but rather to limit the possible intrusions of others. They marked out, primarily, that country it would defend, within which it would regard the passage of certain others as trespass. These borders, to a large extent, followed the lines, and claims, of its unknown predecessor. It was a territory of a nature and range suitable to its kind. The borders of such territories, of course, are somewhat flexible, depending on a number of factors, such as the beast in question, its youth and vigor, the terrain, the game, and the competition from other members of the same species. Within the territory, of course, the beast, following the predilection of its kind, tended to conceal its presence, burying feces, and such. The warnings at the borders, of course, were directed primarily against other predators, and, in particular, against those of its own kind, should they exist, external visitants, possible intruders. A subsidiary advantage of them, however, was that wandering fleet ones within the territory, encountering them, might turn back, thus remaining within the territory. It might be mentioned that the circle of sticks, with its assemblage of dried vegetations, or, as we might say, the village, was close to the heartland of this territory. The absolute heartland, in the sense of being the lair of the beast itself, was a cave in the cliffs, a long, tunnel-like cave which led back, under the cliffs, toward the village.
Often the beast followed the string toward the village, and then followed it back, to its lair. In this fashion, of course, subtle signs of its presence, oil from the pads of paws left on leaves, pelt oil on brush, and tree trunks, a few stray hairs, here and there, the prints of its feet, and such, tended to follow the track of the string. Stealthy ones, wise in their own ways, avoided this area.
The beast’s time, of course, was not all spent in subtle, sometimes troublesome, ruminations. Indeed, at times, in the hunt, and in the kill, and in the eager, grisly feeding, and, later, in lying down, sated, sleepy, its consciousness was not other than it had been in the old home. But then, later, the strange thoughts would come. Too, like all beasts it would dream, but it was sometimes puzzled by these dreams, and did not understand them. The beast dreams posed no problems, of course, the running in the forest, the delicious smell of the fleet one, recollections of a successful defense of territory the preceding winter in the old home, against an animal larger even than itself, the feel of wet leaves beneath its paws, the sound of water rushing over stones, where one might drink, such things. In these dreams its legs would twitch, and move, and it would growl. In these dreams there were no words, only things, and doings. But there were other dreams, too, which it did not understand, dreams of places it could not have been, and of other creatures, to whom it, in another form, spoke. It even remembered tastes of a sort which must be impossible, as it could not feed on such things. And it remembered a white softness, supine, trembling, regarding him, frightened, moving, squirming. And then it was again itself and it thrust its snout against that softness, and thrust its head between its legs, forcing them far apart, smelling it, understanding it in its needful, helpless, beast sense. It then drew back and looked at the animal, so white, so soft, so curved. It was before him, supine, in its way, tethered. It was helpless. It would be easy, it thought, to eat it. Perhaps, it thought, that is why it is tethered here, to be eaten. But it licked it, slowly, carefully, with his long, rough tongue. It could not draw away. What strange sounds those tethers made. They seemed excellent tethers. Then it seemed it was again in another form, one recalled from former dreams, one which had appeared even in vagrant memories, and it felt strange sensations, which it did not understand, like promptings in the blood of something not itself, another creature, inexplicable feelings, and there were inexplicable recollections, and it awakened, abruptly, unaccountably furious, and made its way to the summit of the cliff, above the platform, and recollected a distant world, and a broad head, eyes with pupils like knives, a sinuous, agile body, and a maddening, luring odor, and it put back its head, and howled, and howled.
Chapter 32
It was now