Chapter 3: One Punch Each
The sun hung mercilessly over the endless golden dunes.
A faint shimmer of heat danced along the horizon as Li Ming strode swiftly toward the direction of the Melu Cats' signal flare.
An hour passed.
The dry wind carried a symphony of chaos fierce feline yowls entwined with guttural predator roars.
Li Ming's eyes narrowed. He sprinted up the nearest dune and peered down.
Below, in a sunken, bowl-shaped pit, a dozen Melu Cats formed a shaky circle around their treasured four-wheeled flatbed cart. Across the sand, three Velociprey stalked in a calculated pincer, their sharp talons carving shallow lines into the dune.
"Go away, meow!"
Atop the cart, the feline leader Aileron swung her short staff with desperate bravado.
One Velociprey slithered forward, its neck flattening like a coiled whip. The claws on its front limbs retracted slightly muscles tightening, ready to strike.
"That stance it's going to attack, meow!"
Mi Duoduo's shrill voice cut through the desert wind.
"Prepare for battle, meow!"
At Aileron's command, the Melu Cats raised an assortment of improvised weapons boomerangs, forks, mallets, even tiny barrel bombs.
Mi Duoduo puffed up her cheeks and blew into her horn-shaped bugle.
Doo-woo-doo… Doo-woo-doo…!
Waves of visible sound rippled outward, vibrating the sand.
Normally, even one Velociprey would send the Melu Cats fleeing for their lives. But today was different today they were the rescue unit. Retreat was not an option.
"Good thing I made it in time," Li Ming muttered, tightening his grip on his shell shield. "But three at once… tricky."
He didn't waste another breath.
Swish!
Sliding down the slope on his back shell, sand sprayed in his wake. The Velociprey about to pounce sensed the disturbance, twisted its neck and froze.
Those black, vertical pupils shrank in alarm.
Bang!
The edge of Li Ming's shell smashed into the creature's leg joint with a brutal crunch.
The Velociprey flipped twice through the air before crashing into the sand, rolling limply.
"What a cool entrance, meow!"
Mi Duoduo's voice broke the stunned silence, awe in every syllable.
"Uh… I meant to stop sooner," Li Ming muttered. "But I couldn't find the brakes."
The other two Velociprey hesitated, wary now. Their instincts screamed at them to retreat but hunger and pride held them still.
Li Ming glanced at Aileron. "Now's the time," he whispered.
Aileron blinked, then nodded. She raised her staff and shouted with exaggerated panic:
"Oh no, meow! The terrifying hunter has come for revenge!"
The cats immediately dropped their defensive formation and charged at Li Ming.
"Hup! Ha! Hey!"
Li Ming met them head-on. One punch, one cat.
Each impact sent a furry body flying into the sand, meowing dramatically.
"Ah! Meow! My ribs!"
"We shouldn't have provoked him, meow!"
"I haven't finished my catnip stash yet!"
They rolled, groaned, and flopped in theatrical agony.
The Velociprey just… stared.
Even though they couldn't understand the words, they understood the message — this "hunter" was a monster who punched cats like toys.
"Damn it," Aileron groaned from where her whiskers were half-buried in sand. "Mi Duoduo, it's up to you, meow!"
Mi Duoduo's eyes widened. "The last hope of the tribe… rests on me?" she whispered, trembling then nodded resolutely. "I won't disappoint everyone, meow!"
"Stop monologuing and charge, meow!"
"Yes, leader! Ahhhh meow!"
Mi Duoduo launched forward, claws scraping the sand.
Li Ming raised one finger skyward an unspoken signal.
Mi Duoduo blinked twice in reply. She understood.
He crouched slightly, fist coiling with power.
"Ha-ah!"
His punch tore through the air a shockwave of compressed force.
Mi Duoduo leapt onto his arm, using his swing's momentum to catapult herself high into the air, spinning gracefully.
"Ah~ I died so miserably, meow!"
She completed a perfect 720-degree spin before landing face-first in the sand, limbs twitching once before going still.
Silence.
Li Ming's head turned slowly toward the Velociprey, eyes calm, expression unreadable.
The beasts exchanged a look and fled without hesitation, claws kicking up sand as they vanished into the horizon.
"Phew… dodged another disaster," Li Ming sighed, dropping his shell with relief.
The moment the Velociprey disappeared, the "dead" Melu Cats sprang up like resurrected zombies.
"Your acting's improving again, meow," Aileron praised, brushing sand from her fur.
"You're not bad yourselves," Li Ming chuckled. "But we can't rely on this trick forever."
The Velociprey's fear of hunters came from real trauma.
Someday, they might realize the ruse and then no amount of theatrics would save the tribe.
"Where'd you get that back shell and meat steak, meow?" Mi Duoduo asked curiously, peeking into his shell cart.
"From hunting. The meat's for your supplies."
"Whoa! You can hunt alone now, meow?"
"Just lucky," Li Ming smiled faintly. "How's the situation on your end?"
"We've found the Hunter Team, meow, but we ran into Velociprey on the way. Good thing you came."
Li Ming's expression sharpened. "Are they here for an ecological survey or a hunt?"
"Hunting mission, meow. An urgent one."
"No wonder you needed backup." He rubbed his chin. "What's their target?"
"Barroth, meow."
Li Ming's brows rose. "Barroth, huh? That explains everything."
A month ago, he would've laughed if someone said a full Hunter Team needed Felyne cart support for a Barroth.
Now, after what he'd seen… one cart per hunter sounded like a sensible investment.
"Where are they resting?"
"At the base of that mountain. Cross that dune and you can spot them with these, meow."
Aileron handed him a pair of binoculars.
"Thanks."
Li Ming nodded and began climbing the slope, boots sinking into the hot sand.
Behind him, Mi Duoduo watched his fading figure, tail drooping slightly.
"…This day has finally come, meow."
Aileron sighed softly. "He's human. He can't stay in the tribe forever."
"But he doesn't have a hunter's physique. What if something happens, meow?"
"Humans like him strong-willed but cautious are rare. He'll be fine, meow. Once he reaches Sandy Rock Den Outpost, he'll live safely.
Mi Duoduo nodded slowly. Her gaze fell on the thick, oval back shell Li Ming had left behind.
"He carried that all the way here after seeing our signal," she murmured. "So fast… meow."
The desert wind howled across the dunes, carrying the faint scent of sand, steel, and sun-baked determination.
Somewhere beyond that horizon, the next hunt awaited.