► Private thread for Aithaxas to learn how to hunt, among other things, maybe. Apologies if it gets a little long. (Also i'm learning how the rolling system works.) ◄


Aithaxas was hungry. It was as simple as that. He could get help from others, but he wanted to first see if he could do it by himself. This had multiple benefits. One, he had to learn how to hunt eventually, in order to survive. Second, he didn't want to have to ask anyone for help. It would be humiliating, asking for help from an older Gembound, especially since talking could be difficult. Better to learn how to do it. He figured it was unlikely that he would be able to successfully hunt on his first try, but practice makes perfect. And what better time to practice than now?

Aithaxas sniffed the air, following his instincts. He caught the scent of something that smelled tasty. Hopefully,
it was small enough for him to catch as well. He craned his neck, using his long legs to his advantage. There-
hidden in a patch of foliage. It was a small mouse, with brown fur that blended in surprisingly well with the grass and moss. But now what? He had found it, that was for sure. But how to actually... catch it? That was the issue.

He first looked at what was near the animal. Nothing that would trip Aithaxas up, though it could be hard to catch the critter itself. There was grass in the way, and he definitely didn't want to catch that instead. A short distance away was a small bush. Would the mouse run there, were he to scare it? Possibly. He wasn't sure if he could follow it, though. Would it know, and stay there? Or would it flee as he got closer?

Well, he thought to himself, the best way to learn is to find out.

Aithaxas took several cautious steps forward, making sure not to move too quickly- he wished to eat, after all. After several of these slow steps, however, the rodent froze, standing up on its hind legs. Aithaxas was unsure on what to do. Would it be better to risk it and run after the animal, or to keep still? The mouse wasn't facing him, but it might still sense him. He watched it as it looked around in front of it.

In the time it took for him to decide what to do, the mouse settled back down- though it had moved an extra foot or so away. Didn't matter; it wasn't gone just yet. He continued his slow forward movement. Soon, he would be able to lunge for the tiny animal. At least, he was hoping. Aithaxas wondered if he had to crouch. It didn't seem natural to him, though he did know that other animals, like cats, did so. Yet at the same time, standing up seemed like a poor choice if he wanted to get a meal.

He continued to trust his instincts, standing upright as he moved, though he was sure to take it slower now.

Aithaxas's ears moved forward, helping him to focus on the small creature. One more step, and then he lunged for the mouse. It seemed to know what Aithaxas was doing before he was even near the rodent- it bolted, trying to get away from the hungry predator. He was surprised at how fast the small creature was. It was quickly getting out of his range.

Aithaxas was lucky, however. He gave one final burst of energy, where he managed to snag the mouse's tail with one paw. After getting a more secure grip on the rodent- then killing it- he stopped to catch his breath. He was young, and his stamina was not great. It was tiring to hunt a mouse, and weren't those some of the easiest animals to catch? He figured so. But he couldn't help the small amount of satisfaction that he got. He had managed to hunt an animal, of any size, and on his first try, too! That must count for something, at the very least.

Aithaxas quickly devoured the tiny rodent. It didn't completely fill him. Now what? He needed to find something else to eat. Clearly, he could hunt mice- though with some difficulty. What about birds, or fish? Sure, he was an omnivore and could eat fruit, but Aithaxas couldn't live off of fruit.

He thought a moment. Fish would be easier to find; he knew that there was a river in Polaris, and it surely had some fish. If he would be able to catch any without falling in, he was not sure. He knew enough about the river to understand that some parts were deep, and he was afraid to learn if anything lived in those depths.

It didn't take too long, after Aithaxas reached the river, to find somewhere safe to fish. The shoreline wasn't as steep here, allowing him to get down; and the water wasn't overly deep either. It was perfect for him to make his first attempt at fishing. Assuming nothing went horribly wrong, of course, which was always a possibility.

Alright.. he found the spot. All he had to do now was actually fish. First, though, he had to find the fish. This was surely harder to do than finding a mouse. He couldn't smell the fish, and he couldn't hear them. He'd have to rely entirely on sight in order to find them.

He crouched down. He needed to be close to the water for this, he figured. If he wanted to eat anything, of course.

Aithaxas frowned as he searched the water. It had been several minutes, and he had seen no sign of life at all. Were there simply no fish in the river? That didn't sound right, but that might be the case. Or maybe his presence was scaring them away. He decided to stay still for several more minutes. Perhaps he would find food if he was patient. Perhaps finding the mouse so quickly made him expect too much. This was probably more realistic, he decided. Hunting required patience.

Aithaxas's patience was rewarded. After several more minutes of waiting- he saw it, though it nearly escaped his vision. It looked a bit on the small side, like the mouse had- not that that would stop the young maned wolf. His ears moved forward, trying to see if the creature made any sound. Nothing. Then he sniffed the air- again, nothing.

These creatures were nearly impossible to detect, he noticed. No matter- that isn't what he was currently supposed to be doing. He was supposed to be finding out a way to catch the white fish. Wait, could it even see him? Aithaxas didn't see any visible eyes. Maybe this was an advantage?

Now he just had to pounce. Bite? Grab? Whatever you did to catch fish. Man, this wasn't going to end well,
was it?

Aithaxas watched the fish get closer. He was afraid to move, in fear of scaring it off. When it was finally close enough, he grabbed it in his mouth. It was a fast, fluid movement- it was a much cleaner kill than the mouse. He felt proud. Sure, it wouldn't have been too impressive to an older Gembound, but to Aithaxas, this was a huge success. He had caught a fish on his first try!

He turned, trotting back to land, tail high in the air. He settled down, eating his kill. Perhaps he would try something larger later, when he was hungry again. But for now, his hunger was sated.

Some time later- it was hard to tell if it had been a day or several, as he was still unaccustomed to how time seemed to flow down here- he decided to hunt again. Hunger was starting to get at him again, but that wasn't what he was really interested in. He wanted to know if he could catch something larger. A rabbit, or maybe a large fish or something. He wanted to know, for sure, that he could be independent. Or mostly, anyway.

He also wanted to know if he was having a streak of beginner's luck. He caught that fish quickly, though. Surely it wasn't that?

He moved his ears, hoping to hear something- and he found it, without waiting too long. He turned his head in the direction of the noise. He approached the area until he knew he had to slow it down, for fear of spooking... whatever it might have been.

Aithaxas moved slowly, making sure not to scare the creature away. When he moved closer, he could clearly see that it was a rabbit of average size. Something larger, and worth his time when it came to hunting.
Mice and fish could only fill him up so much, and he would waste a lot of energy on hunting small prey items to fill him up. He could just hunt larger prey, like rabbits. Of course, though, he'd have to catch it.

He shook his head to clear his mind without thinking, then froze. The rabbit didn't notice, much to his luck.
Now for the next part of the hunt: pouncing and then killing the animal. Hopefully it went as smoothly as the hunt with the fish had, though that may not end up being the case this time.

The instant that Aithaxas lunged for the rabbit, he knew he did something very, very wrong. He faceplanted into the ground, falling halfway into the foliage the rabbit was hiding in. The rabbit, now knowing there was danger, bolted away from him.

The rabbit was out of Aithaxas's sight by the time he sat upright. He sighed. He'd have to stick with smaller creatures for now. Maybe he had to wait to hunt these animals. Maybe he wasn't even supposed to hunt them?
He frowned to himself. No, he would catch rabbits someday, when he was older and more experienced.

Exit Aithaxas.