79th of Glade, 113
Even if Arkash had just come out of a temporary miniature hibernation, during which he'd nearly died to the cold, it wasn't an excuse to take it easy for a few of the proceeding days while he warmed up by the fire. Liu had gone through the trouble of dragging the wolf that nearly ate him home, so the least he could do was prepare the meat while she was at work. Cojack was sleeping at that hour of the morning, as always. So, Arkash resolved to be quiet during the process.
The old horse's medicine did nothing to slow the spread of his disease, but it did put him at ease. The raspiness of his breath, the wheezing, and the cries of pain, they were always so few and far between after he'd been dosed appropriately. But, it wasn't free. After some thought, Arkash had told Liu not to buy him any more polish for his scales. Cojack needed his medicine more than Arkash needed moist scales. He could go without until they had enough money to leave Lorien and get good, real jobs.
Arkash looked to Cojack while he sat beside the open flames of the hearth in the morning, then exhaled through his nose as he turned to face the giant carcass of the wolf. It was bigger than he was; far bigger. He certainly wouldn't be able to lift the wolf or hang it up to drain, but he could perhaps roll it over if he really tried.
With a grunt, he pushed to his feet, and wobbled. He was still cold, his blood wasn't running as it should have been due to the icy feeling in his chest. Nonetheless, the hypothermic lizard drew a deep breath, then slowly exhaled a chilly breath of air before he carefully waddled to the countertop in the corner of the room. There, he collected their worn dagger and looked over the dull blade. A gentle press of his claw on the edge confirmed his suspicions. It needed sharpening. It usually did, so he wasn't surprised.
With a quiet sigh, Arkash collected the whetstone, then began to rub along the edge of the blade. Cojack woke to the sound of grinding metal, of course. "Ark..?" Asked his father's weak voice. The lizard smiled a little, then lifted a hand to wave at the bedridden horse to wave, but found that his fingers were slow to unclasp the knife. They were still cold. "How are you doing...?"
"I'm fine, dad. Still warming up," replied the lizard, who returned to sharpening the edge of the blade. He had to be careful with his strokes as to not accidentally cut himself on the edge. He was pressing hard, after all; even a dull blade could rip his scales with enough force.
"Still cold-?" The horse lurched forward as he choked on his last word, and coughed hard into his balled fist, which yielded another spatter of red against his fur. Arkash frowned, then put the dagger aside as he fetched the rag that rested on the counter, then approached the sickly horse. He'd lost a lot of his body mass in the past few months, going from muscular to... not, in just two seasons.
The lizard gently wiped down Cojack's hand, then wiped at the horse's lips with the same rag. "Mom thinks I was out there for a couple of hours," he explained, then drew a cup of water from the nearby pale while he sat at Cojack's side. "Drink, dad," was all he spoke, and gave the horse a brush against his shoulder before he rose to his feet, then proceeded to the countertop once more. His eyes fell to the rag in his hand, stained red with his father's blood. The sight would have upset him during the frost, but he'd seen enough of it during the glade. He was numb to it.
While cojack drank from the well water they'd fetched, Arkash returned to the knife and the whetstone, where he discarded the bloodied rag and returned to his sharpening. "I'm glad you're okay, Ark..." his father hummed between gulps. Arkash merely smiled in response, then lowered the whetstone to inspect the blade. He briefly touched the edge with his thumb but didn't dare press harder. "You're growing up so fast," spoke the horse again, and Arkash looked to him with a raised brow.
"Whatchya mean?" Quizzed the komodo dragon.
"...You learn fast, pick things up quick-" he coughs muffledly through his lips, but only once, then puts his empty wooden cup back down on the floor. "I thought me and your mom had sheltered you, but you picked up working really well, didn't whine at all... Now look at you, sharpening knives and gathering, and neither of us even need to ask you too..." The horse clears his throat once, then twice with a much harder force. Cojack's voice weighed with a distinct wavering tone, one Arkash recognized as delirious. That was most of the time that the horse was awake, so Arkash was used to it.
Arkash smiled again, then shrugged. "You taught me well, always answered my questions and stuff when I was little," Arkash smiled. Indeed, if it weren't for Cojack and Liu, he wouldn't have been as prepared as he was. "Don't think like that, dad. I turned out fine, right?" And like that, Cojack was asleep again.
Arkash raised both brows, then sighed deeply as he turned to the wolf. He'd helped Liu skin a number of animals in the past, but never anything as big as a dire wolf. What could he do but employ his usual method of skinning? So, Arkash walked to the side of the wolf and grabbed its side, which rested on the ground. With a grunt, lifted and pushed in an effort to make the beast roll onto its back to no avail. He let out a puff of air, then sighed deeply. "Fine, from the side then," he muttered, then approached the beast's tail end, which was particularly foul-smelling. So much so that it made his eyes water.
