Appropriatly titled "Sometimes, I gotta big mouth," we're finally finding out what happened to Catrina a few roleplays prior! Noteable as the first solo effort of Catrina, it's not for the weak at heart, as some of this is downright vicious! You can literally feel Catrina's defiant streak as you read on. With Dash having problems of his own, it's gonna take something mighty big to get Catrina out of this jam!

Catrina was hot on the scent of her prey, the hunt foremost in her mind. She heard Dash say something as she left but knew she could find out later what it had been.

She slowed as she approached where the animal was, keeping upwind of it, approaching cautiously, careful not to give any clue as to her approach. She stopped just short, preparing for the kill before she gathered her body beneath her and pounced on a rabbit, killing it with a swift swipe of her claws and a bite to the neck. She purred as she examined the body. A good, fat one- they should eat well tonight!

As she stood, her ears twitched. A group of people was approaching where she was hunting! She hid in some underbrush, suddenly mindful of Dash’s description of the groups that normally populated the island, and his warning that they should steer clear of them for safety’s sake.

But the group that passed did not match the description that Dash had given her of either the Pirate’s or the Hippies. They were military of some sort- wearing blue and red uniforms. Perhaps they were another group on the Quest? Dash had said others would be coming; maybe these guys would help them out? She stood, letting them see her as they passed.

The result was almost instantaneous. One of the soldiers looked over at her and smiled. “Have a Dyspepsia Day, fr…. “ His eyes widened as he saw her shirt. The next thing Catrina knew he, and all his cohorts, are drawing weapons and charging her! So much for being a ‘friend’!

“Time to beat her cold, men!” Was the leaders cry as they advanced. Catrina reached back for her katana, then remembered- this was a hunting foray! She always left her weapons at camp when hunting, to prevent them from making noise and alerting her prey. Well…if steel is unavailable, guile and instinct will have to do!

She roared, baring her fangs and expressing her claws menacingly at the approaching group. This had the desired affect, as the soldiers had never seen this kind of behavior out of a Cloaca Cola soldier! She then charged into the group, still roaring, making them be cautious with their blows for fear of hitting a fellow soldier, while she was free to claw and, in a couple of instances, bite her opponents. Shortly she had three down, and was advancing on a fourth, when something heavy came crashing down on her head, and she knew no more.

She awoke in the Dyspepsia camp to the sound of tearing cloth. As she opened her eyes she realized the shirt she was wearing was being ripped off! “Hey! Quit that, you lousy perverts!” She screeched, trying to stop them but finding her hands securely bound behind her, her feet also bound.

The man who was taking her shirt off regarded it with severe distaste, then tossed it into the fire, ignoring Catrina’s protests. He then turned to her. “Now, spy, tell me what your mission is!”

Catrina looked at him questioningly. “Why do you think I’m a spy?”

He growled at her. “We see the proof in the shirt you wore!”

She looked astonished at this. “You….What kind of stupid spy do you think I am? You think I’m stupid enough to go parading around in your enemy’s shirt?”

Her interrogator said matter-of-factly “No, but intelligent enough to try to throw us off your trail by wearing that shirt- making us think you a regular in the Cloaca Cola army!”

Catrina just stared at this, not knowing how to counter such stupidity. She decided to let it slide, telling the soldier the truth, every bit of it, going all the way back to the campsite and Dash’s gift to her.

He listened to her, but Catrina could see he did not believe her. “From what you say we are leagues away from where we know ourselves to be. Therefore what you say cannot be true!” He struck her, hard across the muzzle, eliciting a growl from Catrina. “Now, tell me the truth!”

Catrina regarded her captor, eyes ablaze. Leagues away? Obviously these guys had been marching in the sun too long! She growled again. “I’d tell you the truth, but to say that you’re a horse’s ass would be an insult to the….” She stopped as she was struck again, but this time she was ready for it. Her captor screamed and pulled back his hand- minus a small chunk, which Catrina promptly spat out.

Catrina paid for it, of course. The beating she received over the next several minutes is best not discussed in squeamish company, and she survived the pain only by thinking of better things- like Dash. She had not known him long, but she was sure that Dash would have heard her roars and come to her aid. She knew that, at this very moment, Dash was probably search the island, letting nothing stop him as he tracked her down.

The soldier stopped beating her, but only because the staff he was using had broken in two. Catrina lay on the ground, but soon rolled back to upright. She coughed a bit, spit up a little blood (!) and just sat there, stoically. Her mother had once commented she was the “most stubborn bitch I’ve ever known!” and Catrina was out to prove it to this yahoo.

The yahoo, however, had seemed to have enough. A strong right hand shot out and grabbed Catrina by her throat, squeezing hard, choking her and cutting off all blood to her brain. Catrina fought as best she could, trying to keep the choke from being effective, trying to stay alert, but she knew there were limits to this- and nature set the biggest of them. Soon she felt her thinking going fuzzy, and knew she was running out of time. At that moment she knew her very life was in this man’s hands- and fear crept into her gaze.