Bounty To Fell An Apex Predator [Osam]

[Vrun Ryssic]

Location: Sarka
Target: Osam
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As a novice and unproven Bounty Hunter, and a Trandoshan who had yet to earn his mark, Vrun Ryssic had been searching the Shadownet for a target that would truly stand out among all others, one that would earn the Reptillian Hunter prestige and repute among the Bounty Hunters Guild and perhaps even become known to those Independent Hunters and Mercenaries taking on work across the Galaxy...

..-So when he had been told about a Bounty upon the Bryn'adul while visiting Manda'yaim and the Children of the Protectors, Vrun simply could not allow such a huge opportunity to pass him by. The Bryn'adul were infamous warriors who had moved from system to system in their merciless conquest of worlds, allowing no one to slow them in their crusade. They were among the most physically powerful species that the Galaxy had seen in recent years, and a people that even made Trandoshans look weak in comparison. Still, this did not deter the Hunter from boarding and taking The Nebulon Ulysses to the Mid Rim, entering into the Sarka System where the Bryn'adul were rumoured to be present.

The Trandoshan's excitement was palpable, eager to get underway, yet at the same time poised and consciously pacing himself in order not to rush into this Hunt unprepared; His Target was nothing like that which he had faced before but in an entirely different league of its own. Furthermore, the Bryn'adul were known for roaming in packs and could overrun entire armies in formidable numbers. No, this particular target would need to be singled out...

Sarka was the perfect location for this challenge, even despite the Bryn'adul's terraforming machines having forced the air to be nigh unbreathable and leaving Vrun to have to use a Vaccum Mask to get by. The planet was a largely jungle-like world where other kinds of reptilian creatures once roamed in great numbers, yet having since been culled by the victory of the relentless horde. They had set up facilities of a purpose unknown to the Trandoshan, foreign in nature and technology that he did not understand, yet also made for ease in identifying potential shelters for his prey.

Now it would just be a matter of luring them out.

Within the great foliage of Sarka's wilderness, the Trandoshan moved with great care as he stalked a sentry party. Scouts from what he had determined, yet a pair that would certainly be noticed missing after a time. The Trandoshan was patient, methodical in his planning and analysis of his surroundings. Peering down through the enhanced scope of the Hunters Sniper Rifle, he followed the trio, placing his crosshairs just ahead of their path before exhaling a heated breath between his scaled lips, and then opening fire upon them from a vast distance away.

The shots would echo out across the valley, and all would fall silent thereafter.

 

[Osam]

Location: Sarka
Adversary: Vrun Ryssic
Equipment:
Kraemonen Flesh Vessel
Barad Assault Carbine
Pulverizer
Zealot's Barad Kukri
Sun Quaker Toxin Grenade x2

Boredom.

When Osam had been anointed to the position of Warlord by the progenitor of the Draelvasier race, he had expected that his ascension would involve leading vast armies, commanding terrible fleets, and wreaking havoc and terror upon the enemies of the Bryn'adul. He had known that there would need to be at least some time devoted toward ensuring that the facilities on Caerdar and Traedaris were working to their optimal conditions and that the Allied Races were falling into line in accordance with their covenant. He had expected that these would be the exception to the rule of bloody conquest - a once in a while chore to be performed.

He had not expected that his promotion would lead to dealing with so many of the facets of running the Empire. No one could have predicted the sudden and inexplicable vanishing of the Chieftain or his closest associates and allies, but the loss of so many of the power players of the Bryn'adul had led to internal squabbling and division on an unprecedented scale. The Warlords had immediately begun to secure their powerbases, himself included, and the Ish'makra had taken hold of the reins.

The Allied Races organized themselves for the most part, but his hold on their homeworlds meant that when issues arose involving them, he could be summoned all throughout the territories of the Bryn'adul to deal with issues. Warlord Sethrak - or was he First Warlock now - had declared himself a friend of these races, and almost certainly dealt with a portion of these requests himself. It was appreciated because, for all of their obedience, the Allied Races caused a significant deal of trouble for Osam.

It was the reason that he had been brought to Sarka in the first place. The super-construct here on the frontline was newer than many of those closer to Draemidus Prime, but the atmosphere had already been choked with that of the homeland, and the terraformer spewed the odorous cloud into the air with continued diligence. The Allied Races had been provided their own dome to remain away from the hostile atmosphere where they could contribute without needing to worry about the air - but there had been a malfunction. The cloning vats provided for the production of Ungulloi had apparently malfunctioned.

Many seemed to find the stunted half-coherent Ungulloi to be "exactly right", but the local Ungulloi populace themselves claimed that the vats had erred and created a populace of morons, societal deviants, and less than adequate workers. The Draelvasier Warlord of Sarka hadn't proclaimed themselves to be intolerant of the Allied Races, but they were less than willing to facilitate a change to facility.

"Stupid Ungulloi are loyal Ungulloi. Besides, I can see no difference in productivity." She had told Osam upon his arrival.

He had, naturally, wanted to break her Khaeus-cursed neck, but he'd refrained from it... for now.

Instead, he'd settled into a diplomatic role between the groups, mediating between them, trying to come to a solution that would benefit all and get them back to work. He'd even volunteered to watch over some of the menial accounting involved in the function of the super-construct just so that the Warlord of Sarka could focus her efforts entirely on resolving the diplomatic issue.

