King of the Wild

The bullet hits the bear. It violently shakes as it crashes to the ground. A few minutes more and it was dead. “Hooray!” I shouted out. “I’ve finally caught a big polar bear! Frank Dillon has finally bagged himself a big white polar bear! I am the king!” My companion was not happy as he gathered the dead polar bear’s cub.

“We were supposed to just capture them!” Greg grudgingly said to me as he puts a collar on the baby bear’s neck and a muffle on its mouth. “You could just have used a tranquilliser bullet to bring down the bear you know.” Greg muttered. “And risk the bear killing us? No way!” I replied.

I am a well built man and taller as compared to Greg. Greg was short and a little bit round while I was muscular and more handsomer. I towered over Greg. I always win in all the arguments and he did the grunt and dirty jobs while I merely did the hunting with my trusty rifle. If you ask me our relationship works just fine especially with me being the boss of lowly Greg.

Whenever I say this to myself I burst out laughing. I am a nobody in the city but out here in the wilderness of Alaska I am a king. I can do whatever I want like killing all these so called predators that are supposed to be more powerful than humans. I’ve killed plenty of them. From chickens, pigs to lions and now a polar bear.

Animals are beneath man that’s for sure. Give a man a gun and he can kill them all even other humans. I thought to myself as I drank my gin. Then in a playful mood I pointed my rifle towards Greg trying to scare the life out of him. He never reacted. He was so used to me making fun of him and scaring him that he has gotten so used to it.

I remember the first time I pointed my rifle at him. He was so scared that he nearly wetted his pants. Everytime I remember this it made me smile and smirk at the same time. Good times. But it was getting old. He no longer reacted. Occasionally he would mumble something but that was it. It was no fun at all.

Greg was finished putting the cub in a makeshift cage. It was moaning which irritated me. “Stop you little shit!” I shouted at it. But it just continued on moaning. “What do you expect? You killed it’s mother!” Greg angrily said. Greg was used to me randomly shooting the animals we encountered but not without their children. I can see that this affected Greg.

We may be poachers but lowly Greg still has a soft heart for baby animals. That is why I hate him. He is too weak to be a man. Men should not show any mercy to animals. Animals are just dumb creatures best used as food. He released the cub from its makeshift cage and tried to console it.

I shook my hand in disbelief. Greg is an idiot! “Put that animal down so I can kill it!” I irritatingly shouted at him. This was the beginning. He never had the courage to have a sustained argument with me but defending this cub seems to give him the courage. I pointed my rifle directly at the cub to make my threat serious.

I missed the cub on purpose. I was just trying to scare Greg. I was also trying to reestablish my dominant position to him. My action might have succeeded. He put the cub back in the cage and went away to sleep. The cub was also silent. The gunshot might have scared it to silence. Satisfied with my actions I continued drinking gin until I went to sleep.

When I woke up he and the cub were gone and so were our provisions. I also had a headache. I never worried about getting drunk and passing out in the wild because in the past lowly reliable Greg would be there together with a breakfast waiting for me. For the first time I felt a bit worried. Luckily the son a bitch left me with some provisions to tide me by.

I ate my still cold provisions and proceeded to study the map. It’s been a while since I charted my own course. I can interpret the map but without the expertise of Greg in charting our way towards the Alaskan wilderness I began to worry that I may be lost in the wild.

I began to regret making him so angry that he would desert me. Wild animals could have eaten me while I was drunk sleeping. I nervously surveyed my environment. It was quiet. The snow has been falling for days. Most of the animals may be laying low because of this but nevertheless for the first time I was feeling scared of being ambushed by a wild animal.

Luckily I always sleep with my trusty rifle in hand. Greg has even left bullets for me. I was grateful to him for this at least. Somehow my rifle made me feel safe again. I picked up my provisions. They were heavier than before. I was used to Greg carrying most of the provisions. I underestimated his strength. He could have been a match to me pound for pound.

The snow was falling much heavier than before now. I must reach a shelter soon or I could get frozen. I charted a course with my map which would hopefully bring me back to civilization. I might not be an expert with weather but I have experienced many snowfalls before and I can tell that this one is gonna be a big one.

