Tear A Path 220 End Game

The little rodent perked it's ears making sure the thing came alone, it didn't make much of a difference, but it didn't feel like going the extra mile for today. First things first as always, draw the hunter closer.

It knew that physique always played a big part in these games, even if it was fast there were always faster creatures all around, only once it entered its safe areas would it's survival be ensured.

While moving around the would be hunter, the critter left deep footprints, the types it wouldn't normally make in the sand unless it had a death wish, all leading to the place where the hunter would "spot" it for the first time.

It was so painfully obvious that today's victim was led to it not too long after the "trail" was made. With seemingly cautious and meek movements it perked it's ears, causing those huge tufts of fur to peek out just above the folds of the sand, so the hunter could see it's "prey".

Once it was sure the pursuer caught sight of it, it played dumb, waiting for said pursuer to creep a little closer, believing it to be oblivious of it's current predicament. Twitching when it was just out of reach of the hunters first lunge, giving off the impression it had been alerted towards the hunters presence and was about to escape.

The feeling of being so close to a prize would actually drive a hunter to the chase, than the meal itself. As a big tough predator of the wild, having a small weak little thing escape it was like a punch in the gut to it's pride.

And so the chase would commence, it would usually pace itself just a little bit slower than the predator, making it seem like the prize was just out of reach while it in fact could've run out of sight long ago. Today's however nearly kept up with it all the way through. Unfortunately for it, the game was about to end.

There were many ways the game could end, death by land shark, sand crocodiles or even a cave spider if the hunter had met it on a particularly bad day, but none where the hunter survived... for long at least.

This was how it lived, the hunters were brought to even bigger hunters who would make short work of them. The resulting blood splatter would dye the sand red. And by it's experience, drench the sand in an area with blood enough, and it could hope to see a little dark red cactus flower grow in that spot at some point. It's sweet nectar, a delicacy to the trickster's tongue, the more the blood, the heavier the nectar.

Today's would have to go to the sand snappers hunting ground, a few of the cacti were lacking their nutrition these past few days. The Sand Snappers themselves were hippo like predator which spent it's time with it's mouth wide open in the sand, the thing could wait up till weeks and months to the point where it's mouth was submerged under the sand. When an inattentive creature would decide to pa.s.s right above it's ready teeth, it would strike with instantaneous death from crushing between it's powerful jaws.

It didn't take long for them to arrive, the thing had already been waiting in it's safe area in the first place. That meant that it was less than a few seconds away from it's chosen predator hunting ground. Once it was in, there was little chance it's pursuers would catch up before first being dinner to another predator.

And sure enough, before today's hunter could catch up to it, the stupid thing was already stepping into the sand snapper's mouth which exploded from the calm sands with blinding speed and closed on the inexperienced hunter.

Blood splashed onto the sand by the buckets, but it wasn't the hunter's blood but the sand snapper's. Closing it's mouth so fast didn't allow it to avoid biting down on a well placed spear which was subst.i.tuted for the hunter's body. Held horizontally by the hunter, the spear made use of the force from the closing mouth to pierce the jaws of the sand snapper, leaving it with a deep gaping hole while the hunter was left unscathed.

The rodent watching the events unfold, looking in indifferently. It mattered little which side shed the blood. As long as one of them died, it would have some nectar to feast upon. At most it could no longer lead future victims to this hunting ground anymore. Though it was surprised such a thin creature could actually hurt the comparably large sand snapper, it didn't dwell on it for very long.

That was, until the very spear that impaled the sand snapper's jaw previously was now flying right in it's direction.