During Arc XV: The Gate of Breath, Sanctuary is now under the control of the Nall near Nocturn, but the usurper Vox Ock of Hatch Vril must face the exile Vox Ulka of Hatch Kithar to determine who truly deserves to rule the Parallax ...
Flight Deck <Sanctuary>
A high, broad chamber that serves as the flight prep and launch deck for the Concordance Station colony ship. A blister module high atop the port wall, above the entrance, serves as the control tower. To starboard, a wide slit opens onto the blackness of space. The cargo bay is aft.
From the cargo bay emerges the exile Vox, Ulka of Hatch Kithar, followed by an entourage of Kithar-loyalist Nall. They all look fairly lean and ragged, from months within the superstructure of the colony vessel. The exile Vox is wearing her armor, ceremonial sword slung at her side. The talons of her feet clack on the deckplates.
Xarkavir follows the current, "legitimate" Vox, the one who he supports and serves faithfully. His talon of warriors is in a spherical formation around Ockvril, while two guards in large, black armor, gleaming with engravings, stand even closer to the Vox than the other warriors. Xarkavir himself stands behind the Vox in his own black armor, claws resting at his sides. Each of his eyes travel in seperate directions, surveying the different sides of the opposing party.
Ockvril walks forward, sheltered by the circle of guards. He is wearing his own armor, a filigreed affair depicting the various victories and trials of the Vril clan. A ceremonial sword is belted to the side of the armor and one claw drifts near it as he catches sight of Ulka and her entorague.
Ulka closes the distance across the flight deck, finally stopping within a few feet of Ock of Hatch Vril. Her followers, a meager showing compared to the assembly surrounding Ockvril, also stop, stand and watch, their tails lashing back and forth. The exile Vox lowers her snout, staring at Ockvril. "We end this now, under the watchful gaze of Nalia, to see which of us she truly has blessed. These with me will swear fealty to you, should you prove victorious. Tell those with you to swear their fealty to me, should I prevail. Or, you may yield without combat, and I will take only your tail as a trophy of this day."
In Naliese: Ockvril continues to hold his snout high, eyes swiveling to focus on the deposed Vox. He makes a quick motion with his claws and the two front guards step to the side, facing the other Nall. "I say now, before Nalia, that if I should fall to my opponent, you will serve her in my stead. There will be no cowardice today, Ulka, unless it is your own. Yeild now and we will make your execution a glorius sacrifice to Nalia herself."
Ulka shifts her snout in negation. "I do not yield. But let us set aside our blades and armor, and fight with tooth and claw, as Nalia intended."
Xarkavir stands perfectly straight while the conversation goes back and forth - from the challenger, to the challenged. His eyes revert to a position that stares in front of him, and his tail remains still, as does the rest of his body.
In Naliese: Ockvril bobs his snout and hisses back, The condemned can be afforded a last wish. We will settle this with fang and claw, in the way of our ancestors.
Ulka drops her jaw open in amusement, then turns to her comrades for assistance in removing the armor and relieving her of the sword. "Nalia shine on you, my brave ones."
Ockvril raises his short arms to his sides as his honor guard goes about the task of removing his armor. His eyes swivel in their sockets, staying locked on Ulka.
The warriors surrounding Ockvril gradually part, eventually creating two lines next to him. Xarkavir, somehow, is left at the front of one of the lines, while another Huth is at the front of the other. As always, he is statue-like.
The warriors behind Ulkakithar form a reverse vanguard, pointing toward the customs facility. They watch in silence as the exile Vox raises a tattooed palm in salute to Ockvril, and then her darkly gleaming claws slash the air with a sinuous movement. Her tail lashes back and forth. Slowly, she begins to circle, measuring the readiness of her opponent.
Ockvril steps forward, returning the raised palm to Ulka. His own guards close ranks, forming the opposite of the Kithar loyalists. He stalks toward her, his own claws held at the ready, tail lightly twitching as his beady eyes focus on the other Nall.
Head bobbing rhythmically, glassy eyes catching the glow of the overhead lights, Ulkakithar bides her time as she moves in that slow circle, watching, waiting, and then, when Ockvril moves close, the exile Vox hisses furiously and lashes out with three talons shrieking toward Ockvril's throat.
