Ulikta was doing her best to follow the tracks that were left behind. When she hit the hard pack of the Plains, tracking became a game of the nose. Shortie had a unique smell, easy to follow. She sprinted through the night and slept under a hide she used for cover. There was a dust that just kept beating against the hide, it made her sleep irregular, she stirred while trying to rest, never actually falling completely asleep.
By morning, the traces of his scent were disappearing. The dew in the air carried a lot of other smells. Some of them were quite well marked. A familiar scent, one she wouldn't normally approach also lingered. It reminded her of the Fennops and the whole tribe knew to stay away. Still, there was no going back empty handed.
'Why did he run?!' She hated having to chase, she loved her job, it was only the one. Serve.
Chasing down Shortie's scent again, she traveled as fast as she could. The hide was heavy but it was better than the sun beating down on her all day long. Ahead, she found a rock outcropping, there were signs someone had been there only hours before. 'Great Ancestor, why..' She sniffed at a spot near the wall.
There was no time to rest, she sprinted from the trench and followed her nose as best she could. If she was this close, it was possible for her to catch up eventually after they stopped.
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The Sun's heat was intense, but there was a prevailing wind. Cold air and moisture blew at their backs, helping them in the journey. Although there was cool air, neither of them had eaten. Jacob kept an eye out for small animals or anything that looked edible.
'I hope whatever we find doesn't talk.' Jacob tried to gulp down his thoughts but his throat was dry. Thinking of his rumbling stomach, he salivated over the thought of more meat.
Just because they could talk didn't mean he couldn't eat them but Jacob really didn't think he could kill something that talked. Holding the spear tightly, he felt Shortie's breathing pattern change and looked ahead of them.
There was grass, lots of it ahead.
A rustling nearby proved that there was life. A lizard, about three feet long ran to hide further into the grasses the moment it saw the shadow from Shortie's paw approaching.
Shortie was hungry, he followed the lizard through the grasses. Pouncing around made Jacob lose his balance.
'Oww' Jacob rubbed his ass, grabbed the spear and ran after Shortie to help corner the lizard.
When it was cornered near a rock, Jacob snuck up from behind and stabbed. There was plenty of grass and Jacob still had his plastic bag and matches in his cargo pocket. Roasting the lizard, the two of them waited around. It was barely a bite if Shortie would eat it himself but a leg or the tail would do fill up Jacob. Twenty minutes under the fire caused the meat to be a bit charred. Shortie didn't care, he waited for his share.
Jacob tore off one of the back legs and a piece of the tale. Using the spear, he checked the head for a core but there wasn't one. When he was satisfied, Jacob handed the rest over to Shortie. "Here ya go. We will have to find something bigger and I can't carry much in my pockets. We'll have to find a way to carry more meat or we can only eat when we hunt."
Jacob didn't like the taste of the lizard too much. The taste was gamy and full of fat. "Uhh, I'd kill for a cheeseburger." Jacob stared at the lizard being devoured by Shortie. There was nothing that stopped him from chewing through bone. He swallowed it in bits and then got up to stretch.
"Master Jacob, you are still young. You must learn to hunt, I fought many of the creatures at the camp, racoons, rats, cats, mountain lions. Life is messy." flopping down on a clean space in the grass, Shortie yawned and lazed around in the sun while he talked. "I thought I was done growing, but even I will need help. Those others, those elders. They could have kept us there, they allowed us to leave."
Jacob took it to heart, he felt useless. Even holding the spear seemed like trivial help, he wanted to cry from embarrassment. "I understand." hanging his head, he knelt down.
A rustling and tapping could be heard. The noise was nearby. Jacob peeked his head over the grasses and saw Ulikta, he ducked down. "Ulikta is here." The were downwind, a perfumed scent caught Jacob in the nose, he sneezed.
"There you are." She rushed over and saw Shortie rolling in the grass.
He rolled over and stared at her, waiting.
"Why did Great Ancestor leave?" Ulikta asked while rubbing his belly.
"His name is Shortie, you keep referring to him as Great Ancestor, but I can assure you that he has no blood relations to you. And Why did your guard beat me? That was so not cool." Jacob was furious but he wanted answers, this would likely be the only chance he would get.
"You .." She stared at Jacob, then lessened her grip. "You are human, you could never understand."
Jacob started yelling. "Can't understand? Your guard hit me for touching the gate you locked me behind, why should I be treated like a criminal?"
"We kill our criminals, not lock them up. We put pets and beasts in the stables, that's where you were. Human's are not welcome in the Village, you're lucky you weren't cast out into the river or skinned." Her voice got loud.
Shortie got up and whipped his tail across her back, knocking Ulikta down. Then, he placed his paw on her back. "Threaten children in front of me again and I'll eat your ball too."
'Ball?' Ulikta seemed confused for a moment before it clicked in her mind. 'core..' "You wouldn't!" She struggled.
A growl came from Shortie and she settled down.
"My name is Shortie. Don't make fight you." his paw press down again and she coughed in pain.
"Get off of me!" Embarrassed, she tried to push his paw aside. 'Hmmph,' A loud snort came from Ulikta, she was annoyed and now, dirty.
"Why should I care what about the human. He's just a pup." She pointed at Jacob.
Jacob was more than annoyed, he was being ostracized. "Stop trying to treat me like I don't exist."
"It would be better if you didn't. Human's destroy everything!" she got mad, Shortie knocked her down again.
"What did I just tell you?" Growling as he spoke, Shortie raised his paw and stepped on her.
Her arm broke in three places and she screamed. "Why?"
"Mercy." Shortie lifted his paw and told Jacob to get on. "We're leaving. Stop following me. I am not going back." Shortie lifted his leg and pissed on her.
Covering her face with the broken arm, she watched them disappear into the grasses. 'what? What did I do? It's just a stupid human!' She cursed inside, not knowing why she had been attacked.
Riding through the grasses, Jacob asked Shortie why he was protecting him.
"I protected the children." speaking between breaths, he explained in brief.
There was a lot of ground to cover, the grasses were tall but there were trees in the distance. Trees meant shade and the heat from the suns was baking the both of them. When the reached the treeline, they took another break. There were strange plants everywhere, nothing looked like food but some of them gave off strange smells.
The grove offered a lot of protection from the sun, a pool of water was found nearby. It didn't seem like it came from a spring but rather collected there. The water was clear, and the grass around it was tall. There were only a few hundred gallons of water. He drank some of the water, it tasted good. There was a hint of something in it, it gave the water a taste like tea but it was still shallow. Shortie was gulping it down to his content, when he was done drinking Jacob took off his clothes and washed up. The sweat was making him chafe.
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