November 05, 2020, 02:43 PM
The rush of the hunt, the scream from the animal, and then Atlas was upon them.
As he stepped to where Altair stood with his catch clasped firmly in his teeth, there was a surge of pride that washed over him. It was good to see that his younger brother was capable of catching one of those sharp hares. More than once they had led the dark hunter across the mountain, exhausting him before darting beneath the earth into their warren. To know that the boy was capable of latching onto them where it mattered most and bringing them to a stop, well… it would surely impress both Hydra and Dirge.
“End its suffering, Altair,” he instructed in a soft tone.
The look of fear in the creature’s gaze was not something that Atlas found a thrill in. He followed the prey animals and scouted their patterns so that he might share that information with his pack. He hunted out of necessity and to feed his family. There was very little joy in inspiring fear inside of another living thing.
“Kill to eat, not for fun. That makes sense, right?”
As he stepped to where Altair stood with his catch clasped firmly in his teeth, there was a surge of pride that washed over him. It was good to see that his younger brother was capable of catching one of those sharp hares. More than once they had led the dark hunter across the mountain, exhausting him before darting beneath the earth into their warren. To know that the boy was capable of latching onto them where it mattered most and bringing them to a stop, well… it would surely impress both Hydra and Dirge.
“End its suffering, Altair,” he instructed in a soft tone.
The look of fear in the creature’s gaze was not something that Atlas found a thrill in. He followed the prey animals and scouted their patterns so that he might share that information with his pack. He hunted out of necessity and to feed his family. There was very little joy in inspiring fear inside of another living thing.
“Kill to eat, not for fun. That makes sense, right?”
November 05, 2020, 03:02 PM
He had anticipated praise out of his brother, not realizing that the animal that hung so limply from his jaws still had a pulse. Atlas spoke on and the lesson suddenly felt more like a punishment, though the boy did his best to mask it as he dropped the hare to the ground before him. His ears back, he pushed himself to focus on the task at hand rather than his own lack of awareness, looking upon the scared creature blandly.
Then as he had seen his mother, his father, and his siblings do, he emulated the kill in the best way he thought possible. A paw placed over its head to hold it still, he seized the hare by the neck and snuffed the life therein out. Like a gust whisking away the flame of a candle, the hare thrashed once last time beneath his firm grasp, and then there was nothing more of its life to give.
He held it for a few seconds, not shaking it about as he would have been inclined to do before.
There wasn’t a point to it, still feeling the hot burn in his face. He released it from his jaws.
“I thought it died already,” he said lamely, not wanting to look his brother in the eye. “I was shaking it, it stopped moving—” and he cut off, not certain the explanation was enough. He knew not to toy with things like food; numerous and feisty as they were, he knew the other hares still lurked nearby. He knew that they knew what had happened, and knew that they would seek to avoid the wolves further. It was for the same reason they rotated their hunting grounds.
He thought certain he had disappointed his brother, somehow, someway.
Then as he had seen his mother, his father, and his siblings do, he emulated the kill in the best way he thought possible. A paw placed over its head to hold it still, he seized the hare by the neck and snuffed the life therein out. Like a gust whisking away the flame of a candle, the hare thrashed once last time beneath his firm grasp, and then there was nothing more of its life to give.
He held it for a few seconds, not shaking it about as he would have been inclined to do before.
There wasn’t a point to it, still feeling the hot burn in his face. He released it from his jaws.
“I thought it died already,” he said lamely, not wanting to look his brother in the eye. “I was shaking it, it stopped moving—” and he cut off, not certain the explanation was enough. He knew not to toy with things like food; numerous and feisty as they were, he knew the other hares still lurked nearby. He knew that they knew what had happened, and knew that they would seek to avoid the wolves further. It was for the same reason they rotated their hunting grounds.
He thought certain he had disappointed his brother, somehow, someway.
November 09, 2020, 04:19 PM
(This post was last modified: November 11, 2020, 10:03 AM by Atlas.)
Guilt jolted through him like a strike of lighting. The tall dark yearling felt his limbs stiffen and his heart rate increase as he looked on the face of his younger brother. The boy had been so proud of his catch before Atlas had approached and spoiled his fun. The shade berated himself internally for having not congratulated Altair on his swift reflexes and keen eye. He should have celebrated the victory that was his younger brother finding success in his first catch. Instead, he had tried to share what he felt was important; they killed to eat and to sustain their family, not so that they could revel in taking another life.
“One of my first hunts on my own, I found a fawn with its mother,” he explained, voice solemn but not lacking in care for the message he was trying to convey. “I frightened the mother and circled the fawn before making my attack. It fell almost immediately. Eyes wide, it just… fell to the ground and lay there.”
When the sunlight glow of his eyes searched the younger boy’s features, he offered a smile before he continued and shared one of his more humiliating hunting experiences. “I thought I’d accomplished what I needed and turned to search the area. When I glanced back, the fawn had jumped up and raced into the woods to find its mother,” Atlas chuckled and shook his head. He had assumed that he’d done all he needed to do and had lost the meal he’d tracked for hours. All it would have taken is a simple precaution to make sure the prey animal had been dead, and he would have fed well.
“Some things serve two purposes, is all. You ensure your prey cannot deceive you by ending it swiftly and… in cases like this one, you cease the cries of your target so you do not have to listen to it beg for life,” the inkwell yearling explained in a soft voice. He did not know if he was making sense to the child, but he did not want the experience to be a dismal one.
“You’ve done a great job. Would you like to take that back to show mom?”
“One of my first hunts on my own, I found a fawn with its mother,” he explained, voice solemn but not lacking in care for the message he was trying to convey. “I frightened the mother and circled the fawn before making my attack. It fell almost immediately. Eyes wide, it just… fell to the ground and lay there.”
When the sunlight glow of his eyes searched the younger boy’s features, he offered a smile before he continued and shared one of his more humiliating hunting experiences. “I thought I’d accomplished what I needed and turned to search the area. When I glanced back, the fawn had jumped up and raced into the woods to find its mother,” Atlas chuckled and shook his head. He had assumed that he’d done all he needed to do and had lost the meal he’d tracked for hours. All it would have taken is a simple precaution to make sure the prey animal had been dead, and he would have fed well.
“Some things serve two purposes, is all. You ensure your prey cannot deceive you by ending it swiftly and… in cases like this one, you cease the cries of your target so you do not have to listen to it beg for life,” the inkwell yearling explained in a soft voice. He did not know if he was making sense to the child, but he did not want the experience to be a dismal one.
“You’ve done a great job. Would you like to take that back to show mom?”
« Next Oldest | Next Newest »