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Niabi carefully shimmied her way down the tree, keeping an eye on the floor and her mind on the added weight she was carrying. The two maglardilla were harder to get back to the village than she had thought. They were heavy, and their hard shells made them rigid, making them very awkward to carry. Niabi had used vines to tie them securely over her shoulder, and she was hoping that it stayed together long enough to not splatter to the earth.
Once her feet were safely on the forest floor, she lifted the makeshift carrier off of her shoulders and gently onto the floor, stretching out her arms, shoulders, and neck from the strain. This was going to be a long journey home, and she didn’t see the return of any Sisters in the distance yet. She would have to do this one on her own. Something she seemed to be getting more and more used to lately. Niabi adjusted her bow and quiver before lifting her bundle once more and hefting it over her shoulder. It she was bigger or stronger it wouldn’t have been such a hard thing to do, but such was life. She had barely made it two steps forward when something in the unknown parts of the forest had her antennae twitching and bobbing. Something was out there. The thought had just made it through her mind when she was confronted with an answer.
Three radaku sauntered through the brush, stopping and sniffing into the air in clear sight of Niabi. It would seem that they had come for the free meals Niabi was holding. She couldn’t help but feel cheated now that she had to somehow get away from three radaku with an extra forty pounds on her back. She frowned, her eyebrows furrowing before she lowered her catch to the floor and stared back at the radaku. She wanted to run, but she wasn’t about to go back to the village empty handed when she was just so close to proving she could be useful.
The three radaku focused on the maglardilla being laid on the floor before lifting their gaze to Niabi, who to them seemed to be their meals’ protector. The radaku bared their fangs, growling and hissing and sneering at Niabi. Niabi stiffened, her muscles tightening for flight, but she had to forcefully calm herself. She reached behind her and unhooked her bow, moving ever so slowly. The radaku made an aggressive step forward, snapping their jaws as if telling Niabi to just move away from their prize. Niabi took a step back, bringing the bow forward, reaching for an arrow from her quiver and notching it. Her look was intense and it soon became a stare down between her and her enemies. These radaku wouldn’t hesitate to take a chunk out of Niabi as food for themselves, something that had her feeling less friendly toward the beasts and more willing to be destructive. She notched an arrow and pulled the string tight, aiming for one’s eye. She released and it nailed it’s mark. The radaku seemed to pull forward before falling limply to the side.
The other two took Niabi’s attack as the queue they were waiting for to strike, and charged forward, aiming for Niabi’s throat among other body parts. Niabi scooped to the side, trying to get out of the way of the first radaku and launched an arrow into its leg. The radaku yelped, but was already coming for her and she came away claw marked on her side. She winced in pain and dropped her bow to clutch her side. The other radaku saw the opportunity and grabbed a hold of one of the maglardilla. Niabi reached for her bow once more, pulling back an arrow and launching it straight into the side of the stealing radaku. It yelped and charged weakly toward Niabi before falling to the ground, unable to get back up.
The last radaku standing limped forward with the arrow still in its leg. It growled and bared its teeth, but then turned and limped off into the forest. Niabi could only guess that it had chosen to run away and live another day. Niabi blew out a heavy breath and frowned. She didn’t like having to fight like this. That radaku would have the arrow in its leg for a while, and who knew if it would survive on its own or be taken out by another predator while it was weak. Niabi shuddered but tried to push it out of her mind. She had to get back to the village. Maybe they could have radaku meat along with the maglardilla tonight?
(Word count: 782)
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