Tiger's Trail

Chapter 1: Old Ruler

Dark hues developed in the eastern skies, the twilight was giving way to darker nights. A chilly wind wove its way through the isolated forests. It was fall, the leaves had abandoned the trees and piled up in abandon on the forest floor, coloring it shades of golden to yellow. The air was crisp and cold, acting as harbinger of bitter winters to come. As the last of the sun rays started to die, an eerie cloud of silence began to engulf the forest. Except for a bunch of chattering parakeets on their way home and few helter-skelter chirping grasshoppers, the forest had slumbered into stillness.

And before moments elapsed, night set in. Fog began to bloom in the forest. Its ephiphanous clouds embracing the darkness. The forest seemed barren, devoid of life. It sounded of isolation but all the loneliness was a facade. The forest had already sensed the danger. The air reeked of the impending threat that was looming at large. And in its response had silenced itself- a sign of respect to the one of oldest rulers of the forest. It was a silence only understood by the dwellers of the forest. Both a message and a warning, it served to notify that the hunt had begun

In the grounds below the coniferous trees, a shadow slithered in the depths. Marred by fog and the darkness, it effortlessly glided on the forest floor. Its adept steps carrying it on the soft grass without so much of a reverberation. It avoided the golden leaves that had ornately adorned the ground. The leaves were dry and crisp. They would crumble and crack at the slightest of touches - a folly, the feline cannot afford.

In the puffs of breeze that wafted through the jungle, it picked the scent. A faint and dubious smell but smell nonetheless. So the creature pursued the scent. Crouched and alert, it moved through the canopy of the grass with a practiced eased, stopping only intermittently to evaluate the source of it. Its striped coat blending into the shadows of the grass that still had some land to its claim

The night advanced, so did the predator, gaining on the scent and before long it had found its prey. A lonely bull loitered in the view infront of it. Its long bushy tail waging left and right to keep the flies away. Its nose flared as it breathed, a gush of cold gray breath emanated as  it stomped in anger. Its steps faltered as it tried to move, the white shiny coat glistening with sweat and turmoil. It was tired.

A limping bull was a luring sight, but the feline was no fool. It still knew, hurt or not, an angry bull is still a danger to be reckoned with. The Bull was huge and the scars on its enormous torso hinted that it had seen its fair share of encounters and lived to show it. The prey wasn't as easy as it seemed to be. The only upside though was that it was hurt

The predator stared a moment longer before it made its move. The fog had began to densify, reducing the visibility. So the predator could inch closer before it went for the kill. Moving through the clearance, the predator savored a fresh smell of blood- The bull was still bleeding. Its protruded shoulder blades forming a V- as it plodded closer and closer to the prey. And in the blink of an eye, it broke into a sprint pouncing upon the still unaware prey

In the moments before its death, the bull glimpsed at the blood curling sight.

The Tigress had come for it.   Fierce and fast.

Its strong claws romping the ground, its tail waving high above its head, its massive jaws revealing the dagger -sized fangs, it ferocious eyes sparkling at the sight of prey.

It was a sight of inevitable death and before the bull could react, the tiger had lunged at its neck, its inch long claws digging into the soft under skin.

Panic-striken and perplexed, the bull stood transfixed for a moment before it swayed with all its might. It then romped down itself against the tree and the hard ground. The bull sprang about dashing into anything at sight but the tiger didnt budge. It had found its way to trachea and the enormous jaws clenched it, suffocating the already tired bull. The bull whirled and kicked about with its front legs but nothing would affect. Slowly the bull's ferocity started to wane as life ebbed from it. With each breath, its efforts becoming less vigorous until it could wiggle no more. Blood started to ooze from its neck as blinding pain reverberated through its burdened body and then its eyes rolled

The bull stood for a while mustering up its last ounces of strength and then it collapsed, Its motionless eyes staring at the old ruler of the forest as it breathed its last.

The tiger clenched its jaws until the body went completely limp. It then stood up, the scent of blood bathed her breath. It licked its paw and stared at the fallen prey. The night had been rewarding. It didn't waste anymore time in relishing the supper. Its fierce golden eyes content with the kill, ignoring the worn-out noose around the bull's neck that strangely smelled unlike the forest