He hurriedly got back to his feet before they could make another strike against him. He shook the dust off him, and mischievously smiled. He thought to himself, “What a cheap shot.” He then twisted his neck, breaking loose the coiled up muscles and growled, “My Turn!” Treading - skipping - pacing - sprinting, he raced towards them. They held their guard up. He pounced and they too pounced. They all bashed into each other in mid-air. The impact threw Kyle farther apart, which left Aaron in a vulnerable state. Saber realized he had to make his strike now.
Aaron mistakenly looked back at his brother, Kyle. He was still unconscious. Suddenly, he met with a massive blow to his head. Saber’s paw accurately connected with Aaron’s cheek. His claws sunk deep, leaving scars all over his face. He toppled until he became unconscious. The sound of his brother’s groan was powerful enough to wake up Kyle. Aware of his revival, Saber abandoned Aaron to his grievances. He crept up to Kyle, who still laid on the ground, weak as ever. At least that’s what he wanted him to think. Saber grew near as Kyle still laid there with his eyes shut. He stood on top of him, with his claws pressing hard onto his skin. He silently moaned in agony.
Suddenly, he shot straight at his vulnerable and exposed neck. He tightly gripped it with his razor sharp jaws and sank his teeth deeper. Saber screamed in pain. He tried pulling back and pushing him off, but he persistently held on. In an attempt to knock him off, he pulled hard towards the edge of the pit. He lifted him off his feet and swung his heavy body against the edge. He struck him hard until he finally let go. Drops of blood rigidly flowed from his neck. It dropped down and sank into the ground, bringing life to the desolate land. He grew weaker at each passing moment. Rycka and Eury were filled with emotions. When Hunter saw him wobble his way back up, a smile plastered across his face.
Aaron and Kyle were now back to their feet. They preyed on the poor and defenceless Saber. Hunter closely moved in for a better glance. “Finish him!” He roared. Saber was a bit shaken off. He couldn’t see the attack until it dawned on him. Aaron pounced hard, making his mark. A mark that got him off his feet. He then pinned him to the ground. He took hold of his front and Kyle held his back. His eyes suddenly became wet as he sadly took one last glance at both Rycka and Eury, who quietly sobbed and sniffled above him. He then looked away in utter shame, slowly shutting his eyes in total darkness.
While the alpha males were distracted, Kart managed to sneak her away over to Jayd. The lionesses had lost track of their prey and were over at Derek’s side. She crept up behind him and silently called out his name. Startled, he turned around and came face to face with her. She was so pleased to see him that she gently caressed him. Neck-to-neck, shoulder-to-shoulder, heart-to-heart. She was glad to have her son back in her arms once again. Jayd however, abruptly pulled away. He nudged her in the predators’ way, but she persistently urged him to follow her. Varn soon noticed her. He couldn’t help but feel left out, and he too persistently insisted on tagging along.
They tiptoed their way out of the eagles nest, and unfortunately ended up in the dragon’s pit. One of the lionesses suddenly stood in their way. She roared aloud and stirred the attention of Derek. He quickly took notice as the rage engulfed him and began his descent upon them. Zafeen foresaw the impending predicament and commanded one of the triceratopses to intervene. He charged in straight ahead, knocking the lights out of the unaware lioness. He tossed her up in the air and threw her farther away from Kart and her son. She landed right in front of Derek, who stood between a pack of angry lionesses. Kart and Jayd were stiff stricken, and not forgetting the fear stricken uncle Varn of course.
“So, this is how we’re gonna play?” Derek growled.
Zafeen impatiently stared at him, annoyed and tired of his impudence. He ignorantly evaded his question and unresistingly refused to answer his obscure and meaningless query. Infuriated by his silence, Derek resorted to a more drastic measure just so he could get his point through. He sarcastically smiled and winked at him as he motioned to his right. Zafeen focused on him, trying to make out what he meant by that. Suddenly, he was introduced to an unforeseen sight. A member of his den abruptly attacked one of the wildebeests and dragged him to the side.
“No!” Zafeen screamed.
He tried rushing to his aid but Derek stood in his way. He growled and roared all his anger out. Kart was too sensitive about the matter and shielded Jayd from its sight. She blocked his view and focused his attention on her.
“Just look at me Jayd, look at me.” She whispered, staring deep into his eyes.
Varn was so horrified to the bone that he fainted. His heart almost gave out. Her jaw sunk deep into his throat, draining every single drop of blood out of him. This weakened him to his fall. She paralyzed him down to his knees, but with his every last breath, he fought back. He blindly kicked his feet up in the air. However, in mere seconds, he crumbled and laid flat on the now stained grass. He screamed as the life went out of him. The longer he resisted the deeper she went until he was completely eradicated from this world. Rage filled Zafeen’s pure and cautious heart as he watched him lie helplessly on the ground. He restlessly laid there in agony as life fleeted away. The sight of his still kicking legs and lifeless body took him back. Back to the past when he was just a fawn. He stared straight through the heavens, and for a moment, everything turned to blur as the memories came rushing in.
