Jenn's Story

 

       Jenn was hatched on the planet of Shhrrnaria, from one of the twin eggs in her mother's first clutch.  Her clutch-twin was a male named Grainger, and it was clear from the very first days of their life that Jenn was the stronger-willed of the two.   They were hatched into a newly forming clan, the Longest Dark Pack, and were carefully raised by their mother Moon and her mates D'El and Wray.  As is customary for the raptor-kind, the twins stayed with the pack until they were physically mature at the age of two years.  At that time, Moon laid a new clutch and the twins were expected to survive on their own.

    This was an exciting time on Shhrrnaria.  It had just become a member of the greater community of the galaxy, which meant that the experience of other worlds was newly available to young raptors.  Many left the planet to establish new territories and explore undiscovered ventures.   Jenn was quite attracted by this promise of excitement and convinced her twin to join her, though such exploration was not in his nature and against his better judgment.  They found positions aboard a cargo freighter, the Prangy, working on the loading docks, and were soon visiting many exotic new worlds and meeting dozens of different species.

    It was the sort of life that Jenn discovered she thrived upon.  She quickly clawed her way up through the ranks of workers on the docks, securing a position of authority within months of leaving Shhrrnaria, and bringing herself to the attention of the freighter's captain.   A member of a bipedal reptilian species, Hill Val'usav had his fingers in far shadier businesses than simple cargo hauling.  He took the young raptoress under his wing and introduced her to smuggling.  This proved even more exciting to Jenn, and she was soon mastering this new profession with ease.

    Grainger, in the meantime, was not as happy as his twin.  Though he enjoyed seeing the new sights, he would have preferred to be home on Shhrrnaria with the growing pack.  He watched as Jenn became ever more involved with her new duties and constant adventures, and realized that she simply was never going to be the pack-type.  She was a loner, a fringer, seeking her own way in the universe without the help of anyone else.  Deciding that this life was not for him, he requested that he be dropped off the next time the Prangy came close to Shhrrnaria.  Jenn was extremely angry with him when he left, not understanding why he did not find the same appeal in adventuring that she did.

    Unfortunately, Captain Val'usav decided that Grainger knew too much about the Prangy's full range of operations.  He had the young raptor killed before Grainger could reach Shhrrnaria.  Jenn did not discover this until many months later when she took some down-time to visit her pack and learned that Grainger had not returned.  

    She was, at this time, four years old.  Upon reaching this age, every young raptor participates in a major hunt to prove their worth as an adult.  The choice of prey is left up to the individual, and Jenn vengefully swore to hunt down those who had murdered her brother.

      It took nearly a year for her to back-track along the nearly invisible trail left by Val'usav, but she succeeded and put an end to his operation for once and for all.  Upon her return home, she was honored with her Adult Festival and chose her hunt name.  Hurt and angry byt he loss of her brother, she swore that she would be one of the most deadly predators in the galaxy, and she chose the name "X" to symbolize the unknown factor that she hoped to be in every equation.  As per custom, this symbol was branded on her left thigh by her mother's favored male D'El.  She is now known as Velociraptor X, Raptor X, or familiarly just X in many parts of the galaxy.  Only a select few individuals outside the Longest Dark Pack are privy to her given name.

 

     After her ceremony, Jenn remained on Shhrrnaria for quite some time, taking instruction from the matriarchs of her species in the ways of the mystic Priestesshood of Hunters.  During this time she traveled extensively with her mother and younger sisters to visit other packs and receive training from other members of the Sisterhood.  It was during one such visit to the Night Ice Pack that she met a young male raptor by the name of Khenu.

    The Night Ice Pack was the northern-most raptor pack of Shhrrnaria, and they lived in a territory that was extremely hostile.  The summer season was short, rainy and cool, while the winter brought early blizzards and sub-zero temperatures.  Because of this harsh environment, the raptors of this region had adapted accordingly.  They grew a thick coat of fur-like feathers, and their hides were often shadowy gray or even white.  They were hunters of extreme skill, able to find prey in even the most unforgiving conditions.  

    Jenn took a liking to this region and its inhabitants immediately.  She loved the cool temperatures and the challenges to her hunting skills.  When her mother and sisters returned home, Jenn decided to stay until the annual cold-snap, and was unofficially adopted into the pack.

    No one was happier to see her stay than Khenu.  The son of a lower pack female, he had worked hard to make his mark as a strong male in the pack.  Like Jenn, he had traveled off-planet and established a small territory of trade which he operated from a private ship often in orbit around Shhrrnaria.  He was not only successful, but handsome, sporting a shadowy-white hide with gray and black spots and striping.  Jenn was attracted to him immediately, but kept her distance at first, still hurt from the loss of her brother, and satisfied to flirt from afar. 

    Just as the fall season was ending in Jenn's sixth year, the Night Ice Pack held a Mating-Run for all the ready females.   After having lived with the pack for so long, and now feeling more comfortable around Khenu, Jenn brought herself into heat so that she would be able to participate, in the hopes that the handsome male raptor might be the one to catch her.  

