Paws of Fire: Tiger in Town - Chapter 11
#4 of Paws of Fire: Tiger in Town
Chapter 11: Unsure Alignment
The three warriors had made it halfway to Bai'ji now. Their stomachs were growling the whole way. The hunger that grew in them slowed them down more and more. Jalhamut raised his paw up, signaling his companions to stop. He turned his head, glancing back at Aveyi. "How did you eat the last time the world was like this?"
Aveyi was holding her tummy, cringing in pain as she surveyed her surroundings. Her ears flicked back in dismay, whimpering a bit. "Even in corruption, some trees bare fruit...but you'll only find a source of meat from trappers...or furs." Aveyi winced again as her stomach roared out. Out of all of them, she spent the most energy constantly protecting them and fending off undead. "There should be...fruit trees in Bai'ji...I can hold out long enough to get there..."
Jalhamut pitied the wolfess. She was starving, and food would be such a long distance away. He was starving too. He hadn't eaten since he had ran from Qurrah's hideout. He then looked in the direction that Bai'ji lied. "I hope that our orchards are enough to feed my people...and all the refugees." Jalhamut knew the orchards were vast, and they could feed those who lived in Bai'ji fifteen times a day if they could eat that often, but he knew not how many refugees there would be.
Nick spoke up, "Are there any towns nearby? There are often trappers hiding out in the old homes of furs." Nick had experience with the corruption as well. He had never had to eat a trapper before, but he remembered their habbits. "Maybe we can hunt for some and eat up. Then we'll be ready to head back." Nick's stomach roared loudly, the wolf falling to his knees. Jalhamut was the only one who could still stand, despite his own stomach's complaints.
He looked in a different direction, nodding lightly to Nick's question. "Yes. There's an abandoned village close-by." He turned his head to the two starving wolves. "You two stay here and rest. I'll go bring you something to eat. I'll be fastest, after all." He smiled at them, winking before he darted off, not giving the wolves a chance to protest.
It wasn't long before the cheetah bounded over the series of hilltops and reached a small valley, covered with huts on either side of a rock pathway. Upon first inspection from afar, the place was deserted. It would make more sense for a trapper to not actually be out in the open, Jalhamut thought. They earned the name 'trapper' for a reason.
Jalhamut jogged to the bottom of the valley, entering the small dark village that seemed completely deserted. He creeped behind one of the first huts he came across, peering slowly into the opening with just a smidge of his head exposed to the inside. It was empty. He crept inside, crouching low in the corner and curling his tail around his legs as he hid in the complete darkness. He reached down into the red dirt, dislodging a small rock before throwing it outside.
The rock broke the eerie silence as it slid along the other rocks along the pathway for a short distance. Shortly after, Jalhamut glared out of his hut at the several trappers that were trying to stealthily peer out from their huts. Their long snouts gave them away too easily. He pulled back into his hiding place, waiting patiently for the eerie silence to take hold of the village again before peering back out. The peeking heads of the trappers were gone. He slowly crept out of his hut once he thought the coast was clear, heading silently for the nearest hold of a trapper.
The ground beneath him gave way after he just lifted his other hindpaw up. He sank deep into the ground, letting out a yowl of distress before suddenly stopping, his head just barely above the ground now. He was completely immobile except for his eyes. He was staring upward into the endless sky, struggling in vain to move around inside of the collapsed ground. He could hear footsteps approaching. "Jackpot!"
The trappers surrounded him now, looking down at the helpless cheetah's head. One of them yelled out, "Wow, we just bagged the king! What should we do with him?" The trappers began chattering, discussing the various ways they could make the cheetah suffer in his helpless state. "We could pour lava down his throat!" "No! We can't kill him! We need to drag it out." "Set hot coals on his eyes!"
Shortly after, one of the trappers had left the group, only to come back with a long stick holding a hot coal on the end. The trapper nodded to two of its buddies, the two alligators kneeling on either side of Jalhamut's head and wrenching his jaw open. Jalhamut glanced downard so he could see what was happening, unable to close his jaws under the might of the trappers. He watched in horror as the red rock was slowly lowered down, closer and closer to his open maw. He couldn't move his head, yowling out in desperation as the coal got closer and closer. He could feel the heat rising in his mouth as the red rock almost entered him. He shut his eyes tight, his entire body tensing in panic.
