Kintla Flatlands The fall of the dream machine

Edit on 11/06: Concluding this for us! <3

Hamied made his approach, placing himself in plain sight of the raccoon. It reacted by stopping and facing him warily, unwilling to back down but also too cautious to keep going and be forced to divide its attention. Koontz watched and observed all of this from a distance, all the while wondering if the raccoon had even the smallest, sneaking suspicion that it was all a trick...

Before giving it a chance to figure it out, Koontz made her own approach. She moved silently but swiftly, not unlike a lioness approaching a wildebeest on the plains of Africa. When she came close enough, she burst into a gallop, no longer caring if the raccoon saw or heard her. By the time the creature turned to ascertain the threat approaching from the rear, Koontz was already upon it.

The 'coon did not go down easily, however. Koontz managed to throw her weight on it, pinning it to the ground, yet it somehow managed to roll and began flailing its limbs at her. She felt its claws slice at her leg and she yelped despite herself. She then found her balance and sprang away even as the raccoon, spitting and screeching, tried to right itself.

Seeing its vulnerability, Koontz didn't waste any time. She dove right back into the thick of things, this time trying to aim for the raccoon's throat. Meanwhile, she hoped that Hamied would provide some support from the rear so that she wasn't left alone to fend with those ferocious claws.

What seemed just a few beats later, Koontz stood panting over the slain creature across from Hamied, blood staining her muzzle. She waited to catch her breath while inspecting some small scratches sustained on her foreleg—a small price to pay for a meal. She exchanged a bloody grin with Hamied and licked her chops before finally drawing in a deep breath and regaining her wind.

"Well," she announced, "let's dig in while it's still warm." Without another word, Koontz fell upon the small kill, tore off a chunk of meat and withdrew a few feet to work on it. When she polished that off, she went back for seconds and, eventually, thirds.

She finished eating in less than five minutes, then rolled onto her back with a groan. While she lay there and digested, she asked Hamied a few more questions about their mutual family members. The young Alpha knew she shouldn't let herself fall asleep—she had to get back to the plateau—but she lost the fight of will. Their conversation faded, as did her consciousness, as Koontz slept contentedly on her full stomach.