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+--- Thread: Totoka River be the hunter and the hunted (/showthread.php?tid=46085)
be the hunter and the hunted - Lakhos - January 11, 2021
it was just like the moment he stepped well out of easy range of going back to decent cover that the snowstorm started up again. it was annoying and he was beyond annoyed about it, but the necessity of food was one that couldn't pass up.
at least the wind wasn't entirely howling down in his face—at least not yet— but for the longest time as he followed the river between the mountains the whole thing acted like some gigantic asshole wind tunnel hellbent on fucking him up just for existing.
needless to say, almost, lakhos was fairly dishelved by the time he had ventured out into the shallows of the stream to try his hand at fishing again. he was loathe to admit it and probably wouldn't so long as he lived, but the knowledge imparted to him by the stutterbox girl lingered.
and surprisingly, as he approached an area he thought teeming with fish, it seemed to be working. if they couldn't see his shadow, he imagined he could be still enough for long enough to actually attempt to catch them. or one of them, even.
just as the storm started to pick up again with its icy gales, he snared a fish from the moving waters with a note of surprise spilling out around it. the fish was putting up a fight between his jaws, almost comically too large to be held by such a scrawny yearling like him.
it wriggled, throwing him off balance and leaving him to stagger towards the shore. he had an idea of what to do with it—he threw it into a snow bank and put that sucker on ice. sort of. it didn't stop it from flailing around uselessly as it bled out and started suffocating, but it didn't have enough heft or ability to fling itself back into the water.
"easy peasy," he said to himself.
it didn't get the chance to die on its own though—lakhos put it to a swift end and hoisted it back up once again. time to find somewhere to go eat this chow while it was still fresh.
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Corvo - January 11, 2021
He'd lingered in the area for a while now. The food source was just too good to pass up this time of year, and Corvo had enjoyed a few meals of fish from these streams by now. Not to mention, the recent snow made it difficult to travel. So he'd decided to wait it out for a couple of days before continuing on his path.
Corvo found himself bedded down, sheltered from the snow and wind by a tree overhead. He'd settled for this spot a couple of times now, finding a sort of hollowed out portion in the roots of the towering giant to call his temporary home. He woke to the sound of splashing nearby, a different sort than the usual trickle of the river. Opening his eyes, he found a tawny colored loner, appearing to be smaller and younger than Corvo himself. He watched from the base of the tree as the male waited for his opportunity with the fish. Then he struck, heaving a fair catch up onto the shore. With a bit of a struggle, the stranger ended his prey and gathered it from the snow bank.
Corvo emerged from his resting spot beneath the safety of the tree, squinting slightly at the onslaught of snow and wind, though he was thankful it had died down for the time being. Making himself known was a risk, especially since he had no idea who this wolf might be. He had no intention of claiming a kill that was not his either. So what drew him to the stranger? Corvo couldn't say for sure.
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Lakhos - January 11, 2021
he didn't stray too far from the water's edge before he tore into the fish. he could have gone farther—should have, probably—to find somewhere better than the open air all exposed, but his eagerness overtook him.
he was about midway through wolfing down a fair portion of the soft flesh when movement caught his attention. it rested just on the outside edge of his peripheral. his gaze snapped to it, furs instinctively bristling as he roughly swallowed that cumbersome fish piece.
the movement belonged to none other than a wolf. he was towering, kind of like that guy lakhos had seen at the grotto. he seemed pretty healthy too... which made him automatically a threat to the much smaller, more flighty nature of the coywolf.
placing a foot on the fish only to keep a tab on it, lakhos found that he could not tear his eyes away from that of the stranger's. he should have picked up the fish and ran, knowing how often his own good fortune ran out. he wasn't a betting man and knew that the house always won.
what're you lookin' at?
the words came out a lot more steady than he thought they would, if not a bit dry. ironic, considering that he had just had a mouthful of water not even five minutes ago, but boy did his tongue feel like it was made of sandpaper right then and there.
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Corvo - January 11, 2021
As he approached Corvo thought the stranger held the appearance closer to a coyote than a wolf. His tawny pelt was a mixture of tans and creams, with the same disheveled texture Corvo remembered seeing in any coyotes he'd run across in the past, which didn't happen to be many. What he did remember in these few instances was that coyotes were scrappy. Looking at this male now, Corvo got the impression the same held true in this case.
He watched as the male placed a possessive paw over the fish, eyes locked, waiting for the punchline. So was Corvo, who stood back a safe distance, not interested in getting close enough to scrap.
