With a wild screach the saber toothed tiger leaped up onto the rocky outcrop. "I lead! I LEAD!" The other tigers looked at the bloody mess of their former leader and roared in agreement!
A speckled tiger stepped forward, their voice only just about a soft hiss. "Madeyes. Foxes rule land to west. Land must we have. To hunt eat the others."
Madeyes looked out over his people and grinned. His two twin long daggers glinting white in the sun. "Fox others be our food."
Glinting vividly, matching twin daggers lifted into the air in a cheer.
------------
Ug looked at his reflection in the water. His face was covored in soot from tending the fire the night before. Black and dirty in his lizard skin lion cloth. He grinned at himself, his sharp teeth showing from under his dark lips.
"Ug, stop look at yourself!"
Ug jumped and looked up over his shoulder. His mother gleared down at him. "Ug yes. No look."
"You know what happen if look in water too long!"
"Ug know." Ug looked back into the water.
"Ug! You look in water again!" Ug grunted as his mother grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and dragged him back to the camp. "You want spirits take you?"
Ug pulled himself free. "Ug want see spirits. Storyteller say --"
"Ha! You think you trick spirits, like Grak? You not even trick mother. Now go get wood for fire."
Ug grunted, mumbling about 'vixen's work' as he loped into the wood to to find a tree about the right size to pull down and cut apart. But something was wrong. Something *smelled* wrong. He lifted his nose to the air to make out the scent.
------------
Madeyes reared and craned his head, overlooking the foxe's domain. Soft Leader slunk next to him, the rest of the pride following. Much of the looks were hungry...
"Soon we eat. Good food, but quell them." he growled.
Soft Leader murmured this to his ear, explained this. "Not take all--"
To this there were murmers, growls snarling in throaty protest. He met this with a roar, "WE RULE! We rule foxes, herd like lizard." he grinned, dropping back down to his people, "Law they break. Use rocks and 'tools'. Our pact they break... pact they break with us!" he snarled again. "Just we take their land! Just we feast! But feast more than."
His dagger teeth gleamed, "We cull, cull like lizards. They dangerous grow. Cull them, make they numbers small. Use their ideas against. Cull them, herd them, we not hunt again. Land and foxes we control!" He roared! "Food forever! And Justice for breakers of pact!"
Soft Leader grinned, "Good Leader you are."
----------------
Ug found the rotting tree in the forest and started to claw at its base. Working through the wood slowly with dirty and flea infested paws. "No like this! Vixen work!"
"Vixen work is it?"
Ug whipped around... "Be who there!" He couldn't seen anyone anywhere near where he was in the forest. He called out again as he lifted a rock in his paw. "Ug be me!"
Something near the stream chirped. "Ug are you? Don't you think that is a rather short and to the point name?"
Ug started to stalk the voice. His mind hurt from tring to follow the overly wordy beast.
"I would step around that Pickle Prike Me Bush if I were you Ug."
Ug didn't understand any of that and walked right into said bush. It exploded with thorns a moment later. "Yooooowwwww!"
------------------
Ug slowly opened his eyes... he remembered the bush.. leapping back... bashing his head into a tree and falling unconscious. "Ug hurt."
Something touched his shoulder. "Of cource you big dumb gallot. If your head wasn't so thick I am sure you would be dead."
Ug turned his head to look at the soft chiping voice.
The horrible visage was like nothing Ug had seen before. Massive teeth set in an unnaturaly flat face, an oblong, roundish body, and a tail that looked like it'd been crushed between two boulders. Of course, Ug's thoughts were more along the lines of, 'A spirit! An ugly spirit!'
"Ugly spirit! Ug tr -- Ug."
The beaver-spirit looked back at Ug. "At least I bathe, oh filthy one. Without being knocked unconscious first."
Ug tried to stand up, and hit his head on the low ceiling of the dimly lit chamber. "Where you take Ug? This land of spirits?"
"You could say that. Now hold still while I... work some spirit magic on you." The spirit leaned over Ug and started sprinkling a whitish powder onto his fur. Ug noticed suddenly that his cloths were gone, vanished by the spirit's powers. "This should get rid of your... nasty biting black specks. I'll have to do myself next." The spirit sighed.
