=- Punishment -=
Like a snail creeping over a boulder, the hot desert sun slowly climbed over the horizon, illuminating the dark, harsh land. Small beams of light pierced through the clay structures created by small tribes of men and women. As a beam of light pierced my wall and hit my eyes, I squinted in tired confusion as my dark hand reached up to shield my eyes from the barrage of light that disoriented me. Slowly, I sat up in my small bed, stretching my cramped joints. As with any other day, I was not looking forward to the hard work ahead of me. My parents had been harvesters, using small dinosaurs like the Ankylosaurus or the Parasaur to harvest huge amounts of metal or berries. As my parents' son, I was destined to continue on as a harvester. A life of glory and excitement, like that of the Riders, was not to be mine. I got up from my bed, crossed my small room to the large storage cabinet that contained my meager possessions, and removed my clothing. It wasn't anything fancy, just some cloth clothing that had been adapted with silk into tough material that would withstand the harsh conditions of the desert. As I donned my shirt and pants, I thought about the coming days. Most days were the same, like this one, and were filled with hard work. But every year, there was one week that held no work. This week was called "Festival Week". I was looking forward to this year's festival week because my friend, Kyp, had promised me a ride on his Rex. Kyp was destined to be a powerful soldier, a fearsome opponent in battle. So while I, a gatherer, learned from my parents how to carry more things, craft various building structures, and make fine metal tools used to gather obscene amounts of materials, Kyp learned the best ways to attack the various carnivores around the World, from lightning fast raptors to poison spitting wyverns. Kyp spent time developing his strength in battle, becoming a fearsome opponent capable of killing most men with a few hits.
As I tugged on my tough gloves and boots, I stood and pushed open the yellow-brown door that would allow me to enter my day of labor. As I trudged outside, I spotted my familiar-looking Anky, Tugg, waiting obediently outside my house. Some of the fancier houses had nice pens for their dinosaurs to rest in. Not mine. I climbed up and straddled Tugg's uncomfortable back, resting in the tough leather saddle that was strapped to Tugg's back. As I urged Tugg forward, I saw Kyp trotting to the the target area, carrying his great rifle and sleek sword. I forced my eyes to the path ahead, and let out a sigh of discontent as Tugg dutifully trudged forward.
I angled my implant into my eyes, allowing the projection to take over my vision and let me view the time. I let out a sigh of relief as I saw that it was time to head back. I carefully checked the area around me to make sure I hadn't missed some obvious metal node that would yield a couple dozen more of the precious material, then nudged Tugg back in the direction of the camp. As Tugg and I waddled back home, I let my eyes wander around the barren landscape that surrounded us. The soft glow of the desert sun covered me like a blanket, assuaging my tired senses, lulling me into a sense of serenity I had not felt in a long time. In the peace and quiet, I fell asleep. Because of this, I didn't notice when a young dire wolf happened to see Tugg and I meandering along and decide that we were easy prey. The grey beast leapt forward with a snarl, jarring me out of my nap. I panicked as Tugg bounced beneath me, desperately trying to avoid the wolf's sharp fangs. Struggling to get my pike out of my pack, I squeezed Tugg with my knees, using the command usually associated with gathering in the hopes that Tugg would still swing his huge tail. It worked, in a way. Tugg swung his huge tail around in a great arc, pounding the grey wolf backwards into the sand. Unfortunately, the snap maneuver forced me to sacrifice my position in the saddle, making me tumble out and onto the ground. As the Dire Wolf gathered its senses, I brought my pike into a combat position. When the Wolf leapt towards me, I jabbed with my pike, wincing as I felt the smooth metal pierce the hairy underside of the animal. The Dire Wolf whimpered and backed off, only to launch itself at me with even more ferocity, so much so that I was unable to bring my pike around again. The Wolf snarled and gnashed its teeth at me, using one giant paw to batt the point of my pike away from its foaming maw. In one final, desperate act, I lunged forward and slammed my fist into the nose of the Wolf, staggering it. I used my brief to respite to clamber backwards, desperately looking for my pike. Just as I turned around, the wolf recovered enough to jump towards me in one final, victorious lunge. When I was sure that my fate was sealed, a large shadow smashed into the side of the Wolf. As I stared in astonishment, Tugg continued to batter at the Wolf. Although Tugg was doing some serious damage, the Wolf was also doing major damage to Tugg. Tugg hit with devastating force, but the Wolf was faster, and more ruthless. It dodged and lunged, slowly tearing away at Tugg's defenses until only a bloody mass of armor and muscle remained. The bloody Wolf gnawed at Tugg's broken body, and I screamed in rage. All the years of resentment to the symbol of my low position in life dissipated as I snatched up my pike, rushing forward and plunging the bloody point into the worn body of the Wolf, the creature that took away my only loyal ally. I might not have commanded many supporters like the leaders of the tribe, or won the admiring glances of citizens like Kyp, but I had always counted on the loyalty of Tugg. I twisted and jabbed, stabbing the Feral Creature over and over again as it yowled and moaned in agony. Tears swept down my face as I collapsed over the bloody mass that was my friend.
Wiping away tears, I stood up, leaning on my pike for support. I had used the tools with me to bury a suitable grave for Tugg. In addition, I had harvested the body of the Wolf for materials. Slowly, I looked around into the night of the desert, fearing for my own safety in the cool air. How could it be possible for such a pleasant atmosphere, an empty landscape, to house such terrible dangers? As I pondered this, I gathered my possessions and walked slowly in the direction of my tribe.