The first order of business was to remove the wolf's paws, which were objectively useless due to the lack of meat. So, Arkash pushed back each limb to reveal the hidden joints, and sawed through each area with his dagger, only to pop the bone free and snap it off when he could. It was tedious, removing each limb by thoroughly sawing through the fur, but he got there in the end anyway.
With the lower legs removed, the lizard steeled his nose and returned to the tail end of the monstrous wolf, where he lifted its hind leg. There, he squinted, held his breath, and began to cut down the inside of the thighs on both legs, then drew the cuts of the knife into the center to form a sort of Y cut. Then, with great difficulty and disgust, he carefully peeled the folds of skin back and revealed the layers of muscle beneath.
It would be easier if he could suspend the wolf, but they didn't have that luxury with such a large animal. So, inch-by-grizzly inch, Arkash slid the monster wolf's pelt from its body. A lot of the meat touched the wooden floors and stuck some of the filth from there, but Arkash didn't mind. They'd eaten from the trash when money was short in the past. Eating off the floor wasn't all that bad of an option.
Occasionally, Arkash had to stop and saw off some blood vessels that connected to the bones of the wolf or some other spot, but the rest came free with relative ease. The tail was a bit tricky, but Arkash decided to just sever it, as it was barely worth the fur or the meat. Furthermore, it smelled bad, and Arkash didn't want to have to sleep with it.
The grueling task of stripping the body was relatively easy, save for the fur that was caught under the wolf, which he ripped on multiple occasions with his desperate and crude tugging. Cutting down the top side was always a relief on his arms, as it gave him a moment to recover from the drain of doing intense battle with the pelt on the underside of the wolf. It didn't help that his claws were so bloody and slippery either, but Arkash made do.
Before long, the wolf's head had been completely covered by the removed skin, and the canine's entire body was laid out on the ground. Next was Arkash's least favorite part. With a sigh, he began to saw through the neck. Granted, the pelt there was already torn and matted red due to Liu's attack, but Arkash hated working it all the same. Something about chopping off an animal's head felt cruel to him, like an unwarranted hateful act. Yes, the wolf had tried to eat him, and he knew that the beast wouldn't have wasted a moment in ripping his own head off his shoulders, but...
Arkash sighed, and stayed his bloody hand for a moment or two. Why was the world so brutal? Death seemed to surround him, and misfortune was a constant in the development of his life.
A shake of his head dismissed his thoughts of self-pity, and he got back to work. Eventually, the wolf's head had been completely sawn-off, and Arkash got to treating the pelt.
Even if Arkash had just come out of a temporary miniature hibernation, during which he'd nearly died to the cold, it wasn't an excuse to take it easy for a few of the proceeding days while he warmed up by the fire. Liu had gone through the trouble of dragging the wolf that nearly ate him home, so the least he could do was prepare the meat while she was at work. Cojack was sleeping at that hour of the morning, as always. So, Arkash resolved to be quiet during the process.
The old horse's medicine did nothing to slow the spread of his disease, but it did put him at ease. The raspiness of his breath, the wheezing, and the cries of pain, they were always so few and far between after he'd been dosed appropriately. But, it wasn't free. After some thought, Arkash had told Liu not to buy him any more polish for his scales. Cojack needed his medicine more than Arkash needed moist scales. He could go without until they had enough money to leave Lorien and get good, real jobs.
Arkash looked to Cojack while he sat beside the open flames of the hearth in the morning, then exhaled through his nose as he turned to face the giant carcass of the wolf. It was bigger than he was; far bigger. He certainly wouldn't be able to lift the wolf or hang it up to drain, but he could perhaps roll it over if he really tried.
With a grunt, he pushed to his feet, and wobbled. He was still cold, his blood wasn't running as it should have been due to the icy feeling in his chest. Nonetheless, the hypothermic lizard drew a deep breath, then slowly exhaled a chilly breath of air before he carefully waddled to the countertop in the corner of the room. There, he collected their worn dagger and looked over the dull blade. A gentle press of his claw on the edge confirmed his suspicions. It needed sharpening. It usually did, so he wasn't surprised.
With a quiet sigh, Arkash collected the whetstone, then began to rub along the edge of the blade. Cojack woke to the sound of grinding metal, of course. "Ark..?" Asked his father's weak voice. The lizard smiled a little, then lifted a hand to wave at the bedridden horse to wave, but found that his fingers were slow to unclasp the knife. They were still cold. "How are you doing...?"
"I'm fine, dad. Still warming up," replied the lizard, who returned to sharpening the edge of the blade. He had to be careful with his strokes as to not accidentally cut himself on the edge. He was pressing hard, after all; even a dull blade could rip his scales with enough force.
"Still cold-?" The horse lurched forward as he choked on his last word, and coughed hard into his balled fist, which yielded another spatter of red against his fur. Arkash frowned, then put the dagger aside as he fetched the rag that rested on the counter, then approached the sickly horse. He'd lost a lot of his body mass in the past few months, going from muscular to... not, in just two seasons.
