Zios and Utak had begun tracking it since leaving the camp, a difficult task considering the warm and welcoming mate who now carried the seed of life within her. Tracking gave them a dual purpose to focus on; another dead beast would mean one less threat and meat on the table. Also, they were sure as they followed the tracks that they would find more than the beast. The creature itself was on the trail of something that had been trailing spots of purple blood—the last surviving Odh.When they saw the beast stalking outside a narrow cave, they knew this would be a double catch. Utak climbed up on the rock overhead, silent as a cat. He was downwind from the beast, giving him another advantage since it could not smell him.This beast was a juvenile, and had neither the size nor strength to widen the opening into the small cage. As it paced back and forth, it snuffled the air, becoming more and more agitated at being able to smell wounded prey it could not reach. Utak waited patiently for the agitation to grow until the animal raised its spine in the characteristic display.
