Crying didn't save Selicia and it definitely won't save me or this guy that I ate so after I went to sleep I woke up a day later, hungry again. I fed off of scraps and remains until there were none left. I even ate the human remains and took his skull and placed it by my bed to remind me of what I did before finally checking around the cave for anything abnormal before leaving. I had to hunt once again.

      I made my way over to the valley. I wasn't cold anymore. Far from it actually. I'm a little warm.

Not like that is gonna help me.

      I sniffed the air and caught the scent of another mountain cat and deer. In fact, I smelled a lot of animals. They were aware that the deers were here. I don't know how much I hunted them but that had to be the biggest herd I have ever seen.

Adapt or die, eh?

True.

      I remember killing the human. Adapt or die. Does me killing him go into that category?

More of survival of the fittest.

I guess so.

      I noticed a brown bag of fur and meat underneath me. It noticed me and reared up and roared. It was massive...and plump. I let out a giggle and lunged at it and my claws slashed through its throat. Well, it's a he so whatever. I then climbed up his back as he flailed around, swiping at his torn throat. I dug my claws into his shoulders, my claws shortening and changing into a shape similar to that of mountain cats. I then ripped them down the walking meat's back and sprang off him. The walking meat let out a roar and swung at me as a last attempt. I knew I could dodge it easily.

Oh. I tripped on a rock.

Yep, that ought to do it.

      I put my arms in front of me and braced for impact. Impact came…

Ehh? What was that? Why was it so weak? Oh, the entire thing fell on me now. He's dying.

      I grabbed the walking meat with one hand and lifted him above my head before slamming him down on the sharpest-looking rock or crevice I could see.

Slump

"Well ya win some and you lose some lassey."

      I lifted the meat sack off the rock and stood up on two legs and put it over my shoulder. Well now that I have a meal ready it is time to get going.

….

"Da da da da da da da da da."

Okay, singing that song while devouring Mr. Meat Bag is more than a little morbid.

"I'm sure if you could talk you would say this was morbid too, eh Selicia?"

      I gave a sigh when I got no response. I didn't expect one but being out here all alone was getting boring.

      After I ate I laid down and started drawing a star with a circle surrounding it and the letter E in the center. A E Gram! It came messily the first time but after some trial and error, I made it super neat. I drew a couple more and sighed with perfection. Well, that was a good way to pass about forty minutes. What did I draw with? Why blood and my nails of course.

      I got up and cleaned up after myself, putting the scraps in the remains pile. I then decorated my cave with some skulls and added the meat bag skull next to my bed. I then put a deer skull next to my bed. There we go. Now I have a trophy collection that is underway. Now I just need to catch one of those crows and vultures that always seem to fly above me when I'm hunting. At least they don't enter the cave and attempt to eat my food. I'm messy enough as it is so they get a meal after I hunt something.

"Hmmm. Now what? Maybe I should just go hunt again. Yeah, and this time I'll eat it on the spot and leave the rest for the crows and such."

      With a plan in mind, I exited my cave and instantly killed a crow which I ate then put the skull next to my bed before leaving again. None of those birds landed right in front of the entrance again.

….

      One female deer dead. Well, one female and three males. They foolishly tried to kill me while I was eating the female deer in front of them. They moved too slow and I cut one's head off, disemboweled the other, and tore up the other one and ate him too while it tried to run away. I left and watched as the others came and started eating. There was quite the amount. Wolves, smaller wolves, and those birds. Vultures and crows. I still haven't gotten a vulture, wolf, or smaller wolf skull yet. I wonder why there were so many? Can't they hunt?

      Well, not my concern. I'm just gonna make my way over here and...is that a plane? That is. That is a plane. I thought of signaling it but it would be pointless. It was a commercial airplane and it was too high up. They wouldn't be able to even see a house at that height.

      Angry at the cruel reality of the world I went back to the cave, carrying a female deer skull with me. Since I walk on all fours normally I carry the skulls by my teeth. It was easier that way. Not like it was bothering me or anything. My teeth were longer and sharper so it was easier to carry and eat large portions and to bite prey. Adapt or die, right?