It was what had led to him sitting quietly within a chamber, listening to report after report about the nature of Sarka's continued exploitation.

"And the errant scouting party? Have they returned yet?" He spoke aloud to give some semblance of normality to his exceptionally unnatural stance. One artifact clutched in one hand, and one in the other, he looked as though he were reading two separate documents at the same time, though his head never diverted from looking at roughly the center space of either artifact.

"They have not. It has been three hours. Do you suspect trouble?" The Worm-Mind bristled against his flesh, answering his question with its telepathic link to him.

"No. I imagine at worst that one of them tripped over the foliage and broke something. Still..." He contemplated the possibility of a hidden strike force from the Concord having infiltrated the border world. It was certainly possible, but the Concord had not relied on such small teams in a while, had they?

"It may give us an opportunity to stretch our legs. These debates will be the death of me." He said, raising from his seated position and settling the artifacts back onto the table.

"Shall I requisition a dropship for you?" The Flesh questioned.

It would make the trip far more expedient... but then he'd have to return to the monotony that much faster. "We'll walk. It's only a few miles. Besides - I already have my equipment on me. It's faster in its own way." Blatantly untrue, but the Kraemonen was there to serve, not to question.

Without a second thought, the hybrid began his march through the Sarkan wilderness, following the trails and pathways that had been created by Draelvasier scouts since the conquest of the world, meandering through the jungles with relative ease - he had always been an exceptional climber. As he marched, he took notice of the foliage... the way that nearly all of it was dead, and yet still stood proud and tall. The atmosphere had been filled with death for these native plants... but they had not yet rotten away enough to fall completely.

That was a shame too because it would have made it much easier to see around himself.

 

[Vrun Ryssic]

There were only two of them...

Vrun Ryssic watched from a great distance as the Draelvasier had entered into his hunting ground, an imagined kill perimeter in which his sniper rifle was at its strongest capacity of firepower given the distance, the state of the weather and the foliage between himself and the far off marker, a tree with which he had scratched using his Trandoshan claws in order to tell the point of descent for any shot fired.

Two of the Bryn'adul were less than optimal, yet at such an effective range, the Hunters Hybrid Blaster Rifle could cover a battlefield of terrain when set within its sniper configuration, thus leaving him the option of picking one-off and seeking to draw the larger and more formidable of the two in for a face-to-face fight as the Scorekeeper would surely desire.

"This one begins the Hunt..." The Trandoshan spoke to himself as if there might be a third party watching over his actions.

A loud crack would shatter the silence of the environment, echoing across the sky. The pulse charge fired from the Sniper Rifle would have reached the pair before the sound, Vrun Ryssic having targeted the Draelvasier beside Osam , the one accompanying the larger of the two into the hunting ground. The pulse charge may have been overkill for most races when concerning immobilizing and non-fatal rounds, yet for the Draelvasier, Vrun had done some research and learned of their greater than average resistance to most elements.

He did not seek to kill anyone yet, this much would be clear regardless of whether the shot landed on his mark or not. In the eyes of the Drael, this might leave them to assume the Trandoshan wasn't taking the hunt seriously enough, yet in Vrun's head, he was simply certain in his ability and he knew that such a bounty would bring greater honour in taking them alive.

 

[Osam]

Vrun Ryssic

Osam had not felt that it was necessary to have a guardian accompanying him on his trek into the wilderness of Sarka. The world had already been subjugated, and there had been no indication whatsoever that there were any leftover insurgents or humanoids left alive on the world. Completely cleansed of sapients other than those accepted by the Bryn'adul, the hybrid had little to fear. It was not as if though any of the native wildlife of the planet would have been able to harm a warrior such as himself - and frankly, there were so few of them leftover anyway that it was hardly worth even considering them.

Nevertheless, the rank of Warlord carried with it some degree of privilege and responsibility. Respect had driven the Draelvasier - Arros - to request permission to accompany the hybrid on his expedition. A Risen-Sraelvun by birth, Arros was only just under the height of the hybrid, and the bulk of his body made it apparent that he had been trained well by the Bedla'korum for matters of warfare. Perhaps if the hybrid needed assistance in carrying something of significant weight, the presence of an ally would be useful to him.

The Warlord prepared to question what had made Arros so insistent on arriving when the crack of a rifle drew his attention immediately to the flanks, and the sudden spastic shaking of Arros alerted him to the fact that he had been hit. It was a devastating level of shock for the Risen-Sraelvun to suffer, and he continued twitching on the ground for a few moments before stilling, the low rise and fall of his chest indicative that he had survived the encounter, albeit in a less than optimal state.

A stunning blow? Against their kindred? Had the Concord come with commandos in order to capture some of them alive? Osam slid instantly into the base of one of the nearest trees, using it as cover against the unseen aggressor. His eyes scanned the opposite flank - the exposed side - and the Worm-Mind did the same, attempting to guarantee whether or not he was in the process of being surrounded.

"Did you see where the shot came?" He questioned telepathically, receiving a blunt negative from the Kraemonen living inside of his armor.

Shooting blindly into the foliage would be a fool's errand... but he needed to flush his enemy out somehow. Reaching for his hip, Osam took hold of one of the Sun Quaker grenades, tore away its pin, and blindly hurled it into the undergrowth, hoping that the dispersal of toxins would be enough to drive his foe from his hiding place... or at least to confirm where the enemy was not.