Chapter 94 - Careful Steps

When Kaiser stepped through the tree line he was blinded by the amount of sunshine at first. What he had set foot on was a strip of knee high grass that was about 30 meters wide before it was replaced by a shorter strip of sand that finally ended at a greenish blue river that was about twenty meters wide. This pattern continued along both sides of the river for a long while until it disappeared from view due to the many curves of the river. This was one of the few times Kaiser really noticed just how artificial this arena was. The transitions were to abrupt and was just to contrasting with what he had seen previously.

Additionally almost no animals could be seen. Nothing besides a few parrots that sat in a tree on the other side and a few insects and mice like creatures that were scurrying around. Gaia who was still on top of a large tree behind him suddenly began shouting.

"Come back! This is dangerous. Slowly back away. Don't show your back to the water."

Surprised Kaiser wanted to turn around to look at her but once he heard her he turned back and slowly did as instructed. Once he was within the trees again he looked up as he saw her climbing down the tree as fast as possible before vaulting onto his shoulder. Looking at her he saw her shaking, using their connection he saw a maelstrom of emotions rampaging inside her uncontrollably. Confusion, curiosity and worry orbited around the pitch black sticky ball of fear deep inside her. Instinctual fear.

"I don't know what's there but we shouldn't cross it. All of my instincts are screaming."

"Perhaps they have placed a limiter on you so that you don't leave your area? Fear could be a good method of containing you inside your territory."

"This is different. I left our territory once but although I wasn't feeling well I could resist and it was just an unsettling feeling of not belonging there. But this….this is simply incomprehensible. Perhaps we could try crossing the river when we get closer to the foothills? It should be smaller there. Besides the river here is filled with large reptiles. Although you weren't able see it, since I watched from an elevated position I could see quite a few shifting towards you."

"Then let's try your idea. It shouldn't be far from here since we have been relatively close to the mountains all this time. Two kilometers should do it, don't you think."

Gaia merely nodded before scuttling back onto the tree, climbing at rapid speeds. Continuing their journey they knew that they had to climb a large tree in a few hours to gather rain water as well as to protect themselves from it.

Moving in the jungle, almost directly on the border to the small grassy area sometimes the moved towards the mountains, always against the current. With Gaia giving directions from above and having the river right next to them was quite helpful in helping with orientation. Sadly the river moved in enormous loops and was only slowly inching closer towards the mountains. Although Gaia often managed to spot loops ahead of time so that they could shorten the distance it was quite often very difficult since the river stopped their looping from time to time where they had to spend additional time trying to find it again.

After about two hours had passed after midday they decided to remain on a large tree that could be climbed by Kaiser albeit it was still quite challenging. Before they began to climb Kaiser decided to make a fire close to the edge of the grassland since the ground and sticks were dryer there. Feeding large pieces of meat to Gaia for her troubles from the ape pelt Kaiser prepared the rest. Having cleared a circle of around 50 cm in diameter and digging into the earth a bit Kaiser put down a few stones close to the edge before filling the shallow hole with dry wood as well as other dried up plants that had been blown away from the strip of grass or grown a bit inside the forest.

Lighting a fire Kaiser grabbed a stick and began to roast pieces of meat he had cut up into manageable pieces. Having washed the stones with water where only a small bit remained Kaiser laid all of the meant that was still inside the skin on it. The nuts, berries and more that they had gathered during their journey had been safely packed inside large leafs and stored in the pockets of his coat where they remained. As it grew hot because of the flames Kaiser hung his coat onto a large branch. Once Kaiser had taken all the meat off of the ape skin Gaia began nibbling on the small pieces of meat that were still clinging to it.

Meanwhile Kaiser was chomping down on the freshly grilled meat that he made by himself. Interestingly it tasted quite good and despite a lack of spices it was still delicious especially since he hadn't eaten much for about one and a half days. Eventually, seeing that they didn't have much time anymore Kaiser used sticks to move the already hot rocks closer towards the center, hoping for the meat on it to get done faster than if he were to do it with only one stick. Once everything was more or less well done he began packing everything back into the now cleaner pelt of the ape.

Soon both found themselves hurrying up the tree. Tying the tarp up in a suitable spot both could finally relax. Hopefully there wouldn't be any wind like yesterday as soon as the rain begins. Seeing that they had prepared everything they could and that nothing they had experienced would be able to get to them now they prepared to eat a bit of meat and nuts before relaxing against the tree, waiting for the rain to come to present them with fresh water.

--- One hour prior, Jungle Zone, near one of the rivers---

Curiously he sniffed the air. Something wasn't right. Leaning forwards, closer towards the ground he supported himself with a pair of legs that had previously only hung down from his upper body. Yes. He had been correct. There was a scent. He knew that scent perfectly for it was the scent of his prey. Hunched forwards he quickly followed the trail. Apparently it had retreated back into the woods. However that didn't correct it's mistake. It had entered his territory without permission and was prey on top of that. With excited clicking and snarling it straightened once more before cleaning the front limbs it had used to move on the ground before quickly hurrying along the trail which led along the riverside. Now that he had its scent he wouldn't let it escape under any circ.u.mstances.

With the hoof-like claws of his hind legs hammering quietly against the ground like the low beat of a steady drum, every step a beat closer to the death of it's victims, the forest grew silent around him while rain clouds began pooling overhead. Seeing that rain would soon arrive it pressed on. Loosing was not an option. Although he wouldn't loose track of his prey completely it would make the hunt a lot more difficult. Soon, when the water reached his belly he decided to pause for a while. He had time. He didn't have to hurry. The only one that could win was him and him alone. There was no other rule in this jungle.