[Stryx] Hunting | Lupine & Prometheus: Chapter 1

Lupine was silently riding the air currents, looking out over the vast plains below and at the large herds that had gathered. The springtime was perfect for both predators and prey alike to flourish with the masses of food easily available. The grass was lush and growing a vibrant emerald green, only interrupted with the occasional burst of colour from the flowers that were dotted about in small clumps.

Large herbivorous creatures calmly picked at the newly sprouted grass, seeming to be almost oblivious to their surroundings. It had been a long while since Lupine last saw a gathering of prey on such a scale, and as he began scouring the herd already in search of an easy meal.

While the herbivores weren’t the fastest land-dwelling creatures, they were large and heavily armoured from the tip of their tail to the end of their snouts and relied on their brute strength and weight to both intimidate their opposition and crush them as a final resort. They were placid creatures at heart, but if startled, it was easy for them to break out into a charge. Nothing could stand in their way once a stampede had begun, and so Lupine kept to the outer edges of the herd, watching the few animals that wandered away from the herd.

He was far too small and lightweight to take down one of the creatures on his lonesome, and so it was fortunate another bird was searching for its dinner. It was a Harpia and an odd one at that. Its feathers were a brilliant white that reflected the sun’s rays and made it stand stark against the backdrop of the warm sky, only a few black rings along its neck daring to break the pristine colour. It was late afternoon, and the horizon had been splattered with shades of purples, oranges and yellows, leaving in its wake the soft lights of the stars twinkling worlds away.

Lupine, however, was a chocolate brown and found it far easier to blend in with the foliage, especially with his smaller and more agile body. Normally he could simply wait for the larger bird to make a kill, before pestering the bird until it decided to leave the area, but he knew better than to test the other bird’s temper, knowing that it wasn’t fond of even its own kind. Fortunately, he was small enough to steal his share of the meal without drawing too much ire from the large Dracostryx.

The beautiful silken Harpia was not unknown to him, he had joined in on his hunts previously and knew that the bird was known as Prometheus. It was a strange name, not that he himself could judge.

Prometheus was far higher up in the air, occasionally tilting his head to the side to gaze down at the quiet herd, seeming to focus on one particular spot. It only took Lupine a moment to narrow his own eyes upon a young calf that had strayed a little distance from his guardians – small enough to take down without as much of a fight – and apparently oblivious to the circling birds above.

There were another few long moments of cautious observation before the larger bird abruptly tucked its wings against its body and angled its body forward, plummeting from the air with lightning speed toward its target. With a squawk of surprise, Lupine gave chase, diving down after the other Stryx as quickly as physically possible.

The wind pulled harshly at his feathers, and he was forced to narrow his eyes against the air as he sliced through it. He could have ridden the air stream behind the Harpia, but he decided that it would be better for him to move to the bird’s side, widening their possible area of attack. He was lagging slightly behind, but at least it meant he would be able to strike the herbivore should his partner miss.

The sound of the massive birds swooping must have alerted their prey, for it looked up at them, sparing only a moment to stare at them in fear before bolting, shrieking in panic as it ploughed across the grasslands. Although it was still small, the animal was still capable of causing a great deal of damage shout it decide, armed with a large set of horns adorning its skull and powerful back legs.

Prometheus was fast, opening his wings and catching himself before he could slam into the ground, snatching at the calf with his huge talons. He drew a long slash under a section of armour plating, but unfortunately, the bird wasn’t able to grasp the animal firmly before it bucked at him, forcing him to back off.

Lupine was on the creature before it could escape, easily manoeuvring himself into position alongside before striking with his beak. It was a dangerous move, but ultimately worth it when the herbivore cried out, one of its eyes damaged by the attack and forcing it to turn suddenly, slowing in uncertainty. He moved again, scratching at the thinner skin under its belly and earning a few successful cuts before he was forced to evade the horns thrust in his direction.

He was worried that his prey would manage to evade his attacks long enough for it to either return to the herd or injure him, but a sudden fierce caw tore through the air as the Harpia dropped from the sky again, crashing his entire body into the smaller animal, ignoring its screams as he shoved it into the dirt with his remaining momentum.

Alas, the creature still thrashed, calling loudly while it tried to roll back onto its feet from on its side, kicking out at the massive bird. Prometheus continued to occasionally snap his teeth at the powerful beast, biting at its legs before lunging towards it belly, trying to tear it apart between the deadly strikes of its powerful legs.

He seemed to be having some trouble, but fortunately Lupine had caught up, landing all his weight on the animal’s head, forcing it to lay still while he went for the throat, managing to end the hunt within a few short moments.

