“On three!” Loksi Shouted. “One ...Two ...Three!"
“Let’s slide!" Leron screamed.
Down they went, at such an incredible speed that they suspended a few inches in the air. It was both thrilling and terrifying. They were having so much fun that the thought of stopping hadn’t crossed their minds. The breeze hitting their face felt like cold snow on a hot summer day. The adrenaline soon gave way and levelled the playing field. They vigorously shook to the ground’s roughness as they steered their way down the hill.
“Woo hoo! Best game ever!" Rycka screamed.
“Yeah!” Eury admitted.
"Hey Eury, Rycka, check this out!" Lystra called out to them.
He slowly and carefully moved back to the edge of the bark. He applied all his weight to it making its front side rise up. As he slid down, he waited for the right moment. Just as he had planned, a raised level of the ground came his path. He went for it and flew ten feet in the air while still grabbing hold of the bark. Still suspended in mid-air, he took hold of its sides and rotated it clockwise. He finally came to a touchdown and re-grouped with the rest of the gang.
“Show off." Kris murmured to herself.
“Whoa! How did you do that?" Rycka exclaimed.
“Pure genius!" Lystra replied.
"Yeah right!" Qelshy sarcastically butted in.
They were almost at the bottom, and the closer they drew the faster they got. At last, they were off the hill. One mystery remained unsolved though; how will they stop? They spanned uncontrollably, sliding through trees and bushes that left cuts and bruises.
"Hey genius! How do we get off this thing?" Qelshy called out.
“How am I supposed to know that? Umm, Ranus?" Lystra worried.
“Calm down everyone!" Ranus assured them.
Leron, feeling rather nauseous, added, "I don't feel so good." His face turned pale green.
“Ranus?" Loksi alarmed. Her eyes bulged to the oncoming turn of events.
“Oh no!" He muttered to himself.
Suddenly, they landed in a wide yet shallow giant pit filled with skulls and bones. There was no sign of life anywhere. It was seemingly dark, creepy, and quiet. Still hurting from the intense crash, they slowly and painfully got up. They looked around, mesmerized by the lack of hope surrounding them as despair encroached the place.
“Where are we?" Caren was the first to speak.
“The Red Zone," warned Leron.
“The what?” Rycka was utterly confused.
“The Red Zone, an enemy territory. Strictly forbidden." Ranus confirmed.
“And whose territory is this?" Eury enquired.
“Coyotes." Leron replied.
“Uh-oh!" Qelshy exclaimed.
“We’re so dead." Lystra joined in.
“No we're not. We just have to get out of here before...” Ranus encouraged.
Suddenly, they heard a loud disturbing yet fearsome chuckle beyond the pit. Lystra trembled in fear but still managed to stammer out a shivering gasp, "D…d…di…di…did y…you…hear…that?"
Injured and worn out, they limped to the edge of the pit and climbed out. They staggered away and began heading back to the Lake. Before they were completely out of the Red Zone, they suddenly stopped at a barricade in front of them. They lifted up their heads and came forth upon a creature so huge and terrifying standing in their way.
Chapter 6: Experience.
At that same glance, the female fawn who previously took notice of Jayd, suddenly walked up to him. The sight of his uncle who laid down on the ground, breathless and out of shape distracted him. She slowly crept up behind him, and with an angelic voice, she spoke, “Hi." He was so startled by her presence that no words came out. For a moment, he completely lost all form of speech that he ever knew. Embarrassingly, his entire body shivered at the mere sight of her. He wished his uncle was here to back him up, but this time he was all alone. He had no choice but to go at it solo, and maybe, just maybe, hope for the best.
He regained his composure and replied in a cool gesture, “Hi."
“Am Mel.”
“Jayd.” He smiled. He was glad that he was off to a good start, and they were finally hitting it off.
“Who was that?”
“My uncle…step-uncle.”
“He seems like a cool guy.”
“He’s actually insane, but yeah, he’s a cool guy.”
She giggled.
“Haven’t seen you around here before?”
“Yeah, my family and I are just passing through.”
“To the Museum?”
“Nope, Lake Guilderm.”
Jayd was terrified at the sound of that. He wondered why she and her family even considered going over to Huxton, the predator’s continent.
“What? You do know that that’s the predator’s land, right?”
“Yeah, I do, but it’s not up to me. It’s my parents’ decision,” she said as she pointed out to them.
“Why not wait ‘till the hunting season is over?"
“We can’t. It’s the only fresh water source left. The rest have all dried up."
Jayd felt sorry for her. However, the whole of Praemar would soon face the same epidemic. All preys would have to migrate to a more substantial and sustainable source. Unfortunately, the only permanent source for miles is at the border of both Praemar and Huxton; Lake Guilderm. They then took a walk around the park and got more acquainted.
“What about you? What’s your story?”
“My story?”
“Yeah.”
He paused for a moment and thought of the right words to say to her. When he found none, he just winged it.
“Well, for starters, am royalty.”
“What? No way!”
“Yeah.”
“You’re lying.”
“Am serious.”
“Then prove it.”
“Okay.”
He nudged her to the right and inconspicuously pointed out to the back. Past the dancing animals to a pair of wildebeests positioned at every corner. Their eyes locked onto him.
