Changes
#13 of Writing Prompt
Holy crap, I've been doing this for 13 weeks. It's definitely nice to be constantly writing.
I wrote this in one sitting one morning at FWA. This week's challenge was: An accidental close brush with death makes you realize a hidden power/talent/ability that you were completely unaware of. (Does not have to be magical/mystical in nature)
So, let me know what you think! Or hit me up at https://ko-fi.com/Y8Y6CGBX
Please check out my gallery for more of my full-length stories!
Also, I started a Writing Group on telegram. Just a place to talk, brainstorm ideas, get opinions and critique. If you wanna join, we're at: https://t.me/joinchat/CPoeZhclggenrOEh0yYwvg
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"You don't have to do this," Tinat pleaded, gripping onto Jian's arm with enough force to hurt.
The tiger pulled at the wolf's paw, managing to break free. "You don't have to protect me from everything. I'm not helpless!" he growled.
"Yeah, Tinat, he's not helpless at all! Just too weak to ever go on any of the hunts," a large bear, Ludas, chided while a few of the other tribe members laughed.
"Don't forget he's too clumsy to help set up camp when we move," the cheetah, Mata, added.
"And afraid of his own shadow even when the sun is high above," Calt, a deer, mocked.
Tears were forming in the corners of Jian's eyes and he stepped back, out of the range of Tinat's grasp "Shut up! I-I'm not afraid of everything."
"Then go get your necklace, runt. Or are you going to break down in tears and start bawling about it like a little cub," Ludas growled.
"Leave him alone, Ludas. Or I will rip your throat out with my teeth," Tinat snarled, lifting his chin as he took a step towards the larger bear. Ludas was bigger, but Tinat had far more muscle and experience in a fight.
"You could try, but you wouldn't be able to stop Calt or Mata from slicing your poor boy to ribbons while you did. Then we'd come for you."
"You dare to threaten his life? And mine? One word of this to the Elders and they'd-"
"They'd do what?" Ludas puffed out his chest and took an imposing step forward. "You know my father would shoot down any accusation against me, and it would just end badly for you.
A few tears ran down the tiger's muzzle and he looked behind him, out across the cliff-face to the valley below. Years ago, a large tree had fallen to hang precariously over the edge. A glint of silver could be seen out towards the far end where Jian's necklace had been thrown.
He didn't hear the arguments and threats as Tinat tried to defend him. Like he always did. He was always being defended from those three by his mate, and it would never stop. They would never leave him alone.
With everyone distracted and yelling at each other, the tiger wiped his tears on the back of his arm and ran off towards the cliff, clambering up onto the fallen tree.
It felt large and sturdy beneath his paws, and was big enough that his arms couldn't even reach a third around the trunk. His heart was hammering in his chest at the prospect of what he was about to do, but he had to. He had no choice if he was to ever be left alone.
Tinat turned back to where Jian had been standing, finding the tiger missing. A momentary surprise turned into panic when his head whipped around and spotted the tiger walking further out onto the fallen tree. "JIAN!"
The tiger's balance wobbled and he slipped and fell to his paws and knees. "Stay away!" he screamed, his voice choked with emotion. "I-I can do this!"
The wolf ran to the base of the tree, hackles raised and his paws shaking. He wanted to head out onto the tree and grab the small tiger, pull him back and protect him, but with the others behind him it would be easy for them to make things look like an accident. "Jian, you don't have to do this! You don't have to prove yourself to anyone!"
Jian's ears were flat against his head and he crawled forward, inching his way towards the end where his necklace hung.
"I bet he'll turn back," Mata teased, nudging the deer in the side.
"I believe it," Calt agreed.
Ludas just laughed, turning his gaze on the wolf. "I bet he'll slip and fall, and need to be scraped off the forest floor below."
Tinat's throat clenched in fear at that possibility, but he did his best not to show it.
Minutes passed by and Jian found himself only a few feet from his necklace. The tree had narrowed as he crawled along, and he had to use every ounce of willpower not to look over the edge. He wormed his way forward, reached out... and felt his legs slip from the tree.
A terrified yowl came from his muzzle as he fell to the side and managed to lock his arms around one of the thinner branches that had one protruded from the base.
"JIAN!" Tears were now flowing freely from Tinat's eyes and he had to fight to keep from bolting out on the tree to save him.
A peel of laughter came from everyone else and Ludas clapped the cheetah's shoulder. "Go. Save the waste of food."
Mata hopped upon the tree and ran gracefully along the top towards where Jian was clinging for his dear life.
The tiger's eyes were clenched tight as he hung in the air. Fear all but paralyzed him from action and he didn't notice the cheetah's presence until a paw gripped his wrist.
"Come on, you useless runt. Give me your paw," the spotted feline snarled.
Jian's eyes opened and he saw Mata crouched atop the trunk with an arm extended.
"I-I can't... I'll fall!" he whimpered, shutting his eyes once more, starting to hyperventilate.
"You'll fall if you don't-"
The cheetah didn't have a chance to finish what he was saying as an ear-splitting crack echoed off the cliff-face. He lost his footing as half the tree suddenly snapped free, and both he and Jian were pitched down towards the valley below.
Tinat and the others let out anguished cries of surprise and horror as the tiger and cheetah were suddenly falling towards their death.
Time seemed to slow for Jian as he fell. His emotions peaked and something inside him seemed to explode outwards, lighting every nerve and making him aware of every last sensation around him. He could feel the air tickling his fur, the sun warming his body, the scent of the earth and grass below, the moisture in the air from the previous day's rain.
He could feel the broken pieces of tree falling through the air around him, hear the wingbeats of birds far ahead, hear the quickened pulse of his own heart and that of Mata's.
They fell towards the earth, picking up speed, neither screaming.
Jian could feel the earth rushing closer and closer and his eyes snapped open, the blue of his iris swirling with color before he shot both paws down towards the ground. A gale of wind whipped around both felines and their fall slowed considerably.
The tree hit the ground first, shattering into splinters, and Mata and Jian impacted seconds later. Jian's ears heard the snap of the cheetah's leg, and the roar of pain from his muzzle, but Jian hit with less force and only had the wind knocked from him.
He could hear screams of surprise far above and a note of fear coloured them. What had just happened? What had he done?
Jian lay there for a moment before pushing himself to his feet, nerves surprisingly calm. Mata lay a few yards from him and the cheetah's cries of pain quieted when he saw the tiger standing there.
"What... what are you?"
Jian looked down at his own paws, still able to feel the sensation of everything around him. He could feel that power, that energy, and could sense the balance of everything shifting. "I don't know."