Prey Amongst Predators

[exanimated 1360]

Prey among Predators

 

 

1st Month

 

Having been told of that trial of the Ichorian, to survive alone in the woods for seven months, Zolvan would offer a gentle sigh, his pet mouse Cheddar upon his head. That amber elf would think of his wife, his young children that he wished to see again already. With the crunch of the leaves under his feet, he would set off alone into that desolate place, nothing but the wind and animals to keep him company over this long journey. As soon as that man entered the depths of the forest he would begin to look for a stream to camp at. After his travels had gone on for quite some time, sleeping within the trees as to avoid the wildlife that would hunt upon the ground during the night.  After a few days of searching, the Ichorian would find the place he had been yearning for - a small creek that ran through the forest. Zolvan would be dehydrated, hungry and greatly suffered. He would rush forward and begin to drink from the stream, happily taking that water into his system. Near that stream, Zolvan would find a small burrow in the roots of the trees - an uncomfortable place though one that would grant some shelter from the elements. It is here he would rest, hungry, yet he would be satisfied.

 

2nd Month

 

A month... A month had passed and within that time the mali’ had been within the forest, he had found shelter and water, yet the food was a constant worry for him. He had worked slowly on hunting, using personally crafted traps to catch rabbits. The man had utilized leaves he was able to gather, yet such that tasted horrible, but somehow they were edible. Waiting… Waiting… And more waiting… The mali would sit and wait for his traps to catch food as he spoke to Cheddar. 

 

“Well this is fun isn’t it?” he would say, humming to himself as he would have a conversation with this mouse. 

 

It took about a day for the trap to catch anything. A small rabbit. Zolvan would stare at it... Meat... MEAT finally! After so long! Offering a jovial tune to himself the mali’ would use the knife he created to skin the rabbit, using that skin to create a small coat for Cheddar! Spending a night cooking the meat to perfection. The mali would waste no part of it. He would use the bones to craft small little knives and the tendons he would dry into sinew that he would use to create a bowstring for his newly-fledged bow.

 

3rd Month

 

That bow created last month came in handy for getting meat, fixing the food problem, and allowing the amber mali to create crude coats made of deer hide, yet he was not out of the woods. Animals were scarce so food had to be constantly saved, he would cut the meat into small pieces to let it cool, wrapping it in tanned and skinned animal hides and pieces of cloth he ripped from his own clothing. He would allow those pieces to dry out so they could be preserved even a little bit longer. 

This initial success that the mali has had over the past few months was not to last, however. With the smell of meat in the air, it would attract predators. One such creature that slowly made its way over to the smell of food was a bear. That large black bear looking at Zolvan and at the food that it required. Zolvan would be weak from hungry, tired, and not in the shape to fight at all. He would drop that food and allow the bear to steal what he had worked so hard to gain, hiding within his small hovel as all that he had finally gotten was taken. It would be a few hours of hiding before it was safe for him to come out... All his stored food gone and eaten as the first frosts of winter would begin to cover the ground signaling that the worst was yet to come. 

 

4th and 5th Month 

 

The winter months were nothing but suffering for that amber elf. Food was even more scarce than before, with all his supplies gone there was almost nothing he could do besides scrounge for the leftovers and attempt to hunt small animals within the freezing temperatures. As starvation kicked in he would grow more desperate for food, eating even the bark off of trees if he could find any of the proper trees that had edible bark.

Just as the days were suffering, so were the nights - in his small burrow there would be little warmth give from the frozen ground, the animal’s skins he had kept him from freezing to death in those subzero nights, Cheddar keeping himself warm in his small rabbit skin coat while hiding within Zolvan’s dirtied hair. Through those frozen months, Zolvan would lose a toe on his right foot to frostbite, he would become sickly due to the weather and not being able to eat more than once every few days. His only solace was Cheddar, the mouse friend that kept him sane through the hell he was slowly surviving. 

 

6th and 7th Month

 

As the frost began to melt Zolvan would be able to slowly make his life better, yet not by much. He was sickly, weak, and had a hard time moving due to his injured foot. Yet that elf would press forward through that horrible time. All that would be eaten through this month would be plants, bark, and even bugs. Though the time slowly passed as that weakened mali regained some of his strength, being able to place traps for food and sometimes hunt small game to keep himself alive, having to move slowly using a staff he had created to keep himself upright with his injured foot, only being able to bandage it with the cloth he ripped from his own clothing.

Finally with the last months of his trial ended he would limp through the forest, spending a few days to escape that hell that had kept him for a year. His whole body would be cut up and wounded, his visage looking tired and pained as he used a walking stick to keep himself upright... Yet he came out alive despite the hardships of sickness, frostbite, and starvation. although Cheddar looked quite happy and well-fed.

He would look towards his fellow Ichorians as he exited that place, offering them a weak smile as he could barely speak through the cracked lips that adorned his face. He had learned how to survive, how an Ichorian must be in times of strife and need, and he had shown his dedication to the path. 

[Sorcerio 4595]

Spoiler

And here you had me excited that we had another ToS. But alas... nice post though!