Who Says You Can't Make New Friends in the Desert?

[Ibby]

[member="Krest"]

Deep within the Jundland Wastes of Tatooine, a certain Ruferalahuin was having fun. No, really.

Tipau had gotten an itch for a warm place, and as such had wandered off from to Grey Order and hitched several rides until she'd ended up on Tatooine. The female had no idea why people didn't like the place -- it was perfect for sunbathing and practicing her pyrokinesis, and the hot sand felt awesome between her toes.

Upon her arrival, Tipau had opted to travel into the Wastes by foot -- literally. Her boots and socks were clipped to the back of her belt, and she wore a cloth on her head for when the sandstorms kicked up. That was probably the only thing she didn't like; the sand whipped around by the wind hurt the parts of her skin not protected by thick fur or clothing.

After travelling for a couple days, the Ruferalahuin decided to stop by some rock formations which happened to also be infested with womp rats. Poor creatures. They just hadn't realized who they were trying to kill.

So now, Tipau was leaping about, barbecuing womp rats and occasionally making glass when her shots missed. According to her count, she was up to twelve rats dead, but honestly it was just too hard to tell. The smell coming from the cooked rats, however, was making her stomach grumble enough that Tipau was starting to hope the creatures would take the hint and leave.

 

[Darth Ferus]

[member="Tipau"]

Krest walked through the familiar planet once more. Wrapped up in a dusty cloak, he stepped through the desert, letting the wind whip around his form. The cloak did well about protecting him from the sand, and the goggles he had chosen to wear made it possible for him to see. There was a cave here, one he knew from time long ago, that had helped him learn his own personal skill. It was deep in the desert, far from anyone.

Or so he thought. The Zabrak was dumbfounded when he saw the female leaping around, burning rats. With fire. That she made. Out of all of it, it was that one fact that interested the Zabrak the most. There were two different ways to use fire without tools, and it was clear the cat had none. Quietly he would move closer, curious on how exactly she was burning the rats. But as ever, one hand rested on the hilt of his sword. Tatooine was a dangerous place, and so were the people.

 

[Ibby]

[member="Krest"]

"Oh come on! Why won't you guys just go away?! I'm hungry!" Tipau wailed. Though she had by no means used large balls of fire, she could feel her strength beginning to ebb, and she knew she needed to eat soon.

She was suddenly distracted by a presence in the Force, and looked up, scanning for the newcomer. "Hello? I know you're -- gahh!" In her lapse of attention, one of the rats had decided to chomp down on her tail. "Hey! No fair!" Letting out a huff, Tipau threw a ball at the aggregator, who fell off with a squeak and the smell of singed fur.

The tall Ruferalahuin crouched down and quickly set her fur on fire. With flames crackling across her skin and fur, she let out a terrifying screech, scaring off the rest of the womp rats.

Straightening up, she patted out the flames. "Huh. Should've tried that first." Tipau then commenced to picking up the leftover bodies on the ground, momentarily forgetting the being who'd distracted her.

 

[Darth Ferus]

He blinked slowly, watching [member="Tipau"] and the rats. He was stunned for the moment, more or less by the sheer fact that.. Well. This was happening. It's not often you see someone attacked by rats who was setting them on fire. The Zabrak raised his voice, calling to her after a moment. "Hey uh.. You alright..?" He blinked his blue eyes slowly, staring at her. He really had no idea what to say.

 

[Ibby]

[member="Krest"]

"...eleven, twelve, thirteen. Huh. Not bad!" Holding the rats by their tails, Tipau turned when she heard someone speak.

A few paces away stood a figure wrapped up in a cloak and wearing goggles. At this distance it was hard to tell what species he was, so the Ruferalahuin began to walk closer. This must've been the fellow from earlier, she mused. Good thing I already ate my monthly quota of Force Users. Maybe he likes womp rat?

Giving a wave with her free hand, Tipau called back, "Yeah, I'm fine! The womp rats weren't as tough as they looked! Who're you? I'm Tipau!"

Tipau had learned early on that when one had a palate such as hers, it often helped to be friendly. That way the people she didn't intend for her meal didn't try to kill her.

