After they saw the deer, Civ grabbed his friends to crouch in the grass to avoid the vision of the deer. The deer was slightly larger and had a pair of antlers that were as long as the spear they were holding. Horm wants to get up to try and catch this deer but Civ stops him.
Civ whispered to them. "Horm lay down first, we need to observe the deer".
"Why do we need to observe? I can catch that deer with my bare hands." Horm replied.
Annoyed, Arsh interrupted Horm and asked "Can you really catch it?"
"Not really. I just want to try and I feel that I can catch it".
Horm mouth salivating like a river and ready to pounce on this deer.
Civ deeply sighed, "We can't catch it with only the three of us. Let's go back first to the camp and report it to my father ".
Deer is a rare delicacy for the tribe because they are hard to find. They are very sensitive to sound and smell and run so fast that even humans cannot catch it head-on. There were attempts in the past generations to hunt a deer, but all the attempts failed. So most of the time, they are only able to eat it when it is already dead or when they scavenge what is left by other animals.
"Alright let's go back first."
But before they stand up, they hear a heavy rumbling that is coming from the east.
*REEEEEEE*
What they saw was an angry hairy boar, as big as the deer, charging and trampling it. The deer failed to react and was stabbed in the ribs by the boar's tusk, instantly killing it. The three of them held their breath, fearing they might be the boar's next target. The next thing the boar did was to enjoy his hunt.
Chomp
Chomp
While the boar is enjoying his food, Civ whispers to the other two.
"Let's go back to camp right now before that boar notices us!"
The boar continued to eat and was facing back to them. They are 100 meters away from the boar.
Everyone agreed and they slowly got up. Three slowly step after.
*CRACK!!!. *
Everyone gasped as Horm accidentally stepped on a branch. The boar noticed them and a piercing shriek rang through their ears.
SSSHHHRRIEEEK
Civ shouted "Everyone!!! RUN!!!"
The trio runs back to the camp's directions and the boar angrily follows them.
Arsh shouted, "That boar is too fast, we can't outrun it!"
Horm sorrowfully replied, "It's my fault guys, I'll face that boar with my all."
Horm felt sorry that his friends were in danger because of his negligence. He wanted to resolve this predicament.
But before he turned around he heard Civ shout at him. "Are you crazy?! I have a plan". Before the Horm replies, Civ tells his plan. Both Arsh and Horm's eyes widened in disbelief.
Arsh asks, "Can we do it?".
Civ replied smiling, "Yes! Let's meet near camp.".
Left with no choice, Horm and Arsh nodded.
Seeing his friends agree he said, "Alright be ready and run as fast as you can on my command, and don't look back!."
They continue to run in a straight line going back to the camp. The boar was 60 steps away and then Civ shouted "Now!".
Arsh and Horm with full sprint, ran in different directions. Arsh to the south and Horm to the east. Civ runs to the west and intentionally runs slower. This is to get the attention of the boar thus following him, not the other two.
THUD
THUD
THUD
The boar keeps getting closer to Civ. While running, Civ tried his best to look for a way to escape but this boar was much faster than he expected. "Damn, I don't want to get eaten by this boar.". Civ saw a tree a tall tree that he thought he could reach the branch. "Yes! That's it!". Civ runs as fast as he can toward the tallest tree near him. Using his momentum, he climbs to the tree by kicking upward and reaching the nearest branch. He was able to grab it. Below, the boar was surprised that his prey climbed to the tree and was unable to stop its momentum.
BAM!!
The boar's tusk was stabbed into the tree.
REEEIIKK
REEEIIKK
The boar tries to move backward to detach its tusk from the tree.
"HAHAHAHA My plan worked!".
Civ laughed while hanging in the branch.
"You want to eat me? Not in a million chance."
Civ released his hand from the branch. He free-falls toward the boar, wielding his stick spear aimed at its neck but-. CRACK Instead of stabbing the boar, the stick he was holding was broken into two leaving only a graze to the boar.
Oink?
Oink?
SHRIEEKK
The boar forcefully wiggled its head intensely and it detached its tusk from the tree. Two of them stared at each other.
...….
"Fuuuuuuck!"
"REEEEIIKK"
Civ runs away again to the angry boar, they run in circles. Doing the same trick, he climbs to a tree that is bigger and is able to grab a branch but this time, he wants to stay in that tree. The boar not falling in the same trick stopped in the tree where Civ was and waited for him to climb down.
"Whew, I thought I would die twice!"
Civ breathes heavily and just realizes his body is sweating like he has taken a bath.
He looks up and notices that this he's at is a bit tall, and big tree. It piques his interest and since the boar is still around, he decides to climb higher to the tree. But after a minute, he did not expect it.
"This tree is taller than I expected it." The tree was covered in its leaves so it was not noticeable that the tree was tall, taller than the other trees. He was able to climb to the top of the tree, and a breathtaking view welcomed him.
Like a painting, the sunset to the west blanketed the vast space full of greenery trees. He looks around and when he turns around, his eyes widen.