    He did, much to their mutual delight.  Jenn conceived and carried her twin eggs into the winter season, completing her training as a Hunt-Priestess at the same time.  However, Jenn wanted to lay her clutch in the territory of her parent pack,  so she left the northern regions earlier than originally planned, Khenu going along as guidance and protection.  Just before her departure, the Night Ice Pack held a Priestess-Festival for her, granting Jenn her earned status as a Priestess and branding the symbol of her position on the left side of her head.

    Together Jenn and Khenu returned to the territory of the Longest Dark Pack, and Jenn laid her clutch that spring in a secluded little valley where she and Grainger had played as younglings.   In mid-summer, Jenn's twin eggs hatched, she and Khenu became the proud parents of male and female hatchlings.  The male was immediately named Grainger in honor of his murdered uncle.  From the start it was apparent that he would take after his father in coloring, for his hide was a smoky gray and he was covered with a soft layer of fuzzy down.  Khenu named the delicate little female Gayla, after his own mother.   However, Gayla looked more like Jenn's mother, Moon, with a rich dark hide of near black and deep purple striping.

    Soon after the twins were hatched, Khenu returned to his business.  It was not uncommon for a male raptor to leave his family for other endeavors, and Jenn really did not mind that he was gone.  She raised her little family within the security of her mother's ever-growing pack where the little ones had the benefits of their grandparent's presence, as well as the attentive care of many aunts and uncles.  Jenn's youngest sister Firsa took a special interest in the younglings and was on hand to help Jenn wherever she could be.  

It was a pleasant time for Jenn, caring for her little family within the security of her pack, but she soon felt the need to roam once again.   As her children grew older and more independent, Jenn found herself traveling in ever widening circles away from the pack lands.  It came as no surprise to anyone when, as soon as Grainger and Gayla had reached their second year, Jenn returned to space and the larger adventure of the galaxy.

    She spent her time roaming from planet to planet, visiting the underside of the galactic community and re-honing her skills as a con and smuggler.  Due to her determined and tenacous nature, Jenn quickly became a well-known figure in many dealings, and picked up odd jobs here and there to get her from one endeavor to the next.  She worked in ship yards, manufacturing plants, and even bartended for a short while.   She made connections and met the right people, and within a few short years she was widely considered to be one of the best mercenaries in the field.  

    Jenn loved her life.  She thrived on jumping in and out of impossible situations, succeeding despite improbable odds, and making money.  Her dealings even occasionally brought her in contact with Khenu.  Though the male raptor ran a legitiment shipping business, there were times when she had to deal with him while doing her job.  They always enjoyed seeing each other, even if it was only for a few hours between shipments or deliveries.

    It was said that Raptor X would do almost anything if the price was right, but Jenn did have her limits.  Assassination was not in her job description.  Nor did she deal in goods that were illegal in export from her own homeworld.  And one thing Jenn could not abide was slavery of any sort.  

    It was her philosophy that all beings should be allowed to do as they wished, so long as those wishes did not bring undue harm to others.   Slavery denied this right, and Jenn would not take any job that dealt with slaves in the slightest.  Loosely hooking up with a semi-organized band of vigilantes known as the "Last Chance Gang", Jenn found herself seeking out and breaking up slavery rings.  The leader of the gang was a blood-red draconic being by the name of Slash.   Though he had his interests in many illegal activities, he openly shared Jenn's hostile feelings towards slavery and was more than willing to use his resources in efforts to abolish the practice.  Taking the young raptor under his wing, he introduced Jenn to the fine art of espionge and bounty hunting.

    It was during one of Last Chance's exploits that Jenn saved the life of a slave who was the sole survivor of a group that had been traveling by ship on a diplomatic mission.  The young male was a member of an odd species Jenn had never encountered before.  He was tall, very thin, with milky features and spun-glass hair.  Before her rescue, he had been viciously injured by his keepers, struck to the right side of his head by a heavy object.  This injury would completely alter the course of this young man's life.

    His name, in his own language, was K'azi*^mir --M*shay(tk), and he belonged to a scarce and widely scattered species known as the Neg'k*'jonians.  The Neggies, as the rest of the galaxy called them, were evolving cyborgs.  When an infant of this race was born, a bio-mechanical implant was always surgically implanted into their brains which put them in constant and complete contact with every other Neggie in the collective.  The implant also enabled them to access crystal and digitally stored information from most types of computer systems in the civilized galaxy.  Throughout their lives, Neggies habitually replaced their original body parts with artificial ones, making them one of the longest-lived species of the galaxy.   

    This particular young man that Jenn saved, who due to the complicated mechanical clicks and whirrs in his name was generally called Kazimir or Kaz by other beings, had been on his way to be initiated into the Ambassador's Information Guild when the ship he was traveling in was set upon by the slavers.  The injury he sustained permanently damaged the bio-mechanical implant in his head which cut him off from the collective of his people.  When Jenn finally escorted him to the Guild, it was discovered that this damage could not be fully repaired, and though Kaz received a new cybernetic eye and other hard-wiring, he was to be forever separate from his people.  Not knowing what to do with himself, Kaz accepted Slash's offer to join Last Chance.