Ug's brain churned. Spirit magic? On him? "NOOOO! No magic!"
Ug stood up, this time breaking through the roof of the chamber, scattering mud and sticks everywhere. With a sudden flash of an idea, he grabbed a large, hard, shiny thing lying nearby, then clambered up through the hole in the roof, back into the real world.
Ug found himself standing in the middle of a river. He ran as quickly as he could to the shore -- everyone knew the river was the spirits' domain. "Hey!" came the voice, behind him, "Give that back!"
"Ug trick spirit!" Ug said, turning around to wave his prize in the air. "Ug steal... shiny... thing... like Grak steal fire! Ug smart!"
The beaver watched Ug run off towards his camp, then vanished back into its dam without another word. "I knew I should have listened to my mother. Never talk to foxes, she said... [sigh]"
Ug huffed,running through the forest as fast as he could. He imigind the beaver-spirit crashing helplessly through the forest behind him, and he howled his exuberance. It almost carried him by itself, making his chest light, and he clutched the shiny thingin his hand. What was this shiny thing?
He slowed, looking at the smallish object in his paw, rolling it over his stubby fingers. Small indentations marked it al over, as if someone had chiped it with a rock, but regular-like. This be spirit magic. He grinned to himself, jumping as he clutched it to his chest.
Ug ran back, making it just as his mother clomped out, looking relieved to see him. Relieved? She scowled, "Ug! You dream again! I not tell you get firewood?!"
Ug howled, jumping up and around, running about his mother and scatering up the dust around their cave. They both coughed, and Ug halted, but began jumping again until she dragged him down by the ear! "Bad boy! I not tell you get--"
"That vixen work!" Ug howled, squirming, and wishing to show her the magic he had found.
"You only son!" his mother scowled, frowning, "Not matter, you dream too much. Tomorrow you go work with Me-ed."
Ug blinked, squirming again, "Storyteller?? I spirit-worker! I--"
"You get in trouble! You only son--I keep you safe! Stories you tell!" Ug almost cried, holding the rock to his chest. His mother paused, "What you got?"
Ug blinked, "I get from spi--" he started, but Zek, their neighbour, broke in, "Ug! Meh! Daughter gone mine! Dissapear from hunt firewood!"
"See?? Vixen work!" Ug howled in triumph, and got up to wave his prize in front of Zek, who knew the spirit-tricker. But Zek brished him aside.
Madeyes looked down at his two captives. "Talk weak ones! Be your cave where?" He grinned so that his twin daggers showed very well.
The two female foxes stared up at the large saber toothed tiger with total fear. The younger one fainted right away. Madeyes stormed aorund his pride. "Find cave I will! Find foxed I will!"
"You know. You smell even worse then the foxes."
Madeyes whipped around. Looking for the owner of the soft chirping voice.
"Oh. Not this again."
"Look, I just wanted to --"
"Where you be, spirit! When find you I feed to hungry hunters!"
There were some rustling noises in the underbrush. "I just want to warn you, if you attack --"
"Madeyes spirit NO FEAR!" Madeyes' ears twitched back and forth, following the sound.
"Fine, but if you attack the fox -- ACK!"
Madeyes regained his feet, the target of his sudden pounce dangling limp from his jaws, impaled by the massive fangs. "Mmmphmmmph mmmph fmmph phmmmphht!" He proclaimed triumphantly to the terrified captives.
"He not fear even spirit curse!" one of the foxes whimpered, eyes wide at the sight.
Madeyes yanked the spirit out of his jaws and tossed it onto the ground. Dripping with blood, he turned to the captives. "Madeyes nothing fears! Now tell where be fox cave, or you die too!"
The two foxes quivered as the tiger advanced, "Tell, or you die!"
One of them ulped, her eyes rolling back, and joined her companion on the ground, passing out. Madeyes glowered, swinging a havy paw into the side of the others head, who had passed out earlier. "Tell."
The vixen whimpered, "By cave near water." she glanced sideways at the fallen spirit. Spirit curse....her mind raced, "Cave, cave by water! Cave know all I! You get leader, rest follow!"
Silent Leader growled, sniffing at the carcass, but Madeyes looked satisfied, "Good. Hunt we now--river which? You life we spare."