 

[Darth Ferus]

"I... I'm Krest?" The Zabrak blinked, pulling down his cloak around his head to show most of his face. He'd pull up his goggles, gazing at [member="Tipau"] with his blue eyes. He stood hesitantly, his hand still resting on his blade. Of course, the blade was hidden under the folds of his armor. The Iridonian would step closer, still as wary as before.

 

[Ibby]

@[member="Krest"]

Tipau beamed at the Zabrak as he introduced himself. Seemed like he wasn't going to kill her, after all. "It's nice to meet you, Krest."

She then looked down at the rats in her hand, tail swishing. "Have you eaten yet? You can join me for my meal; womp rat isn't as gross as people say it is." The Ruferalahuin was interested in what Krest was doing out here. All sorts of possibilities began to zoom through her mind. Maybe he's lost? Or he's looking for something. Maybe he wanted to hunt, too. I could give him some pointers if that's the case. Shaking away her thoughts, she jerked her head towards the rocks. "There's a couple caves we can sit in, if you like."

 

[Darth Ferus]

The Zabrak blinked slowly. It wasn't often he met someone who was willing to share a meal here on Tatooine. He would offer a smile and bow his head, speaking up.

"I am indeed hungry, and I am sure they taste rather well. Lead on, [member="Tipau"] . I shall follow." Politeness went a long way with Krest. And he himself thought that it wasn't respect that was earned, but disrespect. For now he would follow the cat woman, and perhaps he may even find the cave he was looking for.

 

[Ibby]

[member="Krest"]

Tipau grinned at Krest, pleased that he had accepted her offer. Swishing her tail, she began to lead the Zabrak towards the rocks.

As they walked, she made an attempt at a conversation. "So, you're a Zabrak, right? I'm a Ruferalahuin -- and don't worry, there's some of us who can't pronounce that, either." This was said with a wink. "Honestly, I wouldn't be surprised if you hadn't heard of us. There's not many who've travelled out across the galaxy. In fact, I can name all of the ones I know on one hand!"

Tipau shifted the rats to her other hand. "Unfortunately I'm not the best representative for my species -- I've only got one tail. I should've had at least two by now." She stopped talking, realizing she'd probably overwhelmed the Zabrak with her monologue, so she gave him a chance to respond.

 

[Darth Ferus]

[member="Tipau"]

"I actually use to have an apprentice such as yourself way back when. So I do know of your kind, but I didn't know about the tail thing." He was pretty serious. Though the last one he knew was far less friendly then this one here. He'd find a place to sit, plopping down loudly. "You eat people yes?"

 

[Ibby]

[member="Krest"]

"Oh, really? Who was it?" She wondered briefly if it was Mal. Probably unlikely -- her brother didn't seem like someone who'd want to be an apprentice to anyone -- but then, she hadn't really known her brother for long, so who knew? "And yeah, my parents said that us Ruferalahuins can grow up to eight tails in their lifetime, but I've got something in my genes that prevents that."

Tipau set the rats down in front of Krest before sitting opposite him. "Some people, yeah. Usually Force Users, since we need to eat them to keep up our Force Affinity and whatnot. Usually low-ranking Sith acolytes on Coruscant. I've never eaten a Jedi though. They tend to be good conversation." She grinned at the Zabrak. "But don't worry, I won't eat you. Not unless you deliberately try to kill me. You seem like a nice fellow."

She picked up a rat and began to field-dress it with her knife. "I'm also open to eating non-sentients, it's just that my usual prey for them would require me getting a permit and doing all that hassle, so... I try to avoid it. But usually I only eat Force Users about once a month, and then eat fine specimens like womp rats and burgers until I need to hunt again. This rat's yours, by the way. Unless you don't want it."

 

[Darth Ferus]

The Zabrak couldn't help but laugh at [member="Tipau"] . She was so oddly innocent for someone who ate other people, and it was beginning to wear off on him. He'd lean back in his chair, trying to remember the name of the cat woman he had trained before. ".. Nothings coming to mind. So easy her name was forgotten sadly, but.. Ah well." Krest's blue eyes would watch the Ruferalahuin for now, just studying her form. Perhaps she's hiding something? He doubted it.

