A World With No Name

Chapter 6: Hunting

"You bastard! You think you can just come in here whenever you want?"

"Of course! I paid for this damned house, didn't I? A house, by the way, that you are running into the ground! You think it's easy to just go on, trying to forget about how you sabotaged me!"

.....don't think about it. J-just tune them out...

"Sabotage! Really Shine? You wouldn't be half the Mane you think you are without me!"

"And who are you exactly? All your power, all you are comes from me. ME! You are nothing without ME SteelHeart."

"You mean without Kestejoo?"

".....What the hell does Kestejoo have to do with this?"

"You forget exactly how much power I have! All of this, and I truly mean all of it, can be gone!"

....s-she's lying... she doesn't mean it. The pain... the pain will go away...

"Oh please SteelHeart you wouldn't dare!"

"You think I'm bluffing. I swear you will never see him again! I will fucking ruin you and you'll have nothing! Do you hear me! Fucking Nothing!"

"Oh please! You might hate me but admit it you need me! What'll you have without me? Your fancy tail wouldn't last a second without me supporting you!"

"Motherfucker, I was fine before you, and I'll be fine after you. WE'LL be fine after you!"

.....it's the same as every other night. Just keep clawing into your fur, it'll go by faster. She doesn't mean it.

I jolted awake clawing at my shoulders and shaking. It took a while, but I managed to calm my breathing to the point where my heart wasn't going to burst out of my chest. I looked around to notice that everyone else was still fast asleep. It was still the middle of the night, or dare I say early morning. Typically, I would just continue on my journey but that was clearly not the case here. Since Payewa we had been traveling through the forest for the past week. It was a much slower pace than I was used to, though I didn't mind trading speed for company. Though I would never tell them that. I did appreciate them. I swear Wakibi has a story for any situation. And Mowaru was a fierce trainer. She was firm but she kept all of us on our toes. Sakarii and I liked to double team her, show her how we fight in the Outer Wilds. Mowaru would laugh and say how she hadn't fought that hard in years. Sakarii would typically giggle and laugh as Wakibi told her stories. I remember HeartMane asking me why I didn't share any stories, to which Wakibi answered for me, "Oh no one knows about what's happened to QuietPaw except QuietPaw."

Needless to say, I don't open up or talk to my newfound companions much. However, since I was awake and unable to go to sleep after my terrible bout down memory lane. I thought maybe I should surprise them by making breakfast for the group. I decided to get up and hunt.

Now hunting for multiple different people was going to be a bit of a challenge but it wouldn't be too hard. The main thing I was looking for was a forest dodo. Unlike my friend Wakibi, these lesser birds were flightless. Their eggs are also absolutely delicious. Eggs and dodo legs would make for a hearty breakfast. Luckily the forest was full of these little things.

In my beast form I stayed low and close to the ground. Making sure I kept my nose open toward their scent. After an hour or so I finally caught a whiff of what smelled like a big one. I slowed down to a crawl, making sure not to make too much noise. As I get closer, the scent gets stronger and stronger. It's around this time when I heard someone in the distance. I elected to ignore it and keep following the scent.

At the end of the scent I saw a small flock of dodos. Perfect! Right before I went in for breakfast, I heard a thwip-like sound. I ducked right before an arrow struck the tree right beside me. I changed to my walking form and grabbed the arrow. I pull it out of the tree and look back to where I heard the noise come from. Apparently the person that was looking for me had found me. I pointed the arrow back in the direction of the noise and I moved it just slightly to the right. With all my might I found the arrow. It sinks in with a sharp fwump sound and a whine. I jumped forward, switching back into my beast form, the target of my hunt quickly changing.

My new target is quick. Considering it's still this close to the ground, I know it isn't a monkey or a bird. Whatever it was, it was fast and it blended in well with the environment. With the options narrowed down, I was on its tail with no signs of stopping. When it turned left, I turned left. When it turned right, I did the same. I realized I was starting to drive it into a corner. I jumped and scratched its leg, making it fall into a small clearing. I jumped into the clearing, changing my form to see a small wolf, nursing his leg. He changed form and started to try to get up, whining as he put pressure on his leg. "Owowowowow..... that hurt...."

"Yeah imagine what my reaction would've been to the arrow that missed me. Gods, you're just a pup...." I commented, noticing the pitch of his voice.

"I'm not a pup!" He whined.

"Really? How many summers and winters have you seen?"

"13!" He said getting up to his paws.

"13! What are you doing hunting lions in the forest?" I asked, concerned.

"I..." he said, looking away.

"Look pup," I said as I started to approach. Before I could get too close, he threw down a small pellet that bursted into smoke. I brandished my claws and covered my eyes, bracing for an attack, but when the smoke cleared, the wolf was gone.

I sighed and went back to my hunt as planned. As I hunted, I thought about the little wolf. He wasn't very unlike me at that age. He was probably just scared. The poor pup. I finally found myself back in front of the dodos. There was a particularly fat one hovering over a nest of eggs. Perfect! I rushed in and claimed the dodo and its eggs for my own.

By the time I returned to camp, the Great Sun had started to rise into the sky. The time must've escaped me. Luckily, my companions were still sleeping. Except for, much to my surprise, Sakarii.

"Hm. Morning QuietPaw," she said softly.

"Good morning," I responded, "Care to help me with breakfast?"

She nodded and together we made breakfast for everyone. I didn't tell them about my run in with the pup, but I feel like this isn't the last I've seen of him.