Three Udam were strolling near a great bonfire that stood close to the edge of a waterfall when they felt the earth trembling and birds flying away from the forest with a screech. When the quaking grew, they grabbed their spears and stood their ground at the forefront. From the shadows and the trees, Snotlout emerged with a bow and a flaming arrow, along with a huge mammoth charging and bellowing behind him. The Udam shouted with fear and confusion as Snotlout skid past them and allowed the mammoth to attack the three humans. With his adversaries occupied with each other, Snotlout fired his flaming arrow to the bonfire and jumped over the waterfall.
Upon splashing on the pool below, Snotlout sighed with relief that the base was deeper than expected and swam to the shore. He wiped and smacked the water from his body as the battle above him fell silent. It was at that moment that the wolves sprinted from the east and licked all over Snotlout with whimpers. He gladly returned the favor by petting his two canine companions.
"I knew that we would reunite," he told them. "Good thing I told you both to find another path. You wouldn't want to see what I did back there."
The trio then saw smoke rising from the top of the cliff, which meant that the bonfire was lit and Snotlout grinned with pride.
"The Wenja should be able to live there. I think the mammoth stomped those Udam into pulps."
A distant trumpeting noise confirmed his hope as he and the wolves turned north to resume their travels.
As the sun grew higher and higher above Oros, the ground did so as well for Snotlout. The sloping terrain meant that he was approaching a more mountainous territory and he could see the snowcapped peaks far ahead. Some of the trees he passed lacked their verdant leaves, which acted as factors for the colder climate the north was exhibiting. He then saw a small herd of caribous grazing alongside a flock of monals in a field, and one of them could provide some resources that would be useful soon. Snotlout grabbed a spear from his belt and aimed it at one caribou that was feeding, away from the rest of its herd. He steadied his arm and flung it straight through the caribou's skull. Its sudden death caused the other caribous and monals to flee from the area.
"Now this should keep our bellies full for a while."
Snotlout and the wolves approached their quarry to loot every possible form of resource the carcass could provide. When the trio felt they have acquired what they needed, a writhing sound rang from the west and almost startled them. The wolves sniffed the air though they did not growl. Snotlout retrieved his spear from the caribou's head and went to investigate.
The voice could be heard coming from behind a giant red cedar. Snotlout peeked his head over and saw a Wenja man with a gashed knee leaning onto the trunk.
"Hey, hey, it's okay," whispered Snotlout as he grabbed some special green leaves from his bag. He then chewed it, barfed it out, and smeared it over the wound. The Wenja winced initially, though he exhaled with relief when the remedy took effect.
"Thank you, brother," said the Wenja.
"What happened?"
"Udam attacked. Beware their numbers. A Wenja warrior is fighting them. He will need help."
Snotlout was about to ponder about the other Wenja until a yell could be heard coming from behind a hill north of them. Snotlout tightened the grip on his spear to prepare for the coming fight.
"Stay here. I'll come back to you."
The Wenja man nodded and watched as Snotlout joined the wolves in a race to a battle with the Udam.
Snotlout stopped on the edge of a rocky outcrop and witnessed a Wenja using his spear to hold off five Udam clubmen between a pond and a campfire with five others lying lifeless before his feet. When one of the Udam decided to keep his distance from the battle, he unknowingly made his stand below the outcrop. Snotlout used this moment to silently jump and executed a silent takedown on the Udam's skull. Blood spurted throughout Snotlout's torso as he let out a fearsome cry that drew the attention of the Udam and the Wenja warrior. The wolves ran down the hill and followed Snotlout into the fight. Three of the Udam went in to attack, only for the wolves to maul two of them and Snotlout to tackle the remaining one to the ground. The Wenja warrior seized the opportunity to thrust his spear straight to the last Udam's throat.
"Snotlout! Snotlout! Oi! Oi! Oi!"
Five times Snotlout plunged his spear into the Udam's stomach, and they flawlessly synced with each of Snotlout's shouts. With all of the Udam slain, the Wenja warrior let out a cry of victory and planted his spear on the ground. Thanks to the sunlight, Snotlout gain a better view of his new ally. His clothing was made of bear fur, and he had a seashell bracelet on his left arm. White body paint covered his right shoulder and a leather strap was wrapped around his head. The most notable feature was that he seemed to be missing his right eye.
"A good fight!" he said as he mocked one of the dead Udam. "Bad for you."
The Wenja then turned his eye to Snotlout and approached him with a smile.
