The night was uneventful, leaving the group relieved but wary of something more dangerous. As the sun rose above the horizon, Hob was the first one to stir, stretching his muscles. Looking around, he saw Friz sitting atop a tree, keeping watch with her blow-dart gun resting in her lap. Amy and Geld were on the opposite side, wrapped in their cloaks.
Hob climbed up the tree and sat with Friz, looking down at the forest. It was eerily quiet except for the occasional chirping of birds and rustle of leaves.
"How's the situation?" Hob asked looking at Friz.
"It's still there but keeping its distance. We still can't tell what it is, but it's particularly large considering that no other animals are in its way," Friz said in a concerned voice.
"We have to prepare for it just in case," Hob acknowledged what Friz had said and climbed back down the tree.
"Oi, wake up you two! How long do you plan to sleep? We need to get to work, you know," Hob said, waking Amy and Geld.
Amy sat down where she was, yawning, and Geld stood up with his muscular build ruffling his hair.
Soon everyone was awake. Amy quickly ate a meal and went up the tree to keep watch, while Friz came down and sat with Hob and Geld around the smoldering remains of the fire.
Soon, everyone ate their own meal and decided to have today's meeting atop the tree to be safe from any attacks.
"So, what's the plan?" Amy asked in a serious voice, scanning the forest with her spyglass.
"We need to be quick with hunting. Tomorrow will be the deadline for the hunt," Hob said impatiently. "I suggest that we split into two groups. Friz and I will go out and look for tracks of more potential prey and materials while you two stay here and prepare some traps that we can use in a hunt."
"I object," Geld interjected keeping a calm mind. "We have something keeping an eye on us already, and it seems formidable in strength as well. If we split up, we might end up being hunted by it instead. Let's stay around the camp and focus on making something that can at least save our lives and potentially kill this stalker we have on our tail."
Hob controlled his impatience and listened to Geld's objection nodding thoughtfully, Friz glanced between them looking serious. After a moment Friz spoke up addressing Hob and Geld.
"Geld makes a valid point, we need to ensure our own safety before we pursue any prey. We should indeed split up, however, we have to make sure to go in the direction opposite to that presence in order to stay safe while gathering materials. The presence is in the east at the moment so going to the west seems like the right bet to make. Amy and Geld can focus on fortifying our defenses while making traps to deal with a big foe."
"Understood, we'll make sure to place the traps strategically and mark them so that you both can know their location when you come back from collecting materials," Amy said taking upon the task of maintaining the camp with Geld.
With the plan settled, Hob and Friz set off deeper into the forest, their senses alert for any signs of movement or unusual activity. They moved swiftly, occasionally pausing to examine tracks or collect materials that could be useful.
Meanwhile, back at the camp, Amy and Geld began their preparations. They gathered vines, branches, and other natural materials to craft traps designed to ensnare or incapacitate a large creature. Amy used her spyglass to scout the surroundings, ensuring they chose the optimal locations for their defenses.
As the day progressed, the group worked tirelessly, each member contributing to their shared goal of survival. By evening, they had fortified their camp with a ring of traps and makeshift barriers, creating a defensive perimeter that encircled their campsite.
Geld wiped sweat from his brow, surveying their handiwork with a hint of satisfaction. "This should give us some protection. Let's hope it's enough."
Amy nodded, her gaze still focused on the forest's edge. "We'll need to remain vigilant. Whatever's out there might not give us a second chance."
Night descended once more, Hob took the first watch, stationed atop a sturdy tree with Friz beside him. Amy and Geld took turns resting.
Hours passed without incident, the forest shrouded in an uneasy silence. Just as their watch was about to end, Friz nudged Hob, pointing towards the edge of their camp. A large, shadowy figure loomed in the distance, its presence sending a chill down their spines.
Hob gripped his flail, readying himself. "Stay alert. It's here."
Friz readied her blow-dart gun, her hands steady despite the tension in the air. Amy and Geld emerged from their hiding spots, weapons at the ready, prepared to defend their makeshift stronghold.
A mutated bear approached cautiously, sniffing the air as if testing their defenses. Hob held his ground, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. Friz exchanged a glance with him, silently communicating their strategy.
With a sudden surge of movement, the bear lunged forward, its tough hide gleaming in the faint light. Amy's traps sprung into action, vines entangling its massive limbs momentarily. But the creature broke free with a roar, swiping at Geld who was unfortunately close to the part the bear came in from and sending him sprawling.
Hob swung his flail with all his might, striking the bear's side, but its thick hide absorbed most of the impact. Friz stayed back, firing poisoned darts that pierced the creature's flesh, causing it to roar in pain.
As the battle raged on, the group regained their bearings and started to move with purpose. Hob suffered a gash across his arm from the bear's claws. He dodged towards the clearing in the center of the camp where there was more room to maneuver around.
Amy circled around, distracting the bear with well-aimed throws of the spears made by them during the day. Geld recovered quickly, using his strength to drive makeshift spears into the creature's thick hide from behind.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, the mutated bear staggered and stepped into the pit in the middle of the campsite they had prepared in case something they can't defeat directly attacks them.
The bear roared furiously to be trapped by its prey and tried to climb out of the pit using its claws but at that moment Friz's poison acted, and the bear fell back into the pit falling unconscious.
Even after falling unconscious, none of the group members dared to climb down into the pit for the fear of the poison wearing down.
After some time gathering some courage, Friz chose to descend into the pit and end it herself. She took two makeshift spears and drove them at an upward angle into the bear's eyes, damaging its brain.
Confirming that the bear was dead, Friz signaled to the group, and Hob went down, taking off the head of the bear and climbed back up with Friz who had collected her darts from its corpse and cut the flesh around them to stop the poison from spreading too much, seeing that the hunt was accomplished in an untimely fashion, everyone heaved a sigh of relief for being cautious and not taking it easy.
After some rest, everyone got back to repairing the defenses of the camp in case the commotion from earlier drew the attention of some other monster, but it seemed unnecessary as the inhabitants of the jungle were avoiding their camp like the plague because of the presence of the mutated bear.
After the defenses were set up temporarily, the group gathered atop the tree, hiding the bear beneath leaves and branches to avoid attracting scavengers.
"I suggest that we retreat after firing the flare. The head you have should be enough to prove that we hunted the mutated bear," Geld suggested.
"I think the opposite. If we show the head of the bear, no one will believe that we, who aren't even 'HUNTED' yet, can hunt down an opponent this big," Hob explained.
"I agree with Hob's reasoning. Although we did hunt this prey, they won't believe us easily. So, I suggest we stay here until the veterans arrive to prove that we indeed hunted down this bear," Amy also supported Hob.
"Alright, let's go with Hob's plan. I'll go fire the flare from the treetop in the desert's direction, then let's wait for reinforcements to arrive," Friz said and started climbing the tree.
Soon, the signal flare was fired, and after that, the sun rose again.
The group went about protecting the camp from any threats while waiting for the veteran collectors to arrive, and a few hours passed uneventfully until Amy, who was on watch atop the tree, spotted some figures coming towards them from the direction of the desert.
Soon, more than ten figures emerged from the forest and stopped right before entering their camp.
" We're from the veterans collector unit, you fired a signal flare right I hope we're allowed to enter the camp." A agile woman in her thirties said addressing the group.
Amy looked down from the tree and receiving a nod from Hob she replied " Alright you can enter but try to stay 5 meters away from the spikes we're using them to mark the traps."
And soon the figures entered the camp tending to the group's injuries and looking around the camp.