    Over time, Jenn found herself often working with the cyborg when she had dealings with Last Chance, and the two developed an unusual and unlikely relationship.  

    It began as an advantage for Jenn, as Kaz was highly skilled in the area of all things mechanical or computerized and was quickly developing into a deadly fighter, thanks to Slash's expert training.  These skills often came in very handy when a job called for a carefully placed implode gren, or the quick pick of an electronic lock.  The two quickly realized that they worked well together, for Kaz's level-headed reasoning often counter-balanced Jenn's temper driven impulses.   As Kaz began to accompany Jenn on more and more of her adventures, they both recognized a partnership forming.  

    For a raptor who had almost always been a loner, having someone she could trust was a welcome change.   Kaz's loyalty helped Jenn fill the empty space within that Grainger's death had left behind.  And as for the cyborg himself, Jenn fulfilled the need for companionship and helped to replace the connection he had lost with his own people.   From Jenn's previous reputation as a successful mercenary, the two of them together built a new reputation of a team that could get any job done.

    They were successful enough to eventually purchase a quality ship of their own, and being freely mobile gave them great advantages over much of their competition.  On subsequent visits to Shhrrnaria, Kaz was accepted by the Longest Night Pack as Jenn's partner and made welcome.  When on the job, they watched each other's backs and kept each other company during the occasional long hauls between work.  The adventurous life-style they lived even put Kaz well on his way to adulthood, for among his species one was not considered fully mature until all the body parts except for the original brain were replaced. 

     Since joining Jenn, Kaz has lost his right hand during a fire fight and had to have metal ribs and a mechanical heart installed due to a brutal attack which nearly resulted in his death.  It was for that particular incident that Jenn earned her third brand, the Balance-Mark.  While Kaz was being put back together, Raptor X tracked down the reptile responsible for the damage and inflicted her own idea of punishment upon him, just as she had done to avenge Grainger years before.  Such an act of retribution is considered a noble feat among raptor-kind, and is often rewarded.  When she returned with Kaz to see her family, Jenn was honored with a festival and branded her with a mark on her right upper arm.  The Balance-Mark symbolizes her success in restoring balance in an unfair situation of life and death.

     Over the course of time, Jenn has learned much from Kaz about how his people view the Universe and added this knowledge to her own beliefs.  In their travels about the galaxy, they have discovered many things about the nature of reality and their place in it.  During one particular job, financed by a high member of the galactic government, Jenn was assigned the task of body-guarding a young reptile with the newly acquired ability to change the course of the Omniverse.  

    His name was the Dinosorceror, and he hailed from a small unassuming world known as Earth.  As the Dinosorceror did not really understand what sort of power was his to wield, Jenn had been paid to watch over him and make sure he did nothing universe-shattering with his abilities.  That was much easier said than done.   The Dinosorceror seemed to be a trouble-magnet and attracted chaos and problems wherever he went.  Before too long, Jenn found herself mixed up in alternate dimensions and realities, and it was during one of these mis-adventures that she, unbeknownst to her charge, discovered the 11-Dimensional Cube.

 

 

    The Cube was actually a gift to herself, from herself.  Placed in her path by another of Jenn's incarnations, the Cube taught the young raptor one of the most important life-lessons she could ever possibly learn.  Her existence was not linear.  The Cube showed her that a single soul can exist in many different places at many different times, and each incarnation of that one soul can have incarnations of its own.  In effect, the soul is infinite, with endless possibilities that manifest and disappear continually, and each soul is part of a greater group of souls which all work together with other groups in the evolution of the Omniverse as a single whole.

    Armed with the Cube, Jenn learned of many of her other incarnations, and saw that she herself existed on many different levels in several adjacent dimensions.  After her job protecting the Dinosorceror came to a rather abrupt end, she returned to her partner and together they continued their campaign of adventure and danger.  Now, however, they could expand their endeavors into other dimensions and realities.  

    Jenn learned that one of her incarnations was actually still with the Dinosorceror, running a small company on Earth called Lava Dome Four.  Another of her incarnations was a young human woman, living on that same planet in a different dimension, who had also somehow managed to hook up with the Dinosorceror of that particular reality.  Another incarnation was a male reptilian living on a desert planet in an entirely different galaxy.  Still another lived in an alternate future where he had been divinely appointed to be the Master of Darkness.  Jenn found that learning about her multi-dimensionality was fascinating, and invited Kaz to also learn about his various incarnations.  Together, the partners shared many adventures across and beyond the fabric of reality.

    

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All names and characters listed on this page belong to me, Jennifer Matulaitis.   They are my characters, leave them alone.  There is one exception to this.  The Dinosorceror is copyright his player, though he actually stole the Dinosorceror from Dinosaucers, but we won't get into that, and I know he doesn't give a damn about copyrights anyway.