. "The Prime Elder made sure that I was very alone. While they voluntarily went on the path of the rogue, and there was nothing he could do about that. But he was more than able to make sure they couldn't assist me in any way."
Eric frowned before wincing in pain as the motion stressed the injured side of his face. "Ow... okay, well maybe I'm not understanding what you mean by the path of the rogue. Didn't you say it was something like exile? If you're an outcast from your people, how can they tell you what to do, and why are you still serving in the military?
Kita sighed. "It's not quite like that. You see...our ancestors, back in the days of the first hunters, life was harsh. The struggle to get food, fights against neighboring cadres...I already explained that much to you. With things as they were, another strong back and a set of sharp claws was very valuable, even if they belonged to one who had lost all honor, through their crimes or any other means. We couldn't afford to have a death penalty in the traditional sense, just killing off an able body like that was wasteful. So, the ultimate punishment was death by the path of the rogue. They were outcast, yes. They didn't live with the rest of the cadre, in fact they were typically forbidden from coming within a certain distance of the settlement. But they were still in service of the cadre. They would hunt for new prey alone, as movement of many hunters could alert the herds. In cases of war with other cadres, they were the forward scouts, and would sometimes be used as infiltrators if need be. They would also be the ones to alert the cadre of any surprise attacks, and would fight off any rogues that might be in service to the other cadres. In essence, they were given the most hazardous jobs required, jobs that likely would result in their death. But they would die in service to the cadre, so their death would not be wasted."
"That makes sense..." Eric nodded "But, why would a rogue do all this, wouldn't they hold a grudge? What ensured that they would do everything asked of them?"
"Some didn't" Kita replied. "But...most would, for two main reasons. First of all, loyalty to their cadre or house. If you had family in the cadre, and by your actions you could help their survival even if you were exiled, you'd do it wouldn't you? Second..." Kita reached behind her head, pulling her long braided mane over her shoulder. "It was possible to be forgiven, if you survived long enough. When a ketral becomes rogue, they cut their mane if it is longer than shoulder length. If they then survived long enough for their mane to reach the end of their tail, then they would be deemed to be too valuable to risk death during exile, and could rejoin the cadre."
"They would be accepted back in, just like that?" Eric asked.
"Well actually, they would almost be revered." Kita said. "To survive that long as a rogue is very VERY rare. Those who did, it was like they'd passed the ultimate test of survival. It obviously depended on the individual as to whether or not people trusted them anymore after this time, but they almost always had a sway on the council of Elders, as they were bound to have gained a great amount of knowledge and skill in their time of exile. And of course, no one could ever doubt their ability as a warrior."
"So that's why you wear yours long?"
Kita nodded. "As you might guess, having a long mane is usually a disadvantage in a fight. Gives opponents something to grab, it can get caught on things, so most warriors wear theirs short. A long mane is typically only worn by elders or mated females, those who do not fight anymore. For rogues attempting to serve their sentence though, this obviously isn't an option. To keep it out of the way, rogues braid their mane, and many take measures to discourage an opponent from grabbing it." She nodded to the spiked metal bands lying against the wall. "And as for the reason you haven't seen any others...like many traditions, the path of the rogue is not very common any more. As our empire expanded and we became more prolific, we eventually did adopt the traditional death penalty as done by other races. But the old laws were never removed, so it is still an option, either as a sentence or as self imposed exile. And as I said, it's rare for a rogue to survive for long, so very few actually manage to grow theirs out to any noticeable length."
Eric glanced at the braid snaking over her shoulder as she said this, the length of her mane suddenly becoming much more impressive as he digested the new information. "So that means you...well...you're pretty good, aren't you?"
"You recognized my name, didn't you?" she asked, a shadow of her normal confidence returning to her expression."
Yes, he certainly had. Upon learning just who she was, he'd pushed that little fact to the side of his mind when she was telling her story. It was unreal though. Even as he thought about it now, he was having the hardest time in the world trying to convince himself that one of the most infamous ketrals known to man was sitting across from him in a cave. The fact that Chaska kitathala had turned out to be a "her" made it even more unbelievable! The past week also seemed impossible, as his mind just didn't want to connect the "Kita" he'd come to know with the ruthless assassin that had never left any survivors to tell the tale. It really wasn't something that he wanted to think about.
"I guess I did" he said, trying think of a way to move the conversation away from her supposedly murderous true nature. "So...you've managed to grow it out that long. How much longer do you think it will take? It doesn't look like you have long to go."
"Really?" she asked, thinking about it for a second before giving a small laugh. "I haven't looked in a while. Never seemed much point in constantly measuring." She seemed to contemplate something for a moment, looking at Eric out of the corner of her eye before doing something that made Eric forget about every single one of his injuries.
++++++
From her hunched sitting position, Kita gracefully uncoiled her body, rising to her feet. Flickering shadows danced across her naked body as she rose to her feet, the forest canopy outside the cave filtering the afternoon light into a gentle illuminating glow. Kita could almost feel the way his eyes roamed across her body, his eyes following the curves of her breasts, the lighter fur trailing down her body past her navel to the small cleft barely visible between her thighs. Swallowing and trying to ignore the pounding of her heart, she turned around to face away from him, watching him out of the corner of her eye over one shoulder.
"To measure properly..." she said, her voice snapping Eric's eyes away from their examination of her rear end, "Requires assistance. Another reason I've never really done it much. The reason being, the mane is measured when the head is held level. Even with a mirror, you can't see behind you and keep your head straight"
Eric dimly nodded, his mouth still hanging half open in shock.
"So then..." she continued, taking a few steps backwards until she was standing right in front of him. "Where is it?" she turned her head away, looking straight ahead. It took all of her self control to hold her tail straight towards the ground, as she was already having a hard enough time stopping her self from trembling with nervousness.
An eternity seemed to pass before she finally heard him speak. "It's...um...just a little past your tail."
"The top?" she asked.
She heard him swallow. "Yeah uh...maybe, like...mid-cheek?"
"Mid-cheek?" she gave a nervous laugh. That was a funny way of describing it. The length of her mane however, wasn't the most prominent thing on her mind right now. Ever since she'd stood up, she'd been paying attention to his body language. The way he watched her, the way his eyes followed the shape of her body. Even as she had turned to look away from him, she was still observing with her other senses. Her ears picked up his rate of breathing, the tone of his voice, and her nose picked up the subtle changes in his scent. Glancing at him over her shoulder again, she saw his eyes were again riveted on her hindquarters.
"Right. About there." he replied, his voice quavering a little. "So...you have to hold your tail down like that?"