The lizard gently wiped down Cojack's hand, then wiped at the horse's lips with the same rag. "Mom thinks I was out there for a couple of hours," he explained, then drew a cup of water from the nearby pale while he sat at Cojack's side. "Drink, dad," was all he spoke, and gave the horse a brush against his shoulder before he rose to his feet, then proceeded to the countertop once more. His eyes fell to the rag in his hand, stained red with his father's blood. The sight would have upset him during the frost, but he'd seen enough of it during the glade. He was numb to it.
While cojack drank from the well water they'd fetched, Arkash returned to the knife and the whetstone, where he discarded the bloodied rag and returned to his sharpening. "I'm glad you're okay, Ark..." his father hummed between gulps. Arkash merely smiled in response, then lowered the whetstone to inspect the blade. He briefly touched the edge with his thumb but didn't dare press harder. "You're growing up so fast," spoke the horse again, and Arkash looked to him with a raised brow.
"Whatchya mean?" Quizzed the komodo dragon.
"...You learn fast, pick things up quick-" he coughs muffledly through his lips, but only once, then puts his empty wooden cup back down on the floor. "I thought me and your mom had sheltered you, but you picked up working really well, didn't whine at all... Now look at you, sharpening knives and gathering, and neither of us even need to ask you too..." The horse clears his throat once, then twice with a much harder force. Cojack's voice weighed with a distinct wavering tone, one Arkash recognized as delirious. That was most of the time that the horse was awake, so Arkash was used to it.
Arkash smiled again, then shrugged. "You taught me well, always answered my questions and stuff when I was little," Arkash smiled. Indeed, if it weren't for Cojack and Liu, he wouldn't have been as prepared as he was. "Don't think like that, dad. I turned out fine, right?" And like that, Cojack was asleep again.
Arkash raised both brows, then sighed deeply as he turned to the wolf. He'd helped Liu skin a number of animals in the past, but never anything as big as a dire wolf. What could he do but employ his usual method of skinning? So, Arkash walked to the side of the wolf and grabbed its side, which rested on the ground. With a grunt, lifted and pushed in an effort to make the beast roll onto its back to no avail. He let out a puff of air, then sighed deeply. "Fine, from the side then," he muttered, then approached the beast's tail end, which was particularly foul-smelling. So much so that it made his eyes water.
The first order of business was to remove the wolf's paws, which were objectively useless due to the lack of meat. So, Arkash pushed back each limb to reveal the hidden joints, and sawed through each area with his dagger, only to pop the bone free and snap it off when he could. It was tedious, removing each limb by thoroughly sawing through the fur, but he got there in the end anyway.
With the lower legs removed, the lizard steeled his nose and returned to the tail end of the monstrous wolf, where he lifted its hind leg. There, he squinted, held his breath, and began to cut down the inside of the thighs on both legs, then drew the cuts of the knife into the center to form a sort of Y cut. Then, with great difficulty and disgust, he carefully peeled the folds of skin back and revealed the layers of muscle beneath.
It would be easier if he could suspend the wolf, but they didn't have that luxury with such a large animal. So, inch-by-grizzly inch, Arkash slid the monster wolf's pelt from its body. A lot of the meat touched the wooden floors and stuck some of the filth from there, but Arkash didn't mind. They'd eaten from the trash when money was short in the past. Eating off the floor wasn't all that bad of an option.
Occasionally, Arkash had to stop and saw off some blood vessels that connected to the bones of the wolf or some other spot, but the rest came free with relative ease. The tail was a bit tricky, but Arkash decided to just sever it, as it was barely worth the fur or the meat. Furthermore, it smelled bad, and Arkash didn't want to have to sleep with it.
The grueling task of stripping the body was relatively easy, save for the fur that was caught under the wolf, which he ripped on multiple occasions with his desperate and crude tugging. Cutting down the top side was always a relief on his arms, as it gave him a moment to recover from the drain of doing intense battle with the pelt on the underside of the wolf. It didn't help that his claws were so bloody and slippery either, but Arkash made do.
Before long, the wolf's head had been completely covered by the removed skin, and the canine's entire body was laid out on the ground. Next was Arkash's least favorite part. With a sigh, he began to saw through the neck. Granted, the pelt there was already torn and matted red due to Liu's attack, but Arkash hated working it all the same. Something about chopping off an animal's head felt cruel to him, like an unwarranted hateful act. Yes, the wolf had tried to eat him, and he knew that the beast wouldn't have wasted a moment in ripping his own head off his shoulders, but...
Arkash sighed, and stayed his bloody hand for a moment or two. Why was the world so brutal? Death seemed to surround him, and misfortune was a constant in the development of his life.
A shake of his head dismissed his thoughts of self-pity, and he got back to work. Eventually, the wolf's head had been completely sawn-off, and Arkash got to treating the pelt.