Chapter 10: Recap.
“Mum! Dad!” A young innocent and muffled Zafeen called out in much delight and happiness. He had absolutely no care in the world. He dragged his favourite pick of the day over to his mum and dropped it beside her. He smiled and impatiently waited for her reply.
“Look mom, look.” He insisted.
“Yes sweetie, very good.” She drowsily replied and slowly lifted her heavy sleepy eyes.
She reluctantly stared at Zafeen, and then got back to her interrupted slumber. Zafeen, contented with her reply, picked up the stick. He then dragged it over to his father, who sat at the edge of the slope. He kept gazing over the horizon, trapped in his own thoughts. He watched over the lands, and had a keen eye on the two most important things that mattered to him the most, his wife, and son.
“Dad! Dad!” He persistently tried to get through to him.
“Yes son,” he replied with a deep masculine voice.
He turned around and gazed down at him.
“I’ve got the stick dad!”
“That’s my boy. You’ll be a champ in no time, and soon, who knows…maybe one day you might even be a better leader than I am.”
“Really dad?”
“Of course.”
“Yeah, I’ll be the greatest leader ever.”
“And what’s wrong with how I run things?”
“It needs a little bit more fun, no offence dad.”
They laughed while his mum stretched herself free of any sleep left, and joined them in the humour. Suddenly, a young buck came rushing in. He heavily panted, wearing out his hooves and rapidly sweating. He stopped right before Zafeen’s dad. He still panted as words barely left his breath.
“Sir! There’s trouble in the east side,” he said with a fainted voice.
“What?” He worried, “What is it?”
“Jaguars!”
“Predators!” She cried and pulled Zafeen closer to her. Her motherly instincts kicked in and she sought to protect her son.
“Kelly, you know what to do?” He said, looking back at his dearly beloved.
“What about you?” She heartily asked.
“Don’t worry about me. I’ll be back soon. Just keep him safe.” He replied, and walked out with the messenger.
“William!” She called out to him, “Take care!”
He looked back and took one last glance at them. He almost shed a tear at how beautiful the sight was. He then set off to the east, while the sun still shone brightly high above the sky. Immediately after they left, she dragged her son into the cave and hid themselves until it was safe to come out. Side by
side, they laid in that dark abandoned cave and cuddled. As calm as a millpond, they steadied their breath and slowed down their beating hearts. They both kept a closer eye at the entrance.
William came upon the tragic horror engulfing the land. There was blood splattered all over and unskinned pieces of fur chafing to the wind. The lifeless bodies that laid on the ground tainted the grass. Everyone fled as they all looked to the west. In all this ruckus and confusion, the jaguars found themselves easy targets to prey on. One by one, they each made their catch. He stood at the edge and couldn’t quite clearly tell what was going on. He struggled pushing in towards the Jaguars. As difficult as it was to be stepped on, bumped into, tackled, and pushed, he still fought on through the rattled deers. He finally came face to face with the most vicious Jaguar of them all.
Blood trickled down his jaw while he savagely licked his lips. He stared directly at him with his red soulless eyes. He then mischievously smiled, welcoming a familiar sight. William was disgusted by his presence. He could almost feel his antlers beckoning him to attack. With his buffy paws and stiffly potent legs, he slowly and precisely circled William. His dark yellow fur and largely spotted feline body stood calm. He then quirked his head in a peculiar manner and smiled, letting out a disturbingly fearsome chuckle.
“Nice to see you again William.” He growled.
“Likewise Edgar.”
“Don’t tell me you’re still upset?”
“What do you think?”
“Fine, let’s get down to business then. It’s payday.”
“Not today it isn’t.”
“According to my calendar, it is.”
“What happened to the last shipment we sent you?”
“It ran out. You know how we predators can be.”
“That wasn’t part of the deal.”
“It is now. Back off and let us do our thing.”
“Not this time.”
He stood his ground as Edgar smiled at him. Suddenly, it all became silent. Their little beef obscured them from reality, drowning and blinding them from reality. William was now all alone in the hands of the beasts. All that remained was his fellow prey mates laying on the ground. They were nothing but carcasses rotting away at every second as the greedy savages slowly devoured them. Edgar crouched and narrowed his eyes. He stared at him, ready to pounce. Out of nowhere, a herd of deers came storming in. They stood behind him, bravely and heroically backing their fearless leader. Now it was his turn to smile. Edgar slowly reversed his crouching technic as he came to terms with his present situation. He tried so hard to come up with a plan and suddenly realized what a stupid thought that was. He was after all the apex predator. Surely, he could take on a bunch of miscreant deers.
“You called backup?”
“You gave me no choice.”