They both wasted no time tucking into their meal, tearing off muscle and intestines, swallowing large chunks of flesh whole. There was something greatly pleasurable about the still hot meat and the fresh taste of metallic blood. He was not entirely used to actively hunting such large prey, settling for leftovers or small critters, and so it was a great treat to have been involved in such a chase and reap the delicious rewards.

While Prometheus was easily able to pull off large chunks of muscle, only Lupine could nick at the smaller parts that clung to the animal’s bones. They discarded the hardened skin, unable to break through the armour. He had only ever seen one Dracostryx with a powerful enough beak to snap the beast’s hide and swallow its thick bones whole.

Fortunately, he highly doubted that a Gryph would be patrolling the herd for straggling members or fresh kills at the moment. It was rare to see such a large bird, and Lupine tended to often avoid them, preferring not to get on their bad side – they weren’t commonly hunters, but it was better to be safe than sorry – they could easily make a snack out of the smaller bird.

Besides, he knew that Prometheus had a great dislike for other birds, and was only tolerating Lupine’s presence since he had assisted with the hunt. There was no way the alienated Harpia would stick around if there was a Gryph about.

When they were about halfway through their meal, Lupine noticed that the herd had begun to wander over. While the birds were perhaps their only natural predator, they were at a great disadvantage while on the ground and without the power of surprise on their side. The other herbivores were snorting loudly, pawing at the ground in agitation. They were obviously very distressed by the death of one of their members, and so had come to quite possibly chase off the Stryx.

One beast approached them apart from the herd. The horn jutting from the centre of its head was long and seemed to be marked with a deep crimson, almost as if it had been dipped in fresh blood only recently. It was the lead male, signalled clearly by the red colouration. It let out a deep growl from deep within its chest, shaking its head, challenging the birds to a battle.

Prometheus stood tall, his hackles raising the feathers of his head and neck and spreading his wings to make himself seem larger and more imposing to deter the aggressive male. Unfortunately, it seemed to be unfazed, taking a few steps closer to the carcass of its fallen brethren and swinging its horns in the direction of the two birds with another growl of sorts.

Lupine joined in with Prometheus hissing and squawking at the rhino-like creature, snapping his break in its general direction and hopping about on the stop in the hopes of confusing it. There was still plenty of meat on their kill, and neither bird was willing to give it up without a fight.

It was then that the herbivore lunged forward, charging toward them with an almost unnatural burst of speed. The rest of the herd seemed to get the idea and with a few more angered snorts they too began to charge, roaring as the ground thundered and shook with the sound and power of their movements.

Prometheus stood his ground, crouching low as if he intended to try and strike the charging mass of muscle that was racing toward them, but upon seeing that the creature indeed had no intentions of stopping he turned, leaping from the ground and with a few heavy beats of his wings took to the air once more.

Lupine was no foolish bird, and without the intimidating Harpia beside him to ward off the dangerous animals, he too quickly escaped the ground with a flurry of flapping and squawking when the large male beast drew too close, throwing its head toward the sky to ensure that it had successfully driven off the attackers.

He flew after his current partner in crime, having to expend a fair amount of energy just to keep up with the larger Stryx’s wingbeats. He didn’t seem to have given up on their rightly claimed food, and so continued to circle the large herd, watching at they gathered below to inspect the mutilated calf before them. It was a long while before they finally began to move on, evidently searching for a place to rest for the evening.

Lupine was the first to float down towards their now stone-cold dinner, landing a few metres away so he could be sure that the herd had lost interest in his meal, before trotting over to it once more and scoffing down as much as he could fit in his beak, lest he draw any more unwanted attention.

Prometheus eventually joined him, kicking up a great deal of dust from the flapping of his enormous winds as he slowly lowered himself to the ground to stand next to Lupin. He was also quick to begin eating again, but seemed slightly bothered that his hard-earned meal had grown cold when he could have eaten it while there was still red blood seeping from its body. Now it was brown and slightly crusted from where the blood had dried, but apparently, it was not enough to deter the hungry bird.

Once finished, the white bird began to immediately preen himself, ensuring to remove all of the tiny splotches of brown from his feathers, along with the occasional piece of grass. He began straightening out his feathers with a certain degree of pride before turning his gaze to Lupine. The bird almost seemed to sneer, his eyes narrowing on the smaller bird before it hissed lowly at him and retreated into the sky once more.

While Lupine couldn’t say he was used to the bird’s odd behaviour, he was at least grateful that he had managed to score himself a nice meal, all be it with a forced interval. He shook out his feathers, before also leaping into the air, ensuring to leave his companion to his own devices while he headed back to his den to rest.