I walked for hours with the snowfall getting even heavier. Everytime I walked in the snow my feet would be buried deeper and deeper. It was also getting colder and colder. My gin was not helping also. I barely can drink it without my hangover getting even worse. My feet are also slowly getting numb because of the cold. This I am sure of.

Then there were the animals. I can see them in the distance. They seem to be following me. I saw a rabbit. I shot it but I missed. It would have made a good meal. My stomach growled. I forgot I have not eaten for hours. When was the last time I ate? I asked myself as I looked at my watch. It’s past four in the afternoon.

The snowfall and the clouds have been preventing me from seeing the sun that I almost forgot I have been walking the entire day. Soon it would be dark. I need to find a safe place fast. I hear several loud barking. Wolves! I said to myself. I glanced around. I was right. A pack of wolves was busily tearing away the flesh of their dead prey. It was a deer.

They seem to be so busy eating that they did not notice me. The sight of fresh meat whetted my appetite. Greg told me never to get mixed up with wolf packs. He said you could never win with them. They outnumber you, They are smart and many more warnings against going against wolf packs.

I think I was being foolish but I shot at one of the wolves. It went down and the others scurried away. “Greg is an idiot! Animals are all cowards.” I said to myself as I prepared to cut the meat of the dead deer for myself. “You both would make a good steak” I said as I looked at the dead deer and wolf.

Then they came. The wolves were back. They would not let go of their food. They were all around me but at a distant. I shot at every wolf I see around me but they were fast and I missed most of the time. I don’t even know if I had hit any of them. They were definitely circling me from afar hoping to pounce at me.

Then I noticed. I was running out of bullets but they were still there. I decided to do a runner. I dropped my provisions and I ran in one direction. I was very scared. For the first time in my life I was scared of animals. Then I remembered Greg and realized that I was only brave because he was around. I now remember that I have never been in the wild alone by myself!

I always had the company of other people while I hunted. The wild seems to be a very scary place now. I ran and ran. There are no wolves from behind. Then as if out from nowhere a shack appeared. It had no lights on nor was it locked. Safety! I said to myself as I ran inside and locked the door from the inside.

There is a skeleton in the floor. I was shaken but not horrified. It seems to have been there forever. I reasoned that the man who died in the shack could have died of hunger or disease or of natural death. Nothing to be scared about. I said to myself. I threw the skeleton outside and rummaged around the shack. There was no food though the shack was intact.

Then the thought came and it almost blew my mind. I have no food! I left my provisions when I ran from the wolves and there was no food in the shack. I looked outside hoping to see if I could find any source of food. There was none. The snow almost covered everything. It blanketed everything including the trees. The shack was also leaking snow from the roof.

It was leaking snow inside but not much. But it nevertheless made the inside of the shack cold. I noticed that there was still plenty of firewood around so I started a fire. At least heat was available. When the heat was comfortable enough I melted some snow to drink. Then I heard a faint sound.

It was definitely from a small animal because the sounds were very faint. Nevertheless I looked around. Maybe I can find some meat I said to myself. I looked at the cupboards, drawers, under the bed and every nook and cranny of the shack. I can’t find any animal. Nevertheless you could hear the sound of small footsteps.

From what I heard it was traveling fast. It was going back and forth. The faint sounds were coming from the walls near the fire. Then the faint sounds stopped. “Vermin!” I said. I felt a bit relaxed because it was now quiet. The thing that bothered me now was that the snow was not letting up. I also was worried because I have no food.

Hunger sets in and I began to feel weak as an entire day passes by without me eating. Nevertheless I have hot water and this provided some comfort. The snow was still not letting up. I spent most of the time sleeping. I wish I still had my gin to drink to help me pass the time but I have none. This would be a good time to be drunk.

This scenario repeated itself for several days. The snowfall has not stopped. The firewood was halfway finished so I decided to look for firewood outside. I unlocked the door to get out of the shack. It won’t budge. I tried and tried but the door won’t budge. I was trapped in the shack. I tried to open the single window of the shack but it too won’t budge!