The vixen blinked in confusion, "What river? One river! One river we have!"
"Enough! I, Madeyes, know all, see all! We hunt your leader. Near-river!"
-----------
Zek stammered, "Ug quiet! Daughters gone! Sent out morning-- Others gone! We send ones to look, but daughters lost! Daughters lost!!
Ug started, "Daughters not--go to river?"
Zek blinked, "Yes! River? How you know, Ug? You not age marry--you follow daughters?"
Ug's mother looked at him, and Ug stammered, "No! Not--I visit river! Meet spirit!" he held up the shiny thing he had stoln from the beaver. "Spirit try trick me--I trick him! Maybe he trick daughters! They only vixens."
Zek growled.
Zek followed Ug down to the river as he led the way. He kept looking behind himself as he had an uneasy feeling that soemthing was following them. He whipped his head around quickly when Ug let out a yell. He was standing in a small clearing. Before him was a dead sprit.
"The Saber tooths did that to them."
Ug looked around with fear. There was a new voice here. This time he spotted the spirt as it waddled up from the river. "Damn you all. What a compleat mess." The spirt looked up at Ug. "Well well. I see that you have the starstone. I hope that the Sabers do attack you fox. You will win." The beaver turned around shaking his head nad headed back to the river... mumbling to itself about good deads.
Zek looked at Ug. "Spirt says you will win! You fight Sabers now!"
Ug looked around desperetly as two other foxes closed on him and started to walk back to the cave with him. "Trick it is! Trick! Spirt trick you!"
----------------
Meanwhile. Madeyes grinned as he looked at the cave. "We attack soon my pride. Soon."
They grawled around him happily. Already tasting the soft flesh of the foxes.
Silent Leader glanced nervously at the river. Madeyes had killed a spirit, and while he doubted the spirits could hurt them, normally... they'd be vulnerable while they attacked the foxes. Particularly if the foxes knew they were coming and put up a good fight, which seemed likely.
"Quiet it be, Madeyes," Silent Leader said, "Too quiet."
"Sleep they all! When scouts kill hunters all and return we attack."
"Wait for us, they might. Careful we be. Maybe attack cave not. Block entrance, foxes hunger, thirst, weak become..."
"You think like spirit," Madeyes scowled. "Attack we now, before courage others lose." He glanced at the other sabertooth. "You fight want not? You stay here. Prisoners guard from spirits! Ha ha ha." Silent Leader flinched. "Others all, attack!"
The pack rushed for the foxes' cave, quick but silent, and deadly. Silent Leader seethed, but the order was given, and he would have to remain behind, however much of an embarassment it might make him.
Then, just as the last tigers entered the cave, an unnatural screeching noise rose, seemingly from all around. Then a crackle, and a flash of light from the dark cave opening. And then... silence. "Not good this be," Silent Leader growled.
The speckled lion watched from outside the cave as his pride hesitated. He snarled, leaning over to see...it was not good news, but Madeyes led them on anyway. They prowled into the cave entrance, obviousley scared, but that they went gave Silent Leader pride. He glanced back at the remaining vixen with pride. She slept as per the pact, and he spat to the side, hating to the promise that kept her safe when she had agreed to talk. He missed seeing his pride vanish into the cave's light.
And when he looked back to the cave and then back to where the vixen was, the the vixen was gone.
----------------
Zek and Ugs mother pushed him forward. "Sabers come! Fight them you!"
Ug looked in terror as the Sabertoothed horrors came closer to the mouth of the cave... he tried to back up. Only to find Zek's club in his back. "Fight Saber's you or club you I."
Ug moved forward clutching the shiny in his paws. He started to cry as his body quivered. "Evil spirt tricked me! Me they triked!"
The Saber toothed Tigers made it to the cave mouth and moved in. They saw Ug soon enough and grinned hungraly. The one that led them in, with the strange mad looking eyes, leaped at Ug. Ug throw up his paws up in terror! The silver blob flew from his paws and exploded in a blinding light!
The Saber crashed to the ground with a thud. The cave was gone. All around them was something strange. With yellow grass taller then Ug.