“So what? You are some sort of prince?”
“You could say that.”
“So what are you doing out here? I thought all royalties are always on lockdown?”
“That’s my parents, not me. I prefer being adventurous.”
“So you ran away?”
“Pretty much.”
“Aren’t they going to be…?”
“…mad? Nah.”
They both laughed in unison. For a prince who had spent his entire life locked away, he was surely having the time of his life. Suddenly, all hell broke loose when an uninvited guest crashed the party. All senses were now on high alert. The few that had spotted the outsider kept yelling only one word; Predator. Afterwards, only one word came to everyone’s mind; Run. Helter-skelter, they all ran in utter confusion and dashed out of the park. Absolutely nothing was fun at the oh-so-awesome fun park anymore. Paralyzed with fear, Jayd and Mel got lost in the fuss. Everyone ran in every direction and forcefully bumped into Jayd and Mel along the way.
“Stay close to me!” Jayd shouted.
She moved in closer and pushed on side by side. They tried to make their way to the wildebeest bodyguards on the other side, who ruthlessly pushed aside anyone who stood in their way. Their number one priority was Jayd, who seemed nothing more but a mere ant amongst that frightened mass. The struggle for survival seemed hopeless for them. Just when things couldn’t get any worse, Jayd and Mel instantly got separated. They screamed while slowly drifting apart. Jayd suddenly found himself all alone, wandering around the park. He accidentally bumped into Mel's parents and together they searched everywhere for her. All was quiet and peaceful once again for everyone was gone.
Amazingly, the news about the predator invasion travelled fast across all four corners of Praemar. Everyone heard about it, including Jayd's parents. They too got a whiff of this famous rumour.
“Predators? Here? How is that even possible? It’s not even hunting season yet?" Kart worriedly asked.
“I don't know. They must have crossed the border somehow." Zafeen unknowingly answered.
"Oh no! Jayd could be out there?"
"Don’t worry. We’ll find him."
Concerned for their son's safety, they set out for the very same crime scene. Their two-triceratops bodyguards accompanied them.
Chapter 7: Encounter.
“What do we have here?” He lowered his neck, tilting his head side to side, as he stared face to face in their unblinking eyes. “A couple of stray sheep.” He moved in closer until he could hear the sound of their pacing hearts.
“Where’s your flock?” He taunted.
The silence grew weary around them. It tormented and forced them to utter nothing more but a mere gasp of their soulless lifeform. A lifeform that left their bodies shaken and infringed.
“What’s the matter? Cat got your tongue?” He teased.
He stood right in front of them and stared sharply with his black demonic eyes. His dark brown and rough unkempt fur stood still, revealing his dark pale skin. The stench emancipating off him fit perfectly like a favourite cologne.
“What’s going on here?” His fellow mate emerged from the bushes. He majestically walked towards them, furious and burning with rage. His eyes portrayed a role of authority, that and the fact that the other coyote seemed afraid of him.
“Aaron, what’s this? How many times have I told you not to play with your food?”
He stopped right across from him. The cubs were stuck in the middle like a stuffed breakfast sandwich.
“I wasn’t.” He defended himself.
“Really? Then what’s this?” He pointed at the cubs.
They were stiff stricken at the thought of ending up as someone’s meal.
“They are strays, that’s what they are.” He said.
“Strays huh?” He growled.
He came in for a closer look. His breath seemed to startle them. It must have been the smell of the dead carcass emanating from his shockingly terrifying oral cavity. Maybe it was the pieces of flesh stuck to his sharp carnassial teeth, or perhaps the dark red blood stained all over his jaw.
“What should we do with them Hunter?” He asked.
“I don’t know. What do you think?”
He toyed around with them. His mouth slowly salivated to what his crazy and unstable mind had thought of.
“I don’t know. Eat ‘em.”
“Nah. That would be too easy.”
“What do you propose?”
“A hunt!” He devilishly smiled, giving them a sneak peek at what they were up against. “What do you think?” He addressed them.
They almost peed themselves.
“Come on guys. That’s no way to treat our guests.” A third member joined in.
He seemed rather normal and sane from a distance, until he approached the canvas. By the judge of the cover on that ‘book’, he was no different at all.
“Stay out of this Kyle!” Aaron roared.
“And let you have all the fun,” he said and smiled to himself, “I don’t think so. Am the chef. Only I know how to serve up the best dish.”
“So what? I found ‘em first, that means I get first dibs on them…or maybe just the fat one right there.” He said while setting his eyes on the lioness, who grew even more cautious by the second.
“Yeah right, like am gonna let that happen.”
“No one’s eating anyone before me alright. I get first dibs.” Hunter growled.
His word was final and they were not too happy about that.
Fuelled by anger, Kyle was prompted in making a side comment, “Who died and made you king?”
“What was that?” Hunter roared in his face.
“Nothing!” He hurriedly replied, a little bit nervous and shaken.
Aaron was so delighted with the display of Kyle’s embarrassment that he let out a loud laughter that lit up the place. He suddenly felt a hard and firm slap across his face. He stumbled down, his face turning red hot. He picked himself off the ground and stared down in utter shame. If only his self-esteem could save him now, but that too had abandoned him.