A gush of wind blew against Jalhamut's face, the intense heat of the red rock sliding just by his cheek, singing the tip of his whiskers before it rolled away a little bit, not harming the cheetah. He opened his eyes, glancing around wildly in search of the alligators. There were only two more that were still standing over him, along with a new figure that stood between the two trappers, large dirks piercing their hearts. Jalhamut hadn't heard a sound of pain or impalement, but he could easily tell that someone had just slain those two. The new silhouette pulled the dirks out, letting the dead alligators fall back and out of Jalhamut's sight.
It crouched down, a paw striking into the earth with vicious speed and grabbing the scruff of Jalhamut's neck under the ground. The cheetah yowled in agony as he was jerked up through the dirt by his neck. As his body emerged, covered in red particles, he quickly got settled on his feet, glaring up at his rescuer. He instantly recognized the leopard that previously had let him and the other two warriors go without a fight. Ryu was standing their, eyes glaring angrily into Jalhamut's. The leopard growled loudly. "I thought I told you to run and hide..."
Jalhamut was stiff with shock. Why was he saved by Ryu? Wasn't Ryu a bad guy? "Listen, kit...I let you live back there because you were a waste of my time. Keep poking around in place where you shouldn't poke, and you'll become my prey." There was great hostility in Ryu's voice. "Stay away from Bai'ji, or we will meet again...and I'll have to kill you. I'm showing you mercy...you should consider taking it." The leopard reached up and shoved Jalhamut backward, the cheetah falling onto his back as the leopard turned tail and ran with speed that rivaled the cheetah's.
"Wait!" he called after the leopard, but he was already gone. Jalhamut turned over onto his front before struggling to pull himself upright and onto his legs. He stood their, shaking his head to get rid of the confusion that was boggling his mind. Ryu was a strange one. Jalhamut pushed his curiosity aside about the leopard for now. He needed to take one of these trappers back with him to the others. They were starving, and so was he. They could feast together on the bulky alligator and rest for a while. The exhausted cheetah bent over and hauled up one of the alligators over his shoulders. The trapper was a bit heavy, but it didn't slow down the cheetah as he pushed with all his strength to quickly reach his friends.
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Jalhamut had never tasted anything to terrible in his lifetime. The three of them ravished the dead trapper like wild hungry bears. They were starving enough to push back the filthy taste and the rough texture. The reptile meat would fill their bellies and give them their strength, but now they needed to sleep.
"We should rest here." Jalhamut held his tight belly, trying his best to keep from bursting while also not retching up the horrible meal. The relief washed over the other two's faces as well. They clearly wanted to sleep as much as he did. "I'll take the first watch." Nick spoke up, nodding to the cheetah before the wolf sat back upright, ears perked up. "I know I can't fight as well as you two, but I can be just as alert." Jalhamut didn't need to be convinced to agree to Nick's proposal. The cheetah laid on his side, the hard ground beneath him feeling as comfortable as a cloud after his exhaustion. He closed his eyes, memories of those beautiful yellow eyes glaring at him.
"Why do I feel so soothed by the stare of an enemy? Why did he save me?" These and several other questions flew through his mind as Jalhamut slowly drifted into slumber.
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"NICK!" The frenzied howl of Aveyi woke Jalhamut. He sat upright swiftly, looking over at the distressed wolfess. She was on all fours, sniffing around where her mate sat watch just a little while ago. She was sobbing with distress. Jalhamut hurried over to her, noticing quickly that Nick was nowhere in sight. "Is there any scent of where he went?"
Suddenly, Aveyi stopped, sniffing carefully at a certain spot before she turned her head in the direction of Bai'ji. The wolfess' eyes and paws lit ablaze with the blue fire. Her voice trembled as her rage tremored through her. "That...that...WHORE!" She immediately mounted a board of ice, crouching on it as she sped away through the air toward the city.
Jalhamut watched her rush off without him, taking a moment to sniff around where she was startled before he followed. Jalhamut jerked upright as he recognized the scent of a bat in heat. The scent of lust was heavy in the dirt there. He stood up, dashing after Aveyi a moment later. It seems he would have to fight Ryu later on regardless of what he wanted to do. He had to help save Nick from his captor.
Lush was in a mood, and Nick was her prey.