Every year, In winter, migratory animals cross the mountain pass. Due to the extreme cold up north, they move south, to warmer areas.
And the hunters of the stone head tribe were waiting for this exact moment. Once the migration begins, thousands or tens of thousands of animals cross through a single mountain pass. And for the hunters, by hunting along the mountain pass they could get the best efficiency.
It was also the reason why Alex and the support team were busily working to make traps near the exit of the mountain pass.
Alex, who was done with his work, was resting looking towards the north, expecting to see the migratory animals slowly come towards him.
According to the scouts, they would reach here in exactly an hour. And he had to prepare to take action.
"What are you thinking?" Suddenly a coarse voice came from behind Alex. He turned to see who it was.
"Nothing!" Alex replied, surprised by the sudden visitor.
It was the old man Dhairya. He curiously looked at Alex. He wanted to understand why Alex was thinking so deeply. No normal kid his age should have had that expression, much less a kid from his tribe.
Taking a deep breath, Dhairya looked around. He was delighted to see stones neatly arranged near the cliff in rows.
'This kid is special.' Thought Dhairya. He wanted to send support to help Alex carry the stones. But before he could, the work was completed. He was happy to see a hardworking individual in his tribe.
"What is your name, kid?"
"Meru."
"Ha ha ha, Meru, what a funny name for such a cute kid. Do you know what it means?"
"No, Isn't it just a name?" Alex asked. Now that this old man was being friendly with him. There was no need to antagonise him. Even though he was terrible at interpersonal relationships. He could get by with holding small conversations with people just fine.
"Yes, it is the name of an animal to be specific. A small, tree-climbing little bugger in fact. You might have never seen one just like most people. After all, it is too cold for them to live here."
Alex's curiosity was piqued by his words. He didn't care about the animal or the name. But he wanted to know if there were places that are not cold.
As far as he knew, everything about this planet felt like earth. Yet sometimes, it doesn't add up and he couldn't put a finger on it.
Yesterday, when he looked at the stars. He could see many awfully familiar constellations. Exactly like what it was supposed to be on earth. And there was also the moon which was similar to the one earth had.
If all of his observation is correct, why doesn't he conclude this planet was the earth?
There was a simple reason for it. And that was the superhuman people he saw on this planet.
Nowhere in earth's history had people who could display superhuman feats like that. Of course, there were myths about gods, devils and even mythical creatures roaming around on earth. But they were just myths. They were not facts, backed by clear evidence.
So it might be an alternate earth, Alex concluded. And any new information he could acquire would be a boon. Thought Alex when he proactive inquired.
"So, where do merus live?" Alex asked. To make his question as vague as could and to prevent Dhairya from understanding his general lack of knowledge, Alex worded the question like that. He wanted to learn if Merus actually existed, where they existed and when they existed. This would also answer his doubt about cold and hot regions on this planet.
"To the far south in a warm place, even I don't exactly know the place. When I was a kid, I was fortunate enough to hear stories about them. It was said that the south was a vast beautiful place. Like everyone, I too wished to go there once." Dhairya said with nostalgia.
For a moment he went into a deep reverie, thinking about his childhood dreams. Even though most of them were unfulfilled, this didn't make him sad. In fact, it made him stronger by remembering that this was the life he chose. And he was satisfied by it.
"If the south was that beautiful. Why are we living here? Wouldn't it be better to live there? In a warm and beautiful place without fearing the cold."
"It is not as easy as you imagine, kid. In the future, you will understand." He said looking straight at the horizon. Alex too turned his sight towards the mountain.
In the distant snow-covered mountains, they saw many small black dots appearing. At first, the dots only numbered a couple of dozen. But soon, hundreds of black dots began appearing in their vision.
"The herd is here. Wait for my signal before rolling these stones down. We will spook the herd into moving towards the small path on the southwest side. This way, we can reduce the number of prey and focus on hunting them. Do you understand what I am saying?" Dhairya asked with a small grin.
"Yes."
Alex didn't know what the whole plan was. But he could see that they had one in place. That was enough assurance for him to believe that the hunters would be successful.
For generations, they might have hunted in this region and any knowledge they have would be greater than what he knows.
Alex was humble enough to know that he is the most useless among the hunters. It was better to be safe than sorry. So, he went along with their plan.
As a person who had never killed an animal before, he didn't even know if he had it in him to kill a large animal. But he was sure that if push come to shove, he wouldn't mind being a little cruel to survive.
"Why are we spooking the herd with the stones? Wouldn't it be enough to kill the animals?" Alex asked.
"You make it obvious that it is your first hunt. Kid, you have never seen a living hairy buffalo, right? They are twice as tall as people and weigh more than twenty people. Their head is as strong as rocks. When combined with their sharp-tipped curved horns. They are nothing less than a device of mass destruction. And we need to kill at least twenty of these beasts to ensure enough food for the winter. Do you really think it is as easy as throwing some stones? These animals are capable of killing seasoned warriors much less destroying some falling rocks. Ah! Kids these days." Dhairya said with a worried look. Why was this kid acting stupid all of a sudden? He thought.
Alex was ashamed of asking the question. He quickly looked away to hide his shame. Yet he felt like something was crawling up his back when he tried to avoid Dhairya's glare.
'All I can see are black dots on the horizon. I don't even know what animal we were hunting until he said about hairy buffalo. And who could even imagine a buffalo twice as tall as people as their prey?' Alex was vexed.
"And you are sorely mistaken if you really thought that hairy buffalos were the only prey. There are much more dangerous preys for us to hunt. You have yet to see elks, four-tusked mammoths, deers and many more animals. Each requires different styles of hunting. Don't take my words lightly, this is a fight for survival." Saying those few words, Dhairya concentrated on his work.
As an old man, rolling stones down the cliff was the only thing he could do to help the hunters. And teaching the younger generation while at it made his life even more fulfilling. So, he was trying his best to guide Meru, the young tribesman to the right path.
The source of this c𝐨ntent is freewe(b)nov𝒆l