 

[Ibby]

[member="Krest"]

Tipau finished cleaning the rat and, holding it in her hand, set it on fire. As it roasted more thoroughly, she grimaced faintly, keeping an eye on the meat lest it burned too much. "Shame. I might have known her. Or my brother might have."

As Krest fell silent, the Ruferalahuin looked up to find him studying her. Her ears were pressed flat against her head, and she didn't need to be Force Sensitive to figure out what he was thinking. It was something that many people thought, around her.

"You're probably wondering why, as someone who eats other beings, I don't act like a bloodthirsty monster. Right?" She spoke in a manner to suggest that this was something she'd said many, many times in the past. And it was.

She doused the flame on the rat, taking a quick sniff before handing it over .to the Zabrak "I can explain why, if you like, but it's kinda long. And it may or may not be hard to wrap your head around."

 

[Darth Ferus]

[member="Tipau"]

"You'd be surprised at how easy it is for me to understand things these days." With a faint.smile he would nod to the girl, every so often glancing to the cooking rat. Otherwise, he had some time to waste anyway. A good tale over a fire would be relaxing to him, and he did want to get to know the girl so able to set things on fire. Leaning back on his rock seat, he'd get himself confortable. At least they were sheltered from the storm.

 

[Ibby]

[member="Krest"]

Tipau beamed at the Zabrak. "Understanding is something a lot more people need these days." She noticed what seemed to be his hesitance to eat the offered rat, so she grabbed one of her other rats and briefly set it on fire to sort of sear it. After a moment, she then put the fire out and took a bite.

After she swallowed, she began her explanation.

"See, first thing people always get wrong -- and I mean always -- is the term 'cannibal'. When I first started wandering the galaxy, a couple people who'd come across me on a hunt kept hurling that word at me, except I had no clue what it meant. So, I looked it up. A cannibal is someone who eats one of their own people, you see, and that's the one thing us Ruferalahuins look down on. Well, most of us. Well, the ones I know. Which isn't a lot, really, but...anyway.

"I'm not a cannibal because I have not and will not eat another Ruferalahuin. Which means that the term 'cannibal' is neither a label nor an insult for me, because it's not even close to being true. I mean, I don't think the thought of eating one of my own has crossed my mind.

"So now that's out of the way, let's go on to why I don't act like one of thoses crazed, bloodthirsty monsters always featured in a holodrama. I don't murder, I hunt. And I hunt because I have to. Circle of life, you know? Besides, I figured I do pretty well because I don't just hunt any ol' person, but usually the ones who've done a lot of hurt to the galaxy. The real murderers. Oh, don't think I feel like I have to redeem myself or anything, because there's nothing to redeem myself for, as I said."

She sighed, taking another bite of rat. "Basically, I'm not a murderer because I don't kill sentients for the pleasure of it. You said you taught a Ruferalahuin? Well, then you should know how about every month we need to feed off of something with Force sustenence, otherwise we'll die. Meaning, nine times outta ten, I only hunt someone once a month. Granted, there's been a couple instances where I've done more than once a month, but I won't bore you with that.

"And even though I eat Force Users, it doesn't mean I can't be nice to them, right? And you don't see people going around and putting nexus on trial for eating some poor little prey animal, do you? They eat animals because they need it to survive; I eat people because I need them to survive. Outside of that, it's wasteful. And you'd be surprised how many Force Users I've met who were pretty cool, at least until I told them my diet. Then, they would either run, try to arrest me, or -- get this -- try to experiment on me. Like I was a common animal!" Tipau huffed and took another bite of rat, before she realized she was getting off-track.

"Oops. I'm going on a tangent. Anyway. I guess it's also because I believe that it's not the action itself which is evil, but the intent. Like I said, I don't normally kill folks because I want to, but because I have to. It's me or them, and unless they didn't do anything to make me mad, I choose me." The Ruferalahuin paused, studying Krest. "Does that make sense? I know I have a tendency to ramble and all."