I know what path I'm choosing.

      When I arrived back at the cave I put the skull with the male one and laid down on the bed, looking at Selicia. Every time I look at her I feel guilty. Why me? Why not her? She's smarter than me. She is better than me. It should have been her. So Why Me?

God's plan?

Oh, I don't care about that. That's just an excuse.

        Should I hunt a wolf? I can smell them but it's a faint smell. Probably because they didn't want to go near something which wasn't easy prey. I should give myself a name. A nickname of sorts. May-

Oh. Three meat bags entered my cave while I was sleeping.

      Every now and then I caught myself micro sleeping. I was still aware of something getting close but I wasn't as aware as I should or normally am.

      I climbed up on the ceiling and the moment one of those brown meat bags poked its head into the main cavern I leaped down and rammed my right hand through its skull, killing it instantly. I then grabbed its body and threw it aside with one hand. All these animals were surprisingly light. Either that or I was getting stronger.

      The others charged me and one of them bit me on my right cheek before clamping down on my right shoulder. The other one slammed me down. I couldn't get it off me. Of course, I have the situation under control.

      A spike shot out of my elbow and impaled the meat bag's shoulder but it only growled and wouldn't let go.

Fine! Then I'm gonna slice you badly. I mean I already planned to but now I definitely will!

      I gritted my teeth and sliced the meat bag in half with some effort. Well, the effort was mainly repositioning my arm but once I did that it was game over for the meat bag. And for the last one which I threw into a wall, I planned to show my other trick. I reared up on two legs and screeched directly at the meat bag. I didn't want to try this since it caused the entire forest area I was in to go to hell as everything started crashing down but I got better I think of aiming this. I used my incisors to aim the sound at the meat bag. Doesn't make sense but that's what happens.

      Long story short, the meat bag exploded into a fine red mist. And the cavern cracked in many places. Luckily not near or on Selicia.

Note to self. Do not use that inside the cave unless the situation calls for it.

....

....Other not to self, don't use that move in general unless you have to use it.

      I let out a sigh and stretched like a cat would before walking forward to the meat bags' corpses. Guess I have dinner!

….

      I don't know how much time had passed but soon enough I found myself really hungry. Everything avoids me like the plague but follows behind me like I'm some kind of leader. Most of the predators had resulted in fighting amongst themselves and even cannibalism. Apparently, they too had trouble finding food. Also, after a while, they all gave up trying to enter my cave. If they did and I wasn't around I would know and track them down and kill them and eat them in the spot. I occasionally left behind some scraps for the other animals to eat. I also found three more berry bushes. They were still delicious. Were they this tasty last time?

You were starving so you just ate.

Huh. Thank you, me!

      So here I was, climbing a new and snow-filled mountain. Everything was covered in snow and ice. Thick snow and thick ice too. It was also hard to see...not really but other animals I ran into looked like they were blind. Oh yeah, these were goats. I ripped and tore through them until nothing came my way. That was four days of gorging myself on them. The reason? They were so small! Where the hell is the meat!? Don't just give me fur and bones! They don't even taste that good!

Ugh. What a waste. If I had a nickname then I would be famous and all the animals would come to me! Then I would hunt them at my pleasure. And of course when I become famous enough people would come. Humans! And they would give me and Selicia a nice place to live and get delicious food since while the deer and meat bags are good nothing beats people's food. I want seasoned turkey! I want ice cream! I want to share an ice cream cake with Selicia! I want to lie down by a heater! And drive a car, pet a friendly cat and a friendly dog, and sleep in a soft bed!

      It wasn't uncomfortable sleeping in the bed I made but a real bed was better.

Let's go back home. If we continue to hunt here then it'll run out of prey and also be a waste. Besides, aren't we the Terror Of The Woods?

Ooh! Good name! But yeah you're right. I am so smart!

      Leaving behind a mass of goat bodies I returned home. At the time I had no idea that the nickname I had chosen for myself was the actual nickname I had, nor what was going to follow.