“Now, where were we?” Hunter resumed.
Suddenly, from all that fear and despair, rose an ever-growing hope and courage that could withstand all the misfortunes that the universe threw in its way. He spoke with a burning incense in his heart. A flame that would not only engulf the forces of evil, but also wipe them off the face of the earth.
“Leave us alone!”
Hunter turned around only to spot a male sabre-toothed tiger standing firm and unshaken.
“What was that?” Hunter furiously asked, still in disbelief.
The gang silently whispered to Rycka. They desperately urged him against it, but it seemed like he had made up his mind. Only God could save him now.
“Let us go!” He said. This time more confident than the last as the rest said their last goodbyes. Thanks to him, that would probably be the end of their lives, however short and miserable it was.
“Mel!” Jayd screamed as he searched every nook and cranny.
Despair grew stronger and Mel’s parents began to lose hope in ever finding their daughter. By now, the wildebeests had surrounded Jayd, not allowing him even a single peep. He kept bugging them to let him go but they just wouldn’t allow it. They repeatedly kept saying that it was protocol. Uncle Varn, having crawled out of his wormhole, finally came over and intervened. Guess someone should have warned him never to mess with a bunch of over protective wildebeests. Maybe it didn’t occur to him that when you try to get in their way, they would retaliate in the worst way possible. A kick to the groin definitely counted as the worst way possible. Therefore, plan-B it was.
He walked over to the nearest corner and peeked. His face suddenly became mortified in horror. He dashed their way and yelled out, “Predators!” Upon hearing that, the wildebeests broke their formation and took off running in the same direction as the assumed predators. They instructed Jayd to stay put until they returned. After they vanished from sight, Varn strolled over to Jayd and winked at him. He didn’t understand at first what he meant by that. Then suddenly, it hit him.
“Tell me you didn’t just do that.”
“Yeah I did.”
“You do know that that’s just gonna to make ‘em even angrier, right?”
“Then let’s get outta here.” He nudged him to the side.
However, Jayd still had some unfinished business. He still had to make sure that Mel was safe before taking off. Before he could even start his search for the lost princess, they heard a loud cry coming from the same direction the wildebeests headed.
“What was that?” Jayd asked.
“I don’t know pal, but let’s get outta here before something actually does happen…TO US!” He said.
He suspiciously kept a look out. His fur on erect while his shaking feeble legs could barely support him. Jayd was afraid too, but he somehow managed to sum up all the courage he had left.
“Come on uncle Varn, let’s go check it out.”
“Are you insane? That’s the craziest idea I’ve ever heard in my entire life, and I should know, am an expert at it.”
“Fine, you stay here then. I’ll just do it by myself.”
He slowly walked away, leaving poor old stressed uncle Varn all alone. He was almost at the corner when he turned back and softly whispered, knowing that only he could hear it.
“Wish me luck.”
“You’re going the wrong way,” he shouted, “Home’s this way.” He raised his hind limb and pointed to the hills in the background.
Jayd finally disappeared, and this made him even more worried.
“Am so dead,” he said to himself.
He knew that Jayd was his responsibility. If anything were to happen to him, his life would be at stake. Eventually, and reluctantly, he decided to
go after him in defence for his own life.
“Wait up!”
He finally caught up with him.
“You came?”
“Of course, you’re my nephew. I’ll always be there for you no matter what.”
“Thanks uncle Varn.”
“No problem kiddo. Let’s just get this over with and get outta here. This place gives me the creeps.”
Suddenly, they found themselves caught in the middle of an attack. What was previously a joke actually turned out to be true.
“I did not see that coming.” Varn sarcastically commented.
They ran and took cover behind a log, letting the grownups work it out. For a herd of wildebeests, they sure were mighty against the den of lionesses. Maybe it had something to do with the fact that they had hooves, which they used to kick the hell out of them. On the other hand, it could have been the tough horns that actually made a dent through their skins. Sadly, things began heading sideways for the wildebeests. For a moment, they were overpowered. They lost control of the entire operation. They were boxed in, surrounded on all sides with no way out.
“Oh no, they’re trapped. We have to help them,” said Jayd.
“I think we have our own problem to worry about.”
Jayd turned around, only to find his uncle stunned by the presence of a male lion stalking them. He had a dark bushy mane. His eyes were mesmerizingly bright red. They stared directly into them and saw their very souls drifting away. They slowly stood up and backed up into the dens’ corner. He closed in on them and reunited with his pack. All that was left now was but a word of grace. Varn, greatly terrified, looked down at Jayd. In his heart, he knew he had failed him, but no way was he going say goodbye, not yet. It was just too hard for him. Instead, he parted with the only three words that came to his mind, “Any last words?”
Chapter 8: Endurance.
“You’ve got guts kid, I give you that.” Hunter said. “But there is no way out of here.”
“Yeah, no way out.” Aaron confirmed.
Rycka stood still with his head held high, no fear in his eyes. Even when his teammates shed a tear, he still looked on. Maybe he could see the future, I don’t know, but he could definitely see a way out of this predicament.