“Have you all forgotten who’s in charge?”
“They know who’s in charge, and it’s not you. This is our land now. You’re no longer welcomed here.”
“Funny, I was just thinking the same thing.” He smiled and looked back.
He then roared aloud, commanding his entire pack to fall in line. They hurriedly dropped their catch and rushed over to his side.
“If you wanna take over this land, you’re gonna have to go through us.”
“Sounds good to me,” he growled, “You heard him boys.”
They roared and pounced at the fear stricken herd while Edgar stood back and watched. William on the other hand had his plate full. He took charge in the frontline and fearlessly led his herd. They came at them from all sides. They tore down their defences, only to be taken down by his elite strike team, the stags. With their antlers, they pierced through every tough skinned jaguar. The odds were in their favour, and Edgar grew worried. William shouted out commands as they pushed on and took down every single member of the jaguar family. He then stood back and let his herd finish the job.
They were no march for them. The deers fought bravely. Even though they kept losing one of their own, they still kept on fighting. When they were knocked down, they got back up. They never gave up. To them this was more than just about the land. It was about honour. They desired, once again, to restore their civilization back to its former glory. Unfortunately, William was too distracted to notice Edgar sneak up behind him. He mischievously crept up, jetting out his claws. He then fiercely growled, letting him know of his presence. He slowly turned around and met with an unexpected blow to his head. This left him severely marred as he fell down to his demise.
“Did you really think I was gonna let you win?” He growled, slowly circling his hopeless body. “You are nothing more than a bottom feeder.”
William struggled to his feet and surprisingly let out a silent chuckle.
“What are you so happy about?” He asked, confused.
“We’ve won Edgar. We’ve won.” He coughed. “It’s over.”
“Not yet, not until I say so.”
Suddenly, the earth vibrantly shook as William focused his unbelieving eyes on the horizon. It was an unforeseen sight. As furious as he was humongous, he came straight at them. He crushed everything that laid in his path. Every step he took was more than a hundred steps to them. He was so tall that he didn’t run, instead, he just walked. His sharp enormous claws and knifelike serrated teeth were a thousand times the size of any normal predator. His scaly skin was pale green. William abruptly lost all hope the moment he saw the creature’s disturbingly torn up face as he made his way down.
“Have you met my newest recruit?” He boasted while the creature stood behind him. “Say hello to Garrett, the greatest tyrannosaur that ever lived.”
The t-rex roared and asserted himself at the top of the food chain. He stunned them all and immediately ended the fight. Everyone gazed upon the great force before them and the deers looked on to their fearless leader.
“Am only gonna say this once,” he roared, “Surrender now and I’ll go easy on you.”
The deers still looked to him and awaited his commands. He gazed at them and saw how much they had all gone through. He wasn’t going to put them in any more harm. Just as he was about to give up and surrender to his foes, the unspeakable happened. Every single prey suddenly nodded his head. They then gazed into his eyes, and together they made their final stand.
“You gotta be kidding me! Are you serious?" He laughed.
“We are not going down without a fight.”
“Then you leave me no choice.”
He fiercely roared and the tyrannosaur charged in. He stomped and crushed every single last one of them. He bashed their heads to a pulp and flung them in the air. He then rapidly grasped them in mid-air and tore them limb from limb. Not even their fearless leader could save them this time, as they encountered the toughest scaled skin reptile ever. They cried out in pain as they slowly faded from existence. William tried rushing over to their aid, but was knocked back down. Edgar stood over his barely conscious body and placed his right paw against his neck. He forced it down and poor old William gasped for breath as Edgar mischievously smiled.
“You are not going anywhere,” he insisted, crushing down on his throat, “You brought this on yourself.”
He then relentlessly twisted William’s head to the side and revealed to him the unspoken horror that befell his herd. Blood spilled to the ground while flesh scattered all over. There were bodies flying everywhere as the t-rex disrespectfully plaid catch with their disembodied carcasses. He gasped as he watched his entire herd fade into oblivion.
“Finish ‘em boys!” Edgar roared in utter thrill.
The jaguars took no mercy on them. They came rushing in and laid to waste all that stood in their path. They made sure that they stayed dead as they delightfully sucked out every last drop of blood. Edgar laughed as he watched his will being done.
Suddenly, William felt a release in his throat that saved him from almost losing consciousness. He was relieved for he could finally breathe again. He sucked every single grasp of air h
e could manage as if it was his last and struggled to his feet. Still drowsy, he stumbled at every step he took. His eyes were still numb and could only reveal a blurred vision in his mind. He strongly focused on everything around him and finally came to. He was surprised to see Edgar lying on the ground and standing next to him was his second in command. He was his most loyal soldier and closest friend. Even though his skin was clotted in blood and his entire body bruised beyond compare, he still had the will to pull off one last deed.
The Pack : Prey Vs Predator Page 5