Life of a Weapon, an Indoraptor Story

A New Life

Finding a new home had been a grounding experience for the two of them, but in the end, despite all of Blue's fuss over picking the perfect one, the glade was just a place to return to, and they often spent their time wandering the surrounding areas just out of curiosity, sometimes for days on end.

It was quickly becoming apparent to both of them that their lives had gotten remarkably peaceful, considering their respective backgrounds. For her, there weren't any giants that could kill her any time they saw her. For him, there weren't any bipeds to torture him or throw him into a cage. There was nothing out there that was able to harm them.

The Indoraptor was learning about this vast world remarkably quickly, and becoming a potent hunter. He had been able to translate many of his old lessons into real hunting, and soon his skills advanced to the point that he gathered enough meat for the both of them, though she would occasionally hunt for herself.

He had made it his goal to make things as easy as possible for her, and therefore did everything possible to make sure that everything was perfect. The only reason she hunted at all was because of her pride, and the fact that she also wanted to contribute.

It hadn't been easy for him to get the first tries right however, and the first time he tried hunting he learned one of the most important lessons he would ever look back on.

He had chanced upon a group of what he recognized as antlered creatures, just lacking the antlers he was accustomed to, and he decided that he wanted to bring one home with him. So, he camouflaged himself and slowly moved forward.

Just as he was about to rush in, the pressure of the moving air stopped pressing his face, and started pressing his back. The creatures, suddenly startled, ran away from the unfamiliar thing.

He kicked the ground in annoyance. What had gone wrong?

He followed the herd and tried again, but the pressure was on his back from the beginning, and they panicked again.

So he tried again, and this time the pressure was on his face the whole time, and his camouflage worked like a charm. Silently and quickly, he killed the closest one, then roared as he revealed himself to the ones he decided not to target.

Reflecting on his previous failures, he wondered what had made this attempt successful. He thought about it for a good while, before he finally realized what all three of the hunts had as common variables, the pressure of the moving air.

It hadn't occurred to him, having been raised in the realm of air conditioning, that his scent could be pushed away from him by the moving air, thus alerting the antlered creatures to his presence.

From then on he would always keep the direction of the wind in mind when he hunted, and continued to learn more lessons as his successes abounded.

They never lacked food, and hunting became so easy that Blue's prediction had come true, they were set to live off of snacks for the rest of their lives.

The two were also getting better at communicating. It took time, and there were still plenty of hiccups, but after every vocal exchange the Indoraptor did his best to memorize the meanings of the different calls and sounds she made, adding those and his own to his expanding vocabulary.

They had grown accustomed to each other, and had become good friends. Days were spent hunting, drinking, sleeping, and, when both were feeling particularly joyful, playing.

Blue had trouble getting him to play games with her at first. It had been so long since she had been able to do anything fun, there was simply no one left besides him to have fun with.

He perceived her playfulness as challenges the first few tries, and decided to yield immediately in order to not be forced to hurt her.

After that, she attempted a different approach. Blue tried to get him to play other games besides play-fighting and chasing. He was confused at first, but soon he likened the proposed games to training, like what the bipeds had forced him through. Needless to say, he hadn't liked that idea.