Become a Cheetah
o0o
Luo Qiao was feeling down. Even though the two little cheetah cubs were rolling around, showing their bellies and begging for affection, it couldn’t soothe his wounded pride.
Just moments ago, he had gotten into a fight with a female cheetah, and to his dismay, he had lost…
Not only had he been beaten up, but he had also lost track of the impala herd. Luo Qiao felt like a complete failure and couldn’t hold his head up in front of the two cubs. Luo Sen and Luo Rui wanted to comfort Luo Qiao, but their attempts didn’t seem to help.
"Dad, it’s not that you’re not strong. It’s just that Tata’s mom is too strong."
Luo Qiao lifted his head from his paws and looked at Luo Rui with sadness. Son, are you really trying to comfort me?
"Dad, it’s okay. You lost this time, but you’ll win next time! Dad will definitely beat her someday!"
Luo Qiao closed his eyes and didn’t respond. Getting beaten up once wasn’t enough? Did he really need to go looking for another beating?
Parson lay nearby, watching Luo Qiao’s dejected expression without saying a word. Jairo wanted to say something but felt that nothing would be appropriate.
Should he comfort him? What if this evolved cheetah started to develop feelings for him? His jealous brother would definitely kill him.
If Parson knew what Jairo was thinking, he’d probably kill him too.
Finally, the growling of his empty stomach brought Luo Qiao back to his senses. The cheetah dad remembered that he and his sons hadn’t eaten in two days.
But with the impala herd gone, where could he find food? The only place he was somewhat familiar with was the territory of the Oros lion pride, but that area was now full of dangers, lions and elephants everywhere.
"You can come to our territory."
Parson extended the invitation to Luo Qiao once again. After some hesitation, Luo Qiao agreed.
Pride couldn’t fill his stomach. Even if Parson wanted to do something to him… no matter what, filling their bellies was the most important thing! Besides, Luo Qiao didn’t think he would necessarily let Parson have his way.
At the very least, his escape skills were top-notch.
At worst, he could share part of his future catches with the brothers as a form of "protection fee."
It was commendable that the cheetah dad, who had just been beaten by a female cheetah, could still maintain such confidence.
Tata lay beside his mother, watching from a distance as Luo Qiao and the two cubs followed Parson and Jairo. He twitched his ears and said to Gama. "Mom, they’re leaving with those brothers. Is that okay?"
Gama shook her head, grooming Tata’s fur while letting out a few soft growls.
Understanding what Gama meant, Tata grew even more worried. Those evolved brothers weren’t good people. None of the nearby cheetahs dared to provoke them. If only he could warn Luo Qiao, but his mom would never agree…
Parson and Jairo’s territory was vast, almost as large as the Oros lion pride’s territory. Unlike the lion pride’s land, this area was mostly open grassland, more suitable for cheetahs.
During the rainy season, it became a hunting paradise for cheetahs. Even in the dry season, plenty of large antelopes still lived here.
Originally, this territory was occupied by an eight-year-old evolved male cheetah. He was in his prime and, although he hadn’t formed an alliance with other males, he had defeated all his competitors and held this territory alone for three years.
On their first day here, Parson and Jairo challenged him. The brothers worked together seamlessly, matching the adult cheetah in both speed and strength. The male cheetah was defeated.
When fighting over territory, cheetahs don’t fight to the death. Their survival and hunting depend on speed, and even the smallest injury could be fatal. The male cheetah had no choice but to accept the outcome, and Parson and Jairo took over the territory.
At the time, Parson and Jairo were not even three years old. Other adult male cheetahs didn’t take them seriously. Nearby cheetahs tried to take advantage of the newly changed territory, but all of them failed. From that point on, Parson and Jairo became one of the most formidable forces in the grassland.
Luo Qiao didn’t know any of this. He simply followed Parson and Jairo, crossing the boundary of their territory and entering this unknown land that belonged to the cheetahs.
Jairo walked beside Parson, occasionally glancing back at Luo Qiao and the two cubs. He leaned closer to Parson and whispered "Brother, aren’t you planning to do something?"
Parson turned his head to glance at Jairo but said nothing. Jairo, who knew his brother well, seemed to pick up on something from that look.
He then turned back to glance at Luo Qiao, sending a chill down Luo Qiao’s spine. Luo Qiao began to wonder if he had made a mistake by following these two brothers here.
For several days, the territory of the Oros lion pride had been thrown into chaos by the sudden arrival of a herd of elephants. Trees toppled by the elephants lay across the dry grass, and the cracked ground showed no trace of green. The few remaining water sources were nearly dried up.
Although the elephants drained the water from the surface, they also dug deep pits along the riverbed, from which groundwater occasionally seeped. However, for the animals living here, it was still far from enough.
The lion pride’s life was also disrupted. Prey was already scarce, and with elephants roaming everywhere in their territory, the lionesses found hunting even more difficult. On several occasions, the intrusion of elephants had caused the lions to lose prey they had almost caught.
The lion cubs were still nursing, but milk could no longer provide all the nutrients they needed. They required meat. Yet the lionesses couldn’t catch enough prey, and their milk supply was dwindling.
They could only watch as their cubs went hungry. A few of the younger cubs, unable to compete for milk, were already showing signs of malnutrition and had started losing fur.
Their own cubs were starving, while these intruders roamed freely in their territory!
The lions were thoroughly enraged. Tina, whose wounds had mostly healed, gathered all the lionesses in the pride. They were going to teach these arrogant creatures a lesson!
The lion pride decided to hunt a young elephant!
Two lionesses were left behind to hide the cubs in the bushes, while Tina led the remaining nine lionesses to ambush the only remaining waterhole in their territory that hadn’t dried up. She knew the elephant herd would come to drink, and with patience, they would surely succeed.
As the temperature rose, the sound of elephants trumpeting filled the air. The massive herd came into view of the waiting lionesses.
All the lionesses were ready. They watched as the unsuspecting elephants entered the ambush zone. The youngest member of the herd, six-week-old Vika, was their target.
The adult elephants drank water with their trunks, but Vika, being so young, couldn’t use his trunk effectively yet. He had to kneel down to drink. As more and more elephants gathered around the waterhole, the lionesses waited for the perfect moment.
Five lionesses charged out from the side, causing instant panic among the elephants. The remaining lions rushed out from another direction, further escalating the chaos.
In the confusion, Vika was knocked over by a larger relative and broke his leg. He struggled to stand but wobbled and fell again. Lola rushed over and used her trunk to help Vika up, but the young elephant’s steps remained unsteady.
The lionesses had achieved their goal. They had severely injured Vika. Now, they only needed to follow the herd and wait for nightfall.
As the moon was hidden behind dark clouds, the lionesses used the cover of night to slowly approach the elephant herd. When the trumpeting of elephants and the roars of lions echoed through the night, Vika’s life would come to an end.
o0o
Real wild no mercy at all.
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