Rigor Mortis

Fleeing Home

The already dim light inside the den got disrupted. And then completely blocked. Something was outside. Corax remained silent, hoping it would go away, but that was not the case. In the week Corax had stayed with the pup, the bodies started to make their presence known. They got a bit smelly, attracting predators looking for an easy meal. One had found it.

A feline watched both animals sitting in the den. A fresh pup was more attracting than some dead flesh that had already been there for a week.

Corax stared right back at the feline, stepping in front of the defenceless pup, spreading his wings in means of defending it. With this move he also tried to intimidate the lynx, but it didn't work that way.

The feline predator started to crawl inside the den. Since he was smaller than a wolf, he fitted easily trough the entrance.

Corax started to caw. He raised his voice to make the loud noises. The lynx didn't even thought about backing off. He just raised his paws to hit the raven with his claws, causing the bird to fall down and leaving a free oppertunity to catch the pup. The pup now started to yelp in fear as the lynx grabbed his left front leg and dragged him outside.

Corax ran outside after him and when he could finally spread his wings he took off. He could now use the air to attack properly.

He dived down pecking with force onto his head and scratching his nose with his claws. Before he could snap back, Corax flew off again. The lynx at least dropped  the pup. He understood that if he wanted to enjoy an easy meal, he first had to fight off the raven watching over his meal.

Corax wasn't allowed to make mistakes. The lynx stood above the pup so Corax couldn't reach it.

The raven cawed and tried to attack the face of the feline. It was a quick attack and the lynx almost got him. The fight took a long time, but Corax eventually won. The lynx had had enough. The raven wouldn't give in. The lynx did not have a chance to enjoy a meal. Not this one. He finally backed off and left the scene. Corax could now give himself a short rest by landing next to the pup and inspecting his body for wounds. Only a few scratches were found, but he would be fine.

"You strange little thing." Corax whispered. Why was he so worried about the pup? What kind of different was he? He couldn't stand it that he still needed to wait longer to find out.

Corax looked back at the den. He didn't want to risk another attack by going back there. Thereby, once the pup was older they needed to find another place in order to stay safe.

Corax gently pulled the tiny tail of the pup. It tried to turn around and Corax led him back to the entrance of the den. He had to wait there while Corax was looking for a new home. The den was still a more safe spot for him than the open air. It would have to do.

Corax flew off. He took a good height to look around. He had to go further away than he actually wanted to in order to find a new home. There weren't very much opportunities. He hoped for a den, but there just weren't any to find.

He flew around for another hour without any luck. He decided to return. He didn't want to leave the pup alone for too long. The danger had increased and they sure had noticed.

When back, Corax reassured the pup and then left for ten minutes to bring him water. As soon as he was back again and the pup drank it all, he had to leave again. This time he flew in another direction hoping for more luck. He looked around and after a while his eye fell on a small cave. He quickly landed to take a look inside. If it was inhabited he would have to look further and it really started to bother him now. He was a little annoyed by it.

He hopped inside and took a look around. He smelled the air. He walked further into the small cave and finally came to the conclusion that this was not someone's home. A little smile of relief appeared on his face as he walked back out and flew back. The only problem now was the distance between the cave and the den. How could he move a blind young animal to a cave that was a kilometer away? The pup could feel the vibrations in the air (which was quite remarkeble already), so maybe they could do something with that. It would take a lot of time though. A little less then a day if he guessed correctly. But now the evening settled in, so he had to guard the pup for the night with short naps in between. Now that was a plan. The hardest part started tomorrow.

He landed at the den and hopped back inside. The pup immediatly calmed down after missing him for another hour. He could now sleep while Corax watched over him for the night.

He opened his eyes after another short nap. He had had a nice rest. Enough for him. Because the morning had started, now was the time to let the pup crawl to the small cave. It had the height of a bear on four legs, so they had enough space and there didn't seem to live anything in the area around it.

As soon as the pup woke up, Corax brought him water. Then the mission started. Corax made cawing noises and the pup understood he had to follow it. It took him some effort to get started, but he soon dragged his little body outside in the direction of Corax.