The adrenaline finally drifted away from his body. But it drained him slowly, leaving his arms and legs go numb and heavy . Hikaru leaned against the rough bark of the tree, his chest moving up and down in short, shaky breaths. Every time he took a breath, his ribs hurt with a sharp pain and a reminder of how lucky he was to be alive today.[1]
He looked at his hands. They were still shaking from the exhaustion."Huu waaa..." he breathed out. His stomach didn't just growl; it hurt. It was a sharp, biting pain that told him he needed to eat something.[2]
He looked over at the rabbit carcass. Up close, it looked even weirder. The teeth were too long and jagged, like broken glass stuck into its gum that looked more like a piece of modern art.
"I guess this is the part where you make a move or die type of situation," he muttered. He forced his legs to stand up straight.
He didn't have a knife or a survival kit. All he had was a wooden sword and a world that wanted him dead. He needed a tool.
As he approached and knelt by the rabbit. The smell was real , it smelled like some sort of organic with a hint of iron or something vinegar..ish!! He picked up a jagged stone nearby and felt its weight. It was rough, but it would work.
Crack!!!Crack!!! Snap. He hit the creature's jaw with the stone. The vibration hurt his sore arm, but he didn't stop. After a rigidly sore effort, a long, curved tooth popped loose. It was sharper than any bone he had ever seen.
Hikaru tested the edge against a leaf; it sliced right through like a butter and a knife- without any effort."Good enough for now," he whispered.
Now came the hard part , he had to eat.
A memory of his brother's voice came to him: Oii!!Don't rush the first cut. If you mess this up, the rest is a disaster.Hikaru followed the advice.[3]
He grabbed the tooth like a knife to make a small cut near the leg. His fingers were slippery with blood, and the smell of raw meat was strong, but he kept going.
As he peeled back the skin, he realized something: "Not much different ehh". Outside, the world was a nightmare of glowing eyes and thick fur. But inside, the muscle and bone looked just like a normal rabbit with a few pounds of extra muscle.
"If it bleeds, it can be eaten-basic biology eh" he thought. I can eat it.
He then began to gather some dry leaves and twigs from the sorrounding. He picked up two stones and struck them together.Clack. Nothing. Clack. Clack. His arms were tired and shaking. "Seriously?" he groaned.
He was a student who had experienced many things, yet here he was, failing to make a simple spark.
He closed his eyes and took a long breath. "We can do it". He tried again, striking harder. A tiny spark appeared and vanished. Smoke drifted into his face, making him cough. Then, with one more strike, a spark caught. A tiny flame began to grow."...ahh…finally. Something good is happening."
He built up the fire bits by bits with more dry leaves and twigs, one by one, until the fire turned into a steady.
As the fire grew steady , he prepared the meat on a sharpened stick. He even cut off the extra fat and saved it for later. As the meat cooked, the smell changed from organic raw to smoky .
He took a bite. And for a change ,it wasn't actually bad, but it was very chewy. He had to work his jaw hard to swallow it. "Man, I miss salt", he thought. He started dreaming about garlic, chili oil, and a cold Pepsi. He could almost taste the bubbles in the soda. He gave a small, dry laugh. Keep dreaming. It wasn't a fancy dinner, but it was enough to keep him warm for the night.[4]
As the sun went down, the forest got dark and creepy. The shadows looked like they were reaching for him.
Hikaru knew sleeping on the ground was a death sentence. He looked at the tree branches above. "Yeah, I guess that'll do it for tonight ". One thing was clear ,the monster rabbit had left a nasty impression.
"He tried to jump up, but his injured arm gave out. He fell back to the ground. "Ayahhh..." He tried again, but he only made it halfway before falling.
On the third try, he stopped using just strength and used his head. He tightened his jacket around his injured arm, using it as a crude support .He, then moved slowly, found a good grip, and pulled himself up. He found a stable spot in the branches and wrapped one arm around the trunk for balance.
Below him, his fire was just a tiny orange dot in the dark. Every little sound in the woods felt like a warning now.
He looked up at the stars. He remembered his brother telling him: "Life isn't about surviving the storm; it's about dancing in the rain."
"Dancing huh".. Hikaru smiled a little. He wasn't dancing yet. But he was still breathing."Well for now , lets stick with survival," he whispered to the dark. He closed his eyes and fell into a light sleep, ready for whatever tomorrow would bring.
[1] From a real life perspective -His body felt like it had just survived a marathon. His limbs were numb, his lungs burned, and even standing felt like a challenge. With additional punch in the liver .
[2] His hands were tired from reflecting shots from the attack. His hunger didnt come out of nowhere. if we were to calculate the gap from his last meal ,it would be like 8-10 hours given the duration of the fight went long .
[3] Hikaru lived with his brother alone . Most of the weekends , they would go out camping to escape the noise from the busy world . It was from this memories ,Hikaru remembered the quiet nights, and the small lessons hidden he learned through this simple in simple moments. Back then, it felt like nothing special. Now, those memories were the reason he could survive.
[4] The taste of the rabbit lies somewhere between chicken and beef -dry and chewing with a gamey taste which of course is new to Hikaru.