The impolite greeting he received might have struck a fighting spark in him on a worse day, but today Corvo found a bit of dark humor in it. With a huff, he replied, "Not too sure, but I'd guess a hungry loner." He shook his head. "I'm not here to steal your catch. Just to warn you that there are others in the area that might, if you haven't run into them already."
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Lakhos - January 12, 2021
he huffed—yeah, he was a hungry loner.
well aren't you the good samaritan.
and it was probably a trap. though once the words were out of his mouth, he realized that it may have been bait, at which point he probably shouldn't have said what he did. oops. water under the bridge now. lakhos would have been one of those gravediggers who would be tasked with the job of digging said grave only to realize at that final shovel of earth that he had dug his own.
but so far, he hadn't really had an issue with anyone trying to take food from him. plenty of interruptions and stare downs like in his instance, but no one had really given him a challenge. he was either really good at intimidation... or this lot really valued not getting into tangles.
maybe winter had something to do with it.
so, if you aren't here to take my food... what do you want?his time, his energy, maybe his leftovers? there wouldn't be any, at least of the latter. the former two were up for debate and presently in use.
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Corvo - January 12, 2021
To the younger male's snarky remark, Corvo gritted his teeth, but did not bare them. That sort of off-handed comment reminded him of his brother. An unfortunate and unpleasant stain on the roadmap of his memory. It brought with it ideas of what this stranger might be capable of, only making Corvo more guarded. His ears flicked back against his hackles.
"I already told you," he answered, "lucky for you, thick-skull."
The insult rolled off the tongue with no force behind it, but it was said nonetheless. Staring with a dubious glint in his golden gaze, Corvo knelt back on his haunches until he was sitting. He was still tense and ready to flee should the need arise, but he was attempting to give a peace offering.
"The name's Corvo, by the way. Not Samaritan."
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Lakhos - January 12, 2021
the stupid way his ears flicked back; it gave him a sharp sort of look, not that he wasn't already stern-looking beforehand. it was a shrewd expression that suited him, though lakhos found it to be very unappealing. but company lately had been just as unappealing, so there was a bias. there was always a bias.
you didn't tell me anything i didn't already know,he remarked.
you just here to watch me eat? think i'll leave you some scraps or something? well, fat chance of that—no one leaves anything around for me so i'm not about to start for you.
his expression mirrored corvo then, ears pressed back into the fluff of his prickled fur. lakhos couldn't help but feel like they were at a stalemate, waiting for the piece of straw that would break the camel's back. both of them tense, ready to spring away at a moment's notice... and all because he couldn't eat his goddamn fish in peace.
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Corvo - January 15, 2021
And just like that the peace offering was slapped away like an annoying gnat. Corvo resisted the urge to growl, holding onto the resolve that had kept him out of a lot of trouble so far. Then again, sometimes trouble found him.
The younger male went on, speaking his piece and then some. It was like Corvo was speaking to his brother all over again. The same bitterness that sprouted when he did not get his way. Taking it out of everyone else. It was the sort of attitude that had ultimately gotten his mother killed.
"That what you're problem is? The world full of unfairness?" he asked, tone coated with sarcasm. "Something to consider, there's a lot more to this big world than one lousy fish." He stood, turning back toward the way he'd come, though he did not intend on settling into his resting spot again. He wouldn't linger here any longer. It was clear Corvo had outstayed his welcome in the area. Time to move on again.
RE: be the hunter and the hunted - Lakhos - January 16, 2021
no, lakhos didn't think that the world was unfair. there were certainly elements to it that were distinctly unfair, but for the most part he had found that it was just more than it was unfair. it was truly about survival of the fittest—even if his view was more self-serving and microscopic at best. but he knew there was more than just himself... he just didn't care.
he snorted at the offered advice, but didn't quite get his opportunity to fire back another derisive statement. it was there though, in the cutting, narrowed gaze that stayed locked onto the wolf as he turned away.
lakhos thought it was a ploy too, and used that as ample opportunity to gather himself and his fish. even if the wolf didn't want it, his words were definitely fresh in the coywolf's mind. others would certainly smell the blood and come looking at one point or another, so perhaps it really would have served him well to haul ass to somewhere safer. and if not safer in these parts... then definitely somewhere less exposed.
he carted his fish off with renewed strength—rather, adrenaline.
better safe than sorry, maybe this guy had friends.