I peeked at a small opening between the gaps in the window but saw only snow blocking the gaps of the window. I was trapped inside the shack by the snow. I have forgotten to remove the snow accumulating at the door and window until they piled up and blocked me in. Then I began to think much further.

Even if I escaped the shack how far can I go? Either the snow will freeze me to death or wild animals would eat me! Then I began to hear the faint sounds again. The sounds of small footsteps going back and forth around the shack. They seem to be taunting me. They seem to be celebrating that I was now trapped in the shack with nowhere to go.

The sounds would stop and start again. But I was not concerned. My main concern is getting out of the shack. I feel like a caged animal and I was panicking eager to get out. I pounded on the door and window over and over again not accepting my fate. It was no use. The more I try the weaker I get. I have not eaten for days and exerting myself further weakened me.

After a week has passed I can barely stand up. I feel like passing out most of the time but my hunger keeps me awake. It was hell. Then I saw something shining from the roof. It is unmistakable. It was the sun shining again. I felt hope. I summoned my last ounce of strength and got up. I peeked into the hole in the roof. It was indeed the sun!

I checked if I was still trapped inside the shack. I was still trapped but I can see from the gaps in the door that the snow has melted. This gave me hope. It’s now just a waiting game. If the snow continuous to subside in a few days I can get out. Maybe I would find some food outside. This got me thinking. Where did I see food before I got trapped inside the shack?

I remembered the dead deer and the rabbit I shot at including the pack of wolves. If there are deers and rabbit around there must be food somewhere including edible plants. My hope began to rise. For the first time in more than a week I slept soundly because either I was happy or just getting too weak to stay awake.

I shouted in pain as I felt sharp teeth bite into my left hand. The creature was gone before I can have a good look at it. The shack was mostly dark and was only lighted by the burning fire nearby. The creature was the bit of my worries. Blood was rushing out of my bleeding hand and I don’t know what to do.

I poured water in the wound and covered it with a piece of cloth. It was very painful. I can hear the faint sounds again. I don’t know if it was anger or fear but I started shooting at anywhere I suspect the creature or creatures could be hiding from. Then I remembered that I was almost out of bullets.

I counted three. I have three bullets left. I do not feel that my rifle is powerful anymore. With three bullets remaining in it I feel powerless. I realize how powerful my enemy is. It can hide in the shadows even in a small shack like this. It can attack me from anywhere at anytime especially when I am sleeping in the semidarkness of the shack.

I’m not even sure my rifle and its three remaining bullets can stop it. The bite wound ultimately gave me a raging fever. Severely weakened I was not even able to keep the fire going. Thankfully it was daylight. I can see the sun’s rays seeping in the cracks in the roof. The door also swung open. The snow has sufficiently melted that it no longer blocks the door.

I was free to get out but I was still trapped. My wound, raging fever but mostly hunger had made me too weak to get even out of bed. It seems fate was playing a joke on me. Now I know that playing jokes on someone can be very hurtful and even deadly. I know that unless someone rescues me I would be dead very soon.

I remembered Greg again. Where is he now? Is he trying to look for me? I remember his advise again of not trying to go against a pack of wolves. I remember him saying to me that I should not underestimate animals. That I should never get drunk in the wild and so on. How foolish of me! I just wanted to see Greg again.

Then I fell asleep again. Then the bite happened. It was painful but I was already too numb. The creature disappeared again. Blood was gushing again from the same wounded hand. It is the hand I use for pulling the trigger in the my rifle. I tried to shoot but I cannot see any creature. I waited and waited until I fell asleep.

It was dark when I awakened. I was awakened by something crawling in the bed and touching my legs as it crawled towards my wounded hand. I cannot do anything. I am too weak to move. My once trusty rifle with three bullets in it lay beside me useless. I have been too weak to maintain the fire so it was very dark inside the shack.

When the creature reached my wounded arm it stopped then it squeaked. Now I know my enemy. It was just a rat. A rat bested the king. I am now its meal. The rat began to chew at my fingers as I resigned myself to my painful and horrible death. I would be eaten alive by what I consider a lowly animal. I am just food for a vermin.