Un: TerribleTinkerer | Text

[badnewsandshitlist]

If money has no meaning here, then what do people do with themselves? Adventure for the sport of it? Build things only to watch them gather dust?

I prefer problems that bite back or explode in my hands, but it seems difficult to call that work in a place where every need is already seen to.

So. What passes for an occupation here—when merit and coin are both irrelevant?

Comments

[will_chase_balls]

I have a friend I go with. A full pack would be nice, of course, but I'm happy to have someone else because a lot of the most fun tactics when hunting need more than one hunter to work.

[badnewsandshitlist]

That makes sense. Coordinated hunts must be far more engaging than chasing prey on your own.

What sort of tactics do you favor, driving game into an ambush, circling and harrying it, or something more elaborate?

[will_chase_balls]

Usually driving game into an ambush. My dad likes more elaborate hunting plans, and that's probably why he was such a good general in the war, but I don't get into a lot of complicated planning over a deer. Although I don't know if he still hunts or even needs food since he was turned