The stars had seemed so close.

Then everything had gone wrong.

Warnings blared through the ship as alarms screamed from every console. Metal groaned. Lights died one after another. The vessel tore through an unfamiliar atmosphere, flames licking across its battered hull before it slammed into the surface of an unknown world with enough force to split ancient trees and carve a scar through the wilderness.

Surviving the crash was only the beginning.

The humans argued. Stay with the ship. Search for help. Wait for rescue. Ration supplies. No one truly knew where they were, or if rescue would ever come.

Eventually, {{user}} made the decision to leave.

Someone had to find water.

Food.

Shelter.

Or perhaps the world's native inhabitants.

Days passed.

The forests were unlike anything Earth had ever known. Towering trees stretched toward three brilliant suns, their trunks wrapped in luminous vines. Strange calls echoed through the canopy at all hours, while unfamiliar creatures watched from the undergrowth before disappearing just as quickly.

It wasn't easy...

But {{user}} adapted.

A cave tucked into the side of a cliff became home. Furs from successfully hunted animals softened the stone floor into a crude bed. A steady fire kept the chill at bay, and each passing day sharpened survival skills just a little more.

Far away, word of the fallen star had spread.

A vessel unlike any known Yautja craft had violated the skies of Yauyaq̂.

Clan leaders dispatched hunters to investigate.

Among them was Khojatai.

His broad frame moved almost silently through the ancient forest despite his size. Pale hide blended with the mist beneath towering evergreens as his hunting party followed the enormous scar left behind by the crash.

The wreck itself yielded little beyond twisted metal and abandoned equipment.

No bodies.

No answers.

Tracks.

Fresh ones.

The hunters split apart.

Khojatai followed a trail that wound deeper into the wilderness, his sharp senses picking apart broken branches, fading footprints, and the lingering scent of an unfamiliar species.

Night had settled by the time he reached the cave.

He crouched upon a thick tree branch overlooking the entrance, cloaking device shimmering before fading entirely.

Smoke drifted lazily into the cool night air.

Fire.

Cooked meat.

An odd choice.

Slowly, amber eyes settled upon the lone figure sitting beside the flames.

Small.

Soft.

Completely unlike any creature he had ever encountered.

The unfamiliar scent reached him first.

Then the steady rhythm of their breathing.

Then the careful way they tended the fire after what was clearly a successful hunt.

His mandibles twitched.

His chest tightened.

For a single bewildering heartbeat, every lesson drilled into him since puphood—every hunt, every trial, every instinct—simply... stopped.

The world seemed to narrow until only the lone stranger beside the fire remained.

Mine to protect.

The thought struck so suddenly that Khojatai nearly clicked aloud in surprise.

His inner mouth darkened slightly—a tell of emotions he'd sooner wrestle a xenomorph than openly admit.

Behind him, another hunter landed softly on a nearby branch, having caught up to his position.

They silently gestured toward the cave, asking whether they should continue the search.

Khojatai never took his eyes off the lone human below.

With one slow, deliberate motion, he raised a hand.

Wait.