19 Chapter 19

The meal was a little bit harder to eat, the shattered form of the buck, peppered with stones, adding in the peppering of powered bones. He didn't need to much to eat, the meat seemed to have a richer taste, it felt like his body had a river of energy that sprinkled over the planet and sun, just like a summer's rain had dropped over everything, causing a small little surge in size for almost everything.

Everyone else was muzzle deep in the buck, taking large bites, swallowing as much as they could in every bite. It almost seemed like they wouldn't stop until they were stuffed. He moves a couple of steps away and rests his head on his paws. Letting himself be a sort of guard against anything else that might decide to join in with the rest of the group.

Trying to do as his mother had instructed before, he starts to try and project himself. It is only a moment before he manages to shove himself out, it is a freeing experience being outside of his body, a sort of leash though connects himself to it. Right below his breast bone, is a thick looking rope. His mother raises her head up, looking at him, "Good job, but don't stray to far though son." She says.

His head bobs in agreement, knowing she would have felt it even if she didn't see it. "I'll just circle the clearing." He agrees, wandering over to the edge of the clearing where the first stone had arrived. Noticing that the stone there had hit the tree, it seemed to be the stone was just formed into a small boulder. Some light seemed to be seeping off of it, like it was just wetted and it evaporating in a quick fashion.

He moves a step forward, and feels a little tug, as if something was pulling onto his tail. He looks down at the tether, it was now stretched like a rubber band, still stretched to it's limits, almost like it could snap in a moment. He stops himself from trying to approach the stone, just staring at it from where he is.

He moves a little starting to circle, just having watched whatever energy evaporate, he takes a look around and feels something was hidden in the trees, a sort of white ball resting in a position near, he couldn't pick out what it actually was though, it just seemed to be sitting there, hidden away in the trees.

He moves slowly, going back to the rest, walking backwards, as if that would stop something from attempting to chase him. He feels his heartbeat start to pick up with the stress. He doesn't even think about turning until he has somehow wandered back to his body. He trips over his own body and falls into his body, swearing in his mind, he remembers he could have called out towards his mother without even moving an inch, "There is something in the trees, it's like a white ball."

She blinks looking at him with a nod, "That is another's mind, wonder what it is since it hasn't approached us yet. Most would have tried if they wanted to be a scavenger." She says, lifting her muzzle up, it is still covered in a little blood and flesh. "Where did you see it?" She says with bright eyes looking out.

He turns his head towards where the ball had been hidden a little away from the stone, his nose pointing, he realizes now, he could see a faint outline to the ball of white that he had seen previously. Her own eyes lock onto it, she didn't have any problems with discerning what it was. He could almost sense her body starting to relax, "Don't worry about that, it's a squirrel."

He blinks, looking at her like she was trying to be funny. She shakes her head a little, "I'm not joking, it's just sitting on a low branch, that's why it seems large." Her mind seeming to radiate amusement at his worry. "You can go check if your worried."

He looks at her a little strangely, like he is worried she might be putting him up for something mildly dangerous. He knew she wouldn't do anything to get him killed, maybe hurt. He moves towards the tree line, he can almost feel the laughter in the eyes following him. Azure and Lapis lifted their heads up, wanting to be in on the joke. Nadia ignores all else, trying to get her stomach bulging as if she might have more kits.

He doesn't go directly towards the tree, looking over that stone that he had been curious about. Moving close enough to press his nose against it, he breathes deep, the energy is snorted up, taken into his mind and etched in, showing him exactly what he needed to do to preform the same.

He moves away from it, staring at the stone that has no more haze resting out of it. He presses his nose against the stone again, he watches it crumble in on itself. Blinking at it, and shakes his head a little to move again towards the ball of white, starting to follow it, almost running into a couple of trees before finding the branch, which had a fat squirrel armed with nuts and a branch for a cane. It seems like an old man yelling down at him, telling him to get off it's lawn, prepared to throw the nut.

He shakes his head, which actually causes the armed squirrel to throw the nut at his head, making him yelp, running back to the clearing under fire from the unusual squirrel. His mother seems to be happily rolling as she watches her son get back into the clearing, seeming to know just had happened. "That was one Squirelly squirrel." This causes his mother to huff, wanting to smack his head for the pun.

It doesn't take to long for everyone to be sated. His mother being the last to finish her meal. They all licking their chops as he approaches, he does see Nadia's belly had slightly distended. Azure and Lapis hadn't attempted the same, and seem to stare at their mother.

Again pressing his nose against the buck and causing the corpse to turn to dust, flying over the tree line and landing on those close ones, it seems to have them grow a brighter green, seeming healthier.

They start the journey back, careful to avoid the areas of danger that they had discerned so far, none of them wanted to wind up a dinner for a strong predator, or find out what might have been fighting so far.