Autumn, 1422

Three days of leisurely travel up the Sloan Branch-interspersed with partying at night -led the exhausted and slightly hungover hunters to the Farsight Creek Watershed, where they began renewing their focus. Agrrec and Nagelw quickly found the elk again, and Pelamgrw began planning for how to take it down.

&There’s supposed to be a swamp nearby that is filled with tar pits, that may be good for trapping our prey. Oevcn and Myrewecs, I want you to find it.&

&Okay!& The dark cyno exclaimed.

After a short half day search the dark cyno and his gray and brown furred companion came across the tar pits, a swamp at the bottom of a series of low hills containing a dozen or so tar seeps and a large pool of petroleum bubbling from the ground. The two marked out the location with stone cairns, and by the end of the day the others had built more cairns radiating outwards from the pits as running lanes. That evening everyone prepared for the big day, eating and drinking lightly, readying their weapons, making their proper offerings for the spirits. As night fell everyone crowded by the light of the campfire as Pelamgrw explained the plan of attack in the dirt.

&At first light, Greeyut, Rewrkerw and Ryzescn will find the stag and drive it towards the tar pits. The rest of us will hem the beast in from the flanks and prevent it from drifting off: Myrewecs, Oevcn, Comikaw will take the West and Cmompec, Lucaswc, and Jungtew will take the East. Agrrec and Nagelw will join when and where they are needed. I will guard the path into the pits themselves, where we will trap it. All of us will then move in for the kill.&

&Sounds good.& Ryzescn asserted.

&Let's do this.& Lucaswc nodded back.

&Folks do this every year; it can't be that hard.& Jungtew shrugged.

***

Positioned near the left of a long screening line of hunters, Oevcn nervously clutched his spear and slowly advanced, ready to run with the proper signal to come. Soon enough, the whoops and yips of the trio of pursuers echoed through the hills to his right. The dark cyno began a steady jog, yipping and hollering to signal his position, trying to keep ahead and to one side of the sounds of the chase. The hunt approached and Oevcn picked up pace. Soon he was running at full speed, barely keeping ahead of the others, doing his utmost to keep the quarry within the driving lane previously marked by cairns.

Then in a flash a quadruped zipped by, towering and menacing, horns glinting in the morning sun, before a half dozen of the other cynos rushed by.

&Come on Oevcn! Don’t let it veer away!& Rewrkerw called out.

Oevcn ran faster, and soon actually caught up with the stag just as it attempted to swing left. The dark cyno flanked the quarry, then with a great cry brandished his spear high in the air, and the cervine wheeled back along the planned course.

&Nice!& Myrewecs called out as the pursuers began enveloping their target. The two friends kept up the pace immediately behind the elk on either side.

&Call me Ovecn the Pursuer!& Oevcn hoarsely replied, before thinking better of it and shaking his head. &Nah.&

One by one, the cyno hunters drove their quarry forward through the cairn lanes, funneling the angry beast into the swamp. Finally the elk saw the tar pool and attempted to shy away, but Pelamgrw leapt out from behind the rock and with a yell, drove the beast into a seep while the others caught their breath and eventually joined their leader.

&We got it!& The grey and white leader announced.

The assembled cyno hunters cheered.

After a bit, Greeyut interrupted the celebration.

&Well, we still need to kill it.&

Meanwhile the great stag had mired itself in one of the asphalt pits. The elk desperately attempted to break out from the trap it found itself in, forcibly pulling out one leg, only to be trapped by its other legs. Then with a monumental, desperate spring of energy, the beast surprisingly leapt out of its trap and nearly out of the entire swamp before Jungtew and Ryzescn batted it back towards the pools with their polearms.

&Fan out! Don't give it an opening!& Pelamgrw ordered.

As the hunters surrounded the swamp and then closed in on the stag, Oevcn finally got a good view of his quarry: a gargantuan elk of deep brown and tan, nearly 7ft tall with horns 12 feet across, towering over the cynos assembled to kill it. It would take two of the young fighters standing atop each other just to reach the cervine's head.

&Amazing!& Pelamgrw exclaimed. &I don’t think anyone has seen a beast this massive on these hunts since before Tar Hollow even existed!&

Caught and encircled but having maneuvered its way onto firmer ground, the great beast wheeled about angrily, huffing, glaring at each individual cyno in turn, trying to prevent a blind spot from being exposed and plotting a route out.

&Can we actually kill it?& Agrrec exclaimed uneasily.

&A dozen of us should be fine.& Lucaswc replied.

Pelamgrw just nodded. &Let's see who strikes the first blow. Good luck, everyone.&

Together, the cyno hunters slowly closed in on the great elk, spears at the ready. In response the beast bellowed, its call echoing through the landscape, then stamped its hooves ominously. Pelamgrw's crew hesitated at the call before nervously and ineffectively jabbing their spears at their prey, only to be rebuffed by a ferocious defense from a creature fighting for its continued existence.

&Come on! Can even one of us land a blow?& Cmompec complained.

Suddenly the beast turned, lowered its head, and charged straight at Pelamgrw, Comikaw and Nagelw.

&Fuck run!&

The trio scattered before stag’s antlers and fled ignominiously from the onslaught. Nagelw was just a bit too slow, and was picked up by the beast’s horns and tossed into the air, landing on the ground with a violent thud.

&For Tar Hollow!&

With a yell, Oevcn suddenly appeared, having leaped into the air with a spear raised above him and ready to strike at the stag’s exposed neck from the flank. At the last moment however the great beast abruptly turned his head, and the dark cyno was casually knocked aside by the blow from its antlers.

Oevcn landed on his back with a grunt, his spear bouncing off beside him-right below the beast he had attempted to slay.

Bellowing again, the stag angrily reared up on its tar-covered hind legs, ready to trample or gore the foolhardy cyno below.

Suddenly Myrewecs appeared by Oevcn’s side and with all his strength plunged his spear into the stag’s sternum. With a scream the elk recoiled from the blow, then turned to flee, while Rewrkerw quickly pulled the dark cyno out of harm’s way.

Bellowing in pain, the great stag charged through the cordon, fleeing past and out of the swamp. scattering the other hunters and knocking Cmompec into one of the tar pits. Blood from the spear embedded in its torso left a clear trail to follow into the forest. After a pause, most of the remaining hunters whooped, cheering the gray and brown cyno’s successful first strike, before running off to continue the pursuit.

Myrewecs himself however ran over to Rewrkerw and his dazed friend.

&You alright Oevcn?& The gray and brown cyno exclaimed, his high pitch betraying genuine concern. &You almost got killed!&

Rewrkerw dragged the dark cyno to his feet and Oevcn’s friends quickly checked for damage. The boy was battered and bruised and covered with dirt and scrapes and cuts, but was otherwise fine. Nearby Nagelw groaned painfully in a fetal position while a tar-covered Cmompec slowly dragged himself out of the mire.

Oevcn laughed. &Oh you two can't scare me! I'm brave!&

Myrewecs and Rewrkerw looked at each other. Had their friend's brain been addled?

&Brave enough to get yourself killed!& The female cyno finally yelled, angrily.

The dark cyno laughed again. &Oevcn the Brave! I like it!&

&More like Oevcn the Idiot, that's what.& Myrewecs muttered as Rewrkerw somewhat violently beat the dirt off of the dark cyno’s body.

---

Queen - We Are the Champions

From  solokhoniir!

Original: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/58966908/

NSFW Variant: https://www.furaffinity.net/view/59377749/