Ockvril recoils as Ulka's claws tear into the side of his throat. Twin trails of ichor follow, some of it splattering on the floor. He lets out a long hiss, then leaps toward the other Nall, claws flashing toward her throat to return the favor.
The exile Vox throws up a pebble-fleshed arm to block the downward slash of Ockvril's thrashing talons, and then kicks with a digging trio of claws toward her opponent's belly.
Xarkavir watches silently as his leader engages in the fight, only one eye following it while the other stares at the other soldiers. The tip of his tail sways slightly.
In a fluid movement, Ockvril skips to the side as Ulka's claws dart in. He helps her forward with a quick slap of his tail on her hindquarters, throwing her off balance. His jaws open, yellowed fangs bared for all to see. His neck snapping down like a snake, he aims for the back of Ulka's neck.
Ockvril's jaws clamp on the back of Ulkakithar's neck briefly, but she wriggles free, brings her foot back down and steps back, tail lashing as she clears a gap between herself and her opponent, preparing to circle again.
Ockvril lunges at Ulka quickly, trying to capitalize on his advantage. His claws dart toward her throat. He lets out a long, raspy hiss as he strikes.
Dark eyes reflecting twinned versions of the oncoming attacker, Ulkakithar deftly sidesteps, letting Ockvril stagger beside her before the exile Vox lunges, jaws wide, trying to snap down on Ockvril's exposed throat.
Ockvril moves, but too slow. Ulka clamps her jaws around the back of his neck, ichor squirting wildly in the air. A loud hiss emits from Ockvril, but it is cut off quickly. He thrashes about, trying to batter the other Nall with his tail. The wounds on his neck open further as he attempts to dislodge her jaws.
Xarkavir watches silently as his Vox is butchered, almost literally, by the exile. He is obviously help-less to do anything, given the honour code he follows. His tail has stopped its swooshing, and both of his eyes are glued to the fight.
Ulka keeps her jaws tightly locked on Ockvril's throat, and lets the usurper's own movements cause further damage to himself. She then tries to bump him over onto his side, using her chest, hoping to pin him down.
Ockvril seems to be a rag doll in Ulka's jaws. He flops to the ground without protest. The wet slap of pebbled flesh accompanies his fall as ichor spreads over the floor from his wounds.
Still clamped onto Ockvril's throat, the exile Vox falls with him, crouching above his inert and bleeding form. Her tail lashes back and forth as one dark eye regards his snout and the other rolls back enough to gaze briefly at Ockvril's unmoving tail, anticipating a ploy. Finally, however, the exile releases her death grip on the usurper's ravaged throat and confirms he is immobile. She stares down at him, hissing softly, and then speaks: "Nalia shine on you, glorious child." And then she drops, jaws wide and snapping around Ockvril's neck to finish the bloody work. She thrashes her snout back and forth, rending the pebbled flesh and the cords of muscle, finally tearing open Ockvril's windpipe with a ghastly hiss. Her snout wet with his lifeblood, she rises from his corpse, resting a clawed foot upon his chest. "It is done," she growls.
In a short moment, the usurper, Ockvril's, escorts all lower their snouts deeply towards the new Vox and raise their claws, palms open, displaying the tatoos of their respective hatches. Xarkavir does the same, his tail becoming rigid and straight, neutrally.
The exile's followers lower their snouts in deference to the fallen usurper. Ulkakithar slowly turns to regard the others and removes her clawed foot from the fallen warrior's corpse. Her talons scrape the deckplates. "Convey his corpse the medical facility. We will return him to the home soil in the coming days. I must go now, to rest and consider what must now be done in Nalia's name. Loyalty will be rewarded." Her eyes drift to the body of Ockvril. "Treason, of course, has its own rewards as well."
In Naliese: Xarkavir , seemingly the leader of the group, (besides the two honour guards), speaks up, snout still lowered respectfully. "It will be so, honoured Vox." He slowly, with the other Huth, heads towards the body to retrieve it.
Ulka lifts her snout and raises her tattooed palm in salute to Xarkavir, and then she walks off to be among those who have seen her through the ordeal within the infrastructure.
One of Xarkavir's eyes shifts towards Ulkakithar momentarily as she walks away - the other, towards his current task, disposing of the body of his beloved (ex) Vox. His first eye soon follows suit, and, like the second, is now focused on the body. Xarkavir's tail begins to sway around gently again as he picks the body up, like there is a breeze on the flight deck.