As Hob's fight with the lion dragged on, his body grew more and more exhausted, while the monster showed no signs of weakening. When the lion swiped its claws at Hob's shield, sending him flying, he stole a glance around to check on how the others were doing, and it didn't look good. Even though there were no casualties thus far, the humans were being pushed back by the lions. One thing baffled Hob, though—why were a few groups of people standing alert without participating in the fight? If they joined in, these lions would be dealt with much more easily.
"Damn it." Hob cursed as realization dawned on him. If the others were to join the fight, there would be no one to deter the other two prides from attacking, and should they attack, all the hunted would inevitably end up dead. Thus, the few who were engaged in the fight would have to end it themselves.
Getting back on his feet, Hob quickly jumped to his right, dodging a blow that would have killed him otherwise. He no longer had time to pay attention to the others. The fight wasn't going to end like this; his whole body ached with pain, and his muscles were getting sore from the strain of movements and the blows raining down on him. For the fight to end, something had to change—if it kept going like this, he would end up dead.
And so Hob did something no one expected. He threw his flail towards the lion's head and dived straight at its face. Distracted by the flail, the lion tried to avoid it, ducking down just as Hob came barreling towards its head. Before the lion could understand what was happening, Hob pulled out his revolver and pressed the muzzle against the lion's nose, firing a shot. At the same time, the lion's claw smashed into his shield, throwing him into a large truck before he landed face-first on the ground.
"Did I get it?" Hob thought to himself, grimacing in pain. His whole body was beaten and battered from the fight, and even moving was difficult. But he pushed through the pain, lifted his head, and looked in the direction of the lion. He saw that, although he had missed the nose, the bullet had gone through the lion's eye. Now, another dark-skinned hunter was taking it on, and it didn't seem like he was having much trouble; with the lion partially blinded, the humans had gained an advantage.
"Hob, are you alright?" Friz asked as she hurried over and lifted his head from the ground.
"Yeah, I'm a little battered but I'll be fine. Just need a few moments to catch my breath." Hob said, gasping for air.
Friz soon helped Hob up and placed him in a seated position, away from danger. She then retrieved his flail from where it had fallen and, while she was at it, shot a dart into the face of the lion Geld was facing, ensuring it wouldn't last much longer.
"You sure are fast. The lions never even got close to hitting you." Hob praised Friz for her speed.
"Well, it wasn't much. Besides, if it wasn't for them keeping the lion's attention on themselves, I wouldn't have been able to come back unscathed either." Friz said, looking back at Geld and the other hunted.
Soon after the lions that attacked the caravan were dealt with, and thankfully, other than a hunted breaking his hand while trying to defend his comrade, the rest came out with light injuries. Seeing the fate of the first pride that attacked the humans, the other two lost interest and retreated. However, the same wasn't true for the cubs of the lions that were killed. Seeing their parents slain by the humans, most of the cubs ran back into the forest, where their chances of survival were slim. But three of them came straight at the humans, roaring but not attacking.
That was when Commander Arihant stepped out of safety and walked towards the cubs. The cubs, hesitant at first, ran back towards the forest, but knowing survival would be difficult, they soon returned, sniffing the air and circling around Arihant. After realizing that he had no intention of attacking them, they finally approached him and scratched his legs.
Arihant picked up one of them and walked back towards the humans while the other two followed him. Upon reaching safety, he went to the corpses of the lions, which were now laying in a large truck, and placed the cubs near them one by one. Unlike normal wild animals, the cubs looked at the corpses of their parents, and tears started rolling down their eyes.
"The mutations aren't just limited to physical aspects in the animals. Some of them have become more intelligent than before, and these are one of them. Unlike normal lions, the mutated ones tend to show a high level of intelligence, but they aren't exactly capable of making tools for their own use. So, they attack us humans because they know we have technology and use all sorts of weapons and tools. They're hoping to get something of use from us, but sometimes they end up dead in this struggle, and a few of their cubs, like these three, choose to stay with humans instead of facing the harshness of the wild. They can be great friends to us all if properly cared for—or great enemies if we neglect them." Arihant explained to the many hunted who seemed to be witnessing such a scene for the first time.
"But what if we're betrayed by them? Won't it make survival even harder for us humans?" one of the hunted asked Arihant.
"They won't betray us. The same intelligence that makes them seek safety with humans tells them they can't afford to be away from us, as that would mean their future generations won't have the safety or tools humans provide, which help them considerably." Arihant explained patiently.
"Always remember, our purpose is not to kill all things that can threaten humanity, but to become capable enough to survive despite the existence of these things. And if some of them are willing to ally with us, we don't have the right to deny them, because every ally gained in the wild increases our chances of survival, and in the wild, every bit counts." Arihant said sternly to all the hunted.
"Yes, Commander." all the hunted said in unison.
Soon after, the battlefield was cleaned up while the cubs were kept near the corpses of the lions to help them stay calm and mourn their dead.
"Now that we're moving again, let's talk about the performance of the four of you, shall we?" Commander Arihant said with a mischievous smile.
"Yes, Commander." the four of them said in unison.
"For starters, Geld, you would have died at the very beginning if not for Amy taking an eye from that lion, and then died yet again if not for Friz lending you a hand by poisoning the lion. That wasn't very spectacular, but I understand—fighting it alone with only a spear and no armor on top of that was very difficult indeed. But remember, the next time you get into a fight like this, you're supposed to keep your distance, avoid getting hurt, and stay alive. No one's pressuring you to end the fight early; it'll be fine if others finish first and help you out. What's important is your life—don't lose it over some nonexistent pressure." Arihant said, patting Geld hard on the shoulder.
"Yes, Commander, I'll make sure to remember that." Geld said loudly.
"Next is Amy. You did a great job spotting the other two prides in advance—if not for that, we would have been wiped out. But you made a mistake: the scout is supposed to report directly to the commander, while you sent Friz to do it for you. Next time, make sure to come to me yourself and report the situation in real-time, because timely information can make the difference between survival and death out here." Arihant said kindly while patting her head.
"Yes, Commander, I'll make sure to keep that in mind." Amy said, nodding her head.
"Next is Friz. You did a great job bringing the news about the two prides to me, and you also helped out Hob when he was thrown away by the lion. But the risk you took to retrieve his weapon from behind that lion was unnecessary and could have led to your death, which I wouldn't have appreciated. So next time, remember not to put yourself in unnecessary danger. The weapons can be retrieved when it is safer, or even left behind. We can get more weapons, but not more lives." Arihant said sternly to Friz.
"Yes, Commander, I'll remember not to do it next time." Friz said, lowering her head.
"And finally, Hob, you put up quite a fight, but you made a lot of mistakes. First of all, you aren't supposed to take the full brunt of the enemy's attack using the shield; instead, use it to deflect the attack so that you can last longer. Second, you looked away from your enemy in the middle of the fight. Knowing your surroundings is important, but you're supposed to do it after deflecting an attack and quickly, so that you don't get smashed while doing it. Third, you were impatient during the fight; you never considered holding out for longer and put your life on the line. And fourth, you threw away your weapon. Always remember, never throw away your weapon—hold onto it. You can place it down to switch to another one, but don't throw it away; you may need it during that very fight. I don't want to see these mistakes repeated in the future," Arihant said to Hob while clenching his fists.
"Yes, Commander, I'll make sure not to repeat these mistakes," Hob said in a loud voice.