"How big is that tree?!"
Blanketed with the sunset, what he saw was a giant tree on top of a mountain that pierced the sky.
"What the hell is this world?"
Despite his many questions, Civ decided to climb down and see if the boar was still there. After climbing down to the lowest branch, the boar had already left.
Remembering the path where the boar attacked them, he follows their footprints back. He was able to go back to the place and was dumbfounded by what he saw. The deer that was attacked earlier is already reduced to a skeleton. Civ also noticed many boar footprints. Some were small, while others matched the size of the boar they had encountered.
"It must be a sounder of boars ". If they stayed any longer earlier, they might not have been able to escape these aggressive boars.
He goes to the deer and the pair of antlers is broken into many pieces. He picks up the small pieces of the antler and some of its body parts that he can use. Then proceeds to forage some fruits before he returns back to the camp.
Back to Arsh and Horm…
The two of them ran as fast as they could and were able to meet near the camp.
Arsh asked Horm "Where is Civ?!"
They looked around and they did not see any trace of their friend.
Horm also asked, "Did Civ say that we meet here before we go back?"
Based on the plan Civ mentioned. They will run in three different directions to escape the boar. The wild boar will be confused about who to chase so it will stop chasing them. Then they will meet here. In reality, it's not true. Boars are territorial and aggressive and will attack if provoked. In this case, while eating.
They wait for their friend to come but it's already sunset and the tribe leader might look for them.
"What do we say to the tribe leader?" Horm asked.
"We need to tell the tribe leader the truth about what happened", Arsh answered.
Horm agreed and they turned around. They started walking back to the camp when suddenly they heard a familiar voice.
"Heeeyyy guys! Did you forget about me?"
Looking back they saw Civ also holding a big leaf.
Horm and Arsh runs to Civ
"Civ I'm glad you are safe", Arsh replied.
"What happened Civ?" Horm asked.
"Long story, let's go back first to the camp."
Even though Horm and Arsh are unable to bring the fruits they forage, Civ brings some. He puts it in a big leaf and includes also the antler he collected from the deer remains.
Back to the camp…
It's almost night before they are able to return to the camp. They went straight to the cave where Civ and his father stayed to report what they encountered. The three of them kneeled and seated in front of their Tribe leader.
Kivrah asks "How was the gathering the berries?"
Arsh told the whole story before they separated from Civ.
Kivrah frowned but did not say anything.
He asks his Son. "Civ, what happened after you got separated?"
Civ noticed his father's worry. He first gave the berries that he gathered, which were wrapped in green leaves to his Father. These berries will be distributed by his Father to the tribe tomorrow.
. He told the three about what happened from the moment the boar attacked him and after he escaped. But everyone gasped when they heard that Civ climbed the tree.
With a blank expression, Civ asks "Why?"
His father explained. "Son, the giants don't allow climbing in trees because it's sacred for them. Anyone who looks like us and is in the trees is killed. Sometimes they wipe out an entire tribe for that reason."
Hearing this, it clicks in Civ's mind. With a heavy heart, he realized that they were at the mercy of the Giants, the true Apex predators of this forest. He needs to do something about this and make sure his tribe is safe.
"I understand Father, I will not do it again."
With a sigh of relief, Kivrah smiled and hugged Civ, and said "Good, I'm glad that my son is growing up."
"Alright, since the Sun goddess is asleep, you two should go and rest also.", Kivrah said to Civ's friends.
"As you order, tribe leader." The two of them bowed and left the cave also with a feeling of relief since their friend was safe.
"We should stop Civ next time if he wants to join gathering the berries", Arsh suggests.
"Right, Civ ideas are very crazy and I might die of a fast-beating heart." Horm agrees.
The two of them reached a conclusion and went to their respective huts to rest.
Back to Civ who is lying down.
Recalling what happened today. He still cannot believe it. Being transmigrated to another world is something he did not think of. He wants to survive. In order to live, he needs their tribe to survive. Food, clothing, water, and shelter are the things humans need to survive. But in order to get it, he needs many things to accomplish it. Food is the most important thing right now as they are struggling. The children are skinny and the tribe only eats once a day due to lack of food. Another factor also is the constant harassment from the giants. These giants want their resources. There is nothing they can do to protect themselves.
It feels like they are the ones who are just placed here to find food for the giants.
This is not the way he wants to live. I need a plan. All night, Civ thinks of things and plans to protect his tribe. Due to his father's snores keeping him awake, he decides to go out and look around the night sky.
When he went outside, a chilling sensation immediately alerted his senses. Looking at the huts, It's fortunate that he and his father sleep in the cave. But he pitied his tribesmen as this chilly night is really not a night you can sleep soundly.
With a deep sigh, he looked up to the sky, and the moon there were two moons that were lighting the night sky. The night is covered in darkness. But the light coming from the moon gives enough vision to see the surroundings like a full moon. After that, he moves his attention to the stars in the night sky. But when he scanned through the constellations of stars, his eyes widened.
"Where is the Big Dipper?!!"