Overture Downs sunlight on the meadow

Now that a few seconds had passed for Ishi to find his bearings, he felt a wave of shock that something bizarre was actually happening. Without the adrenaline of surprise, he would have felt discomfort at being held like this, but, no, he was all about the shock right now — and the disorientation of it all as long grass went speeding past his wide eyes. When one blade of it whacked him in his face, he closed his eyes tight but he could still feel his surroundings. And as he was finally bundled to the ground, his heart screamed and soared, for his opened his eyes again and...

It was a mountain lion.

Was something big finally happening to his goal? Was this the beginning? Ishi hadn't thought it would happen like this, but he was suddenly ferociously convinced that it was actually happening. Oh, finally finally finally. This was the beginning of his incorporation into the world of cougars.

And then there was blackness.