Post by johtul on May 7, 2020 6:55:07 GMT 1
Megalania!
Two Nuruks crouched behind a small pile of rocks as they stalked their prey. On the other side of the pile, a large megalania was snorting and stomping around to warn any challengers off of its territory.
One of the nuruks, carrying a golden shield and a machete, whispered to the other “We should wait for Frinz”
The other nuruk slowly raised her scythe from the ground as she smirked, “Joh, I didn’t take you as someone who would be so scared from one bad experience.”
“What bad experience? And I’m not scared!” Johtul whispered back incredulously.
“So it isn’t true that Mutuwa had to carry you and Frinz on her back all the way back to Exodus last time you ran into one of these?” Atalaya continued to smirk as she slowly stepped around the rock pile. The megalania had it’s back to them.
“There were two!” Johtul hesitated, “...but yes, she did have to carry us back.”
At this, Atalaya let out a short laugh. The megalania spun it’s head around to find the two nuruks still crouching, but clearly visible. It let out a roar as it spun the rest of its bulk around to face them. The hunt was on.
After a moment's hesitation, Atalaya and Johtul burst from their crouched position and split in opposite directions to attempt to flank the beast. The large dino lowered it’s head and took off to its left, towards Johtul. After just a few steps, Atalaya caught it from behind; she expertly swung her scythe and hooked one of its hind legs. The blow put a long gash in it’s thigh and sent it stumbling forward. Joh stepped forward and to his right; out of the path of the beast, but not so far that he could not strike it in the neck as it careened passed.
“Those scales are thick, I’m not getting very deep!” Atalaya shouted.
“We’ll just have to keep at it and wear it down, hngh!” Joh replied as he blocked a swinging blow from the megalania’s head. Even through his shield he could feel the reverberations up his shoulder. He would be feeling that tomorrow.
After a few more minutes of hacking, dodging, and blocking painful blows, Johtul could see that the thick-scaled dino was beginning to slow. But this made it desperate. Showing an unexpected burst of speed, it charged him recklessly. With no time to dodge, Joh stepped forward and plunged his machete as deep as he could into its chest. His weapon lodged itself a few centimeters in and the nuruk was swept off his feet, desperately clinging to his weapon to keep from being completely trampled. The dino swung its head and neck around wildly in anger and pain as it continued to charge forward. From Joh’s vantage point, halfway under the large creature, it appeared that the head simply vanished, leaving a bony noodle waving above him. What was left of the megalania (which was still quite a bit) toppled forward, carried by its momentum, onto the unfortunate nuruk.
"Hwaghh!”
Atalaya dropped her bloodied scythe and hurried over to help Johtul push the headless carcass off of himself.
"You're bleeding badly!" She exclaimed, a genuine look of concern coming on her face.
"Ha, actually I think that's what's left of my healing potions," Joh grunted back, "but I may have cracked a couple ribs"
Atalaya smiled, "Ribs? That's not so bad," she handed Johtul a red vial, "as for the potions, have one of mine."
As Johtul put the potion to his lips and began drinking a call rang out from over the hills.
"HEYOOOOOOO!"
The nuruks locked eyes; they knew that voice.
"Frinz!"
Joh finished downing his potion, then sprinted off after Atalaya, who was already meters ahead of him.
Less than half a mile away they found their friend. He was doing his best to not look panicked as he waved his sai and danced between another megalania and a pack of smaller dinos - Joh couldn't remember what those were called.
"A little help here!" Frinz called as he somehow noticed Atalaya and Joh come running over the hill, "These little ones aren't tough, but they're making it real hard to fight this megaraia." Indeed, there was already one lying dead with a gash across its face and a few of the others had visible wounds.
Johtul and Atalaya sprang into action. Joh reached the small dinosaurs first and with a horizontal slash drove his machete deep enough into one of the injured ones to kill it instantly. Seconds behind him, Atalaya's scythe cut another entirely in half. Frinz took advantage of the resulting confusion to put another small dino to rest, but then all three nuruks scattered as the megalania came crashing through the group.
"It just trampled it's friends to get to us!" Joh shouted "That thing is merciless!"
"Or it just really hates Ata," Frinz observed. As the giant dinosaur circled around it seemed that it's attention was wholly focused on the scythe wielder.
"Probably because I decapitated its actual friend," Atalaya said proudly and brandished her weapon.
"Hey nice work!" Frinz grinned at Ata and she smiled back.
The nuruks' ill-timed conversation was cut short as the megalania charged back into the group. Instinctively, Frinz and Joh took opposite flanks to take advantage of the beast’s apparent hatred of Atalaya, who maintained its focus and aggression from the front.
It became clear quickly that this was not a sustainable strategy. The group of three was doing substantial damage to the megalania, but with its attention focused solely on Ata, she was not holding up well. Or, her body wasn’t, though her left eye was swelling shut, blood was dripping down her nose, and she was covered in countless cuts and gashes, the scythe wielder valiantly sparred with the megalania from the most dangerous position.
“Ata, circle around back, we’ll take it’s attention!” Frinz yelled to her.
Atalaya grunted, and spun around to flee as Johtul stepped in front of the beast, shield raised. But rather than fight him, the megalania swung its thick head sideways. Joh blocked the blow, but it was enough to knock him out of the dinosaur’s path. He desperately slashed downward at the beast’s head, taking off a chunk of scales, as it stormed past him.
The vengeful dinosaur surged after Atalaya. Frinz sprinted after both, and just as it seemed that the megalania was in range to grab Atalaya with its vicious mouth, he leaped into the air and plunged one of his sai’s into the back of its head - right where Joh’s machete had cracked a chunk off. Without a roar, or even a whimper, the megalonia crumpled forward, Frinz still riding the back of its neck.
All three nuruks let out a cheer and congratulated one another on the successful hunt. After passing around healing items the three nuruks set to work chopping meat and useful bits of bone from their kill. At around this time, their congratulations shifted to happy banter and taunts.
“Frinz how are you the only one who doesn’t have any bruises? You fight like a little dancer.”
“I’m choosing to take that as a compliment”
“Did you call it a megariah? I think you combined monsters.”
Johtul couldn’t help but smile as they worked. He was much stronger than before, even if he needed the help of his friends to take down these megalonia. He had done more than just survive, he was on his own two feet and ready to hunt again tomorrow. This was a good hunt!