The strangest part was, that even though it was the middle of the night, the sun shone brightly overhead. All around was blinding light, except for a pool of darkness near where the shiny thing had crashed, that soon spiralled closed and vanished.
As Ug's eyes adjusted to the light, he began to become aware of the thundering footsteps in the distance. "Big thing come," Ug said, "Run away!"
Madeyes snarled at the fleeing foxes, but there were more important things to deal with. "Big thing our foxes chase! Our food it hunt! Kill big thing! Kill!" With snarls of agreement, the other sabertooths followed him towards the loud, earth-shaking noise.
Behind him, Ug heard the footsteps halt, then snarls of defiance followed quickly by screams of horrible agony. But they quickly faded into the distance, and soon he and the other foxes made it out of the strange yellow grass into more familiar looking woods.
"Where... where Ug?" he asked no one in particular. The other foxes didn't seem to know either. "How get back to cave?"
"Use spirit gift," the storyteller suggested. Ug looked down at his empty paws. "Uh..."
Ug blinked, looking down at his empty paw. The others looked up at him expectingly, "Gift I not got. That gift--tell you spirit trick!"
Zek growled, "Trick spirit back! You do this!"
Ug balked, "I no! You make me lead--I not want! All accident! Not want be spirit tricker if--"
"You spirit tricker or you wood gatherer? You not lead back us, we lost!" his mother grabbed his ear, pulling him down again, "We lost you not lead!"
Ug balked, hunching his shoulders and looking up through his brows. Trees filled his vision except for the other foxes, standing there impatiently. But he began to smell water.
Increasingly, his ears quivered, and he began to follow the sound of it, the smell of it, and he held on to this thin thread...like leading a fox to water.
His mother, meanwhile, was nodding proudly to her neighbours, "You see? Fine Spirit tracker he be!"
Ug muttered, turning back, "Fine Tricker I be, but spirit greater! Look what it leave us!" he growled, gesturing to speckled, glaring saber tooth standing across from them.
Zek muttered something, and Ug hurridly sceambled up, holding our a cautious paw to the tiger. "Uh--Ug I be! Your pride we defeat! Who be y-you?"
Ug ulped as the creature tiredly closed his eyes, "Silent Leader I be. Last of the Saber Tooths, and see I now fox wisdom greater than ours in breaking Pact." he glowered, and Ug saw blood on the Leader's paws, and the Tiger noticed, still glaring, "We--I honor pact still.. Your other vixen still alive." he snarled, "Hengry though I be!" the foxes stumbled, and Leader growled at them, scattering them as he bounded through. Dazed, Ug turned to his mother..."What pact?"
"I really don't think that you silly foxes will even remember something like the pact."
Zek gleared into the trees. "Know we do! All talk hunt not the other!"
A beaver waddled out from between two trees. "Oh look. Its the smart one in the bunch. Good for you. You win a trip to the Jerrasic."
Ug moaned... "Spirt! Trick enough have you! Trick no more!" Ug huffed up his cheat and stepped into the path of of beaver. "Sprit! Be gone!"
The bever looked up at Ug. "Spirt be gone? I know you wouldn't know what I was talking about. You sure sound like a drano add though. Look here Ug. That is your name? I just wanted to tell you. Don't steal from us again!"
Ug backed away from the mad water-god. "Ug NEVER!"
The bever huffed and turned around. "Right. Damn primitives."
The bever paused. "I think it might be better if we *didn't* send you back. You were *supposed* to be wiped out by the sabertooths, but they're all gone... no loss, they were doomed within the century. But if we send you back now you'll survive and who *knows* where that'll lead. Maybe we should leave you here, until the lizards you fed the pack to gets hungry again. How would you like that, Ug? For us to go away and never see you again?"
"Begone!" Ug howled.
The beaver nodded. "Okay. See you in the next..." it laughed. "Or not." Then took out a shiny thing and 'twisted' it just so... in a flash it was gone.
Ug and the rest of the tribe returned to the cave, which the foul spirits had completely stripped of anything of value. And anything of no value. His mother howled at him for letting the spirits distract them while they looted the cave.
"Ug! You let spirits steal all firewood! Go get wood!"
"Yes, mother," Ug grumbled, heading back into the woods.