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 Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 5:53 am
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Posted: Thu Jul 11, 2013 6:22 am
 The young colt's stomach growled incessantly. It had been days since he had a proper meal, and he was tied of eating rotting scraps of corpses; having to chase off those filthy, stinking buzzards for a few mouthfuls of grey, chewy, cartilage-filled meat scraps. He couldn't even break open the larger bones to get to the marrow yet!
It had been about a week now since Kitsunegari made a promise to himself not to eat any more carrion. He was above that. He was better than that. But that strategy hadn't worked out well just yet.
First first attempt to hunt his own game had gone horribly awry: he had set his eyes on too grand a prize for his first attempt. A deer, perhaps young but still a yearling. Kitsune had done well to sneak up on his prey. He was able to silently stalk the venison, managed to surprise it with his pounce well enough...but he had learned very quickly that the able-bodied young doe was able to not only shake her small attacker, but a well-placed kick to the ribcage had almost rendered Kitsunegari a fate of buzzard food himself.
The wind and pride had been knocked out of the foal, and for two days he was able to do little movement at all. After that, he was able to sustain himself on frogs, large insects, one quail nest of tiny eggs, and a turtle; but those were sustenance at best. His stomach craved red meat - hot, warm, fresh...
As quick as he was, Kitsunegari was wholly unsuccessful of sneaking up or catching rabbits or squirrels. He was running out of options. Stalking around the summer forest, lurking in the shadows, he was finally able to catch sight of a young buck. Not a yearling, but old enough to leave his mothers side by the looks of it...
..it was a risk. The prey was still definitely larger than the hunter. But Kitsunegari couldn't let the opportunity pass - he was nearly delusional with hunger and the thought of fresh venison was dizzyingly exciting.
He went for it. Staying in the shadows and using his soft paws, he was able to sneak up on the unsuspecting buck. He leapt at him, clamping down around his neck and using his claws to dig into the animal's skin and hold on for deal life.
But it was no use. Kitsune's jaws weren't strong enough yet to rip the thick skin of the maturing buck with one quick bite. The buck reared up, then began to buck wildly. Kitsune growled as he felt his grip slipping and with a moan of defeat, he landed hard on the ground as the animal was able to shake him. It seemed to take a moment for the buck to realize he was free, rivulets of blood running down his fur and splattering on Kitsune's face; teasing him. The buck took off, attempting to leap to safety.
Not ready to admit defeat, Kitsunegari mustered all his strength and launched himself up, snapping into the air. Miraculously he felt his teeth clamp down on one of the buck's hind legs, neat the ankle, mid-leap. It was enough to throw the buck off-balance and he landed awkwardly, crying out in pain as his front legs landed and twisted in an unnatural way.
Kitsunegari's body was pitched forward as the animal struggled, but he refused to let go until his free hoof connected hard with his jaw. He let go with a yelp of pain, and the buck continued his escape.
Kitsune rolled over on the ground and watched his quarry flee. However, though he was several hundred meters away now, the skinwalker noticed the buck begin to hobble. He favored one of his front legs as if it were twisted or spranged, and his back ankle was bleeding surprisingly profusely. An idea struck him, and he put his nose to the ground. There was clear trail of blood left by his injuries and Kitsune began to follow it.
Seeing his attacker in pursuit, the panting deer began to leap away again, but it wasn't long before his injured legs caused him to wince and stop in pain. He was still ahead, but the purewalker was gaining ground...
Kitsunegari on the other hand had an idea. Two legs down... only two to go...
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