"You fight with strength!"
Snotlout was slightly dazed when the Wenja performed a headbutt on him. He almost stumbled back but the Wenja grabbed his left arm to keep him standing. His smile grew when he noticed the whiteshell bracelet that Snotlout wore.
"You are Wenja."
"Yup," Snotlout said as he almost regained his bearings. "My name is Snotlout."
"I am Karoosh."
After becoming acquainted with each other's names, Karoosh walked towards a dead Udam and lifted the body upon his shoulders. The wolves merely tilted their heads with curiosity.
"We are brothers," proclaimed Karoosh as he carried the body towards the campfire. His gregarious attitude made Snotlout chuckle with humor.
"So what are you doing out here, Karoosh?" he asked.
"I am hunting a vicious Udam warrior," Karoosh answered as he dropped the body to the fire. "Mog."
Snotlout could see growing anger in the Wenja's eye when he mentioned the Udam's name.
"Mog took my eye," said Karoosh whilst pointing his missing eye. "And Keda, my son…"
Snotlout deflated when the sorrow in Karoosh's voice flowed to his ears. Soon after, Karoosh's eye and chest fumed with anger and hatred.
"Mog killed my son!"
Karoosh ejected his fury by slamming his fists on the nearest Udam body. As Karoosh exhaled with his eye shut, Snotlout could hear the wolves whimpering and his breaths growing quiet. Empathy dominated the area since all four of them recently lost certain individuals with a respective, personal bond. Snotlout then clenched his fist tightly, knelt next to Karoosh, and placed his left hand over the grieving Wenja.
"Mog will die for his crimes."
Karoosh perked up upon hearing Snotlout's statement and smiled with glee.
"Yes," he said with a nod of agreement. "Brother, bring the dead and burn them." Karoosh then dragged the Udam body and rolled it to the blazing campfire. Snotlout stood up and was unsure of Karoosh's intentions.
"The smoke tells Mog," explained Karoosh before he patted Snotlout's left shoulder. "That we are coming for him."
Snotlout mouthed his understanding before smiling, laughing, and shook hands with Karoosh. The two worked together in carrying and throwing some of the dead Udam to the campfire, which made the flame grow and thick palls of dark smoke rise to the clear sky. When they were finished, they heard distant shouts of Udam coming to attack. The wolves growl and ran off to meet their adversaries while Snotlout and Karoosh nodded with grins as they prepared their spears and ran into battle with howling cries.
Snotlout stabbed an Udam clubman and use the body as a shield from the arrows of an Udam archer that was standing on the edge of the rocky outcrop. The grey wolf lunged at the archer as the brown wolf leaped onto the face of an Udam spearman. Karoosh parried and disarmed the club of an Udam before using the tip to slash his throat off. An Udam was about to aim his spear at Karoosh when Snotlout drove his spear through the back of the Udam's head until the point came out from the Udam's mouth. Snotlout threw the Udam aside when the tree next to him had its bark gouged by a flying rock. He looked up and saw an Udam placing a rock on a sling as he began to swing it around. The rock would have been launched onto Snotlout's face if Karoosh had not hurled his spear onto the Udam's chest. Snotlout laughed with joy as he, Karoosh, and the wolves continued to kill more Udam who were in the area.
By noon, at least ten Udam fell victim to the wrath of Snotlout and Karoosh. The wolves fed on some of the bodies as Snotlout looted the others, gaining cedar wood, black rock flints, and clay that should be useful for crafting more tools. Karoosh howled to the sun with energy as Snotlout finished stuffing his bag with loot.
"Karoosh! Karoosh! Oi! Oi! Oi!"
Karoosh joyfully laughed at Snotlout's cheer and he planted his spear on the ground so he could shake Snotlout's hand once more.
"Snotlout, you and your wolves brought me the strength I never thought would have."
Snotlout felt pride whilst listening to Karoosh's praise, though he was reminded of the situation he experienced before their meeting.
"A wounded Wenja is hiding behind a tree over that hill," divulged Snotlout as he pointed his hand to the aforementioned direction. "Our brothers and sisters have also built a new village in the west."
"Good," nodded Karoosh before he retrieved his spear and returned to Snotlout's side. "We will teach the Wenja how to be strong. Thank you, brother."
Karoosh then draped his left arm around Snotlout's back as the two and the wolves initiated their journey.
"You know, Karoosh, I think this is the start of a beautiful friendship."
