Rufus was given proper hunter's clothes. Thick fur pelt jacket and leather boots. He was also given a backpack where he carried all the hunting party's supplies that weight ruffly around 30 kilograms. They all were ready to head out to hunt the rukh.

"Are you going to be okay?" Haley asked Rufus.

"I am going to be fine. I am glad I only have to go of the three of us," said Rufus trying to cheer up Haley.

Rufus left with Amala and Pema the town heading down first from the valley into the forests between the mountains. Amala had her bow and Pema had no weapon with him. Tenzin was worried since both of his siblings had gone hunting for the beast. He still was forbidden to go himself since he was the tribal leader.

They used the forest as coverage so the rukh would not spot them. Snow had already started to fall and made the trek even more exhausting and harder. Each step was heavy and especially to Rufus who was made to carry the luggage.

"You know how am I supposed to kill this thing with all this luggage?" Rufus asked Amala.

"You won't. You will be just the mule on this mission. I will take care of the rukh," Amala said and felt disinterested in Rufus.

"Amala not like you," Pema said who didn't have good social skills.

"Yeah....what tipped you off," said Rufus back.

~~

When the night was about to come, they made camp in the forest. They had hiked for at least thirty kilometers and had walked for fourteen hours with only two stops. Rufus thought finally he could rest a bit.

"Get up. We still have preparation to do. Don't fall into self-loathing yet," said Amala who felt irritated.

They dug up the snow and made their sleeping spots. In such cold conditions, preparations were mandatory if one wanted to survive. All this was very new to Rufus who in more ways than one was just a city boy.

A fire was made, and firewood was gathered to last until the entire night. Rufus's muscles were all exhausted. His back was aching like crazy. Amala and Pema were all fine and looked like the trek was nothing to them.

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The forest was still full of other creatures such as wolves and black lions. Someone had to stay awake and keep watch. Rufus was exhausted, but he had the first shift. During the cold night, Rufus looked at the beautiful night sky.

"I heard that the cities in your country shine so bright you can't see the stars like that?" Amala asked.

Rufus was extremely tired. He hadn't even realized his shift was over was supposed to ask Amala to wake up.

"Uhh…yeah. Never seen anything like that," said a sleep-deprived Rufus.

"Hmm…You humans can not appreciate nature. You cut your forests to make fields what only a few people own. In the wild people can choose if they feed themselves and are not dependent on the people who own the fields."

"But what of those who are not able to hunt?" Rufus asked.

"People should not rely on others. That is the truth about the hunt. Your catch is as good as your hunting skills. Go to sleep now. We move at crack of dawn," Amala said.

~ ~

"Wake up. We have to go now," said Amala and woke Rufus.

A large creature broke the sunlight on top of them. It was the rukh who flew by. It was time to go and hunt it down.

Rufus put on his clothes and was ready to rush to go after the rukh.

"Stop. Put this on," said Amala and offered animal excrement.

"What am I supposed to do with this?" asked Rufus.

"Slather it on. It will cover your smell. Rukhs have a very keen smell. They can smell us unless we cover our scent. Also, your pigskin shines brightly here in the mountains so you need to cover it with a neutral color. Now slather some shit on you and stop complaining," said Amala who wiped shit all over herself.

Both Pema and Rufus were covered in shit. Pema didn't seem to mind, but Rufus had to hold his barf.

Amala started to lead the two of them up a mountain. She gave orders to Pema about what to do but ordered Rufus just to stay in the back. She didn't trust Rufus much when it came to hunting or being in the wild in general. She looked down on him and saw him as a weak man. It was obvious to Rufus that Amala just wanted to use him to carry the gear and as a possible bait.

They slowed their pace. Rukh's also had a very good hearing. Through and through it was a capable predator. The three of them checked every step they took making sure not much sound came from them. Soon they started to crawl to their destination. They stalked the predator to a ledge on the mountain.

The area was filled with bones. Some were animal and some were grey skin bones. Rukhs had a tremendous appetite and hunted frequently. Their presence also hurt the local wildlife, causing imbalances in nature's natural food chain that could cause an entire species to vanish from a certain area.

Rufus finally spotted the beast. It was a large bird with legs and also smaller hands. It ate a wild boar holding it with its hand while standing on its legs. It had a long neck and a large beak. It stood three meters tall on its leg and its wingspan was over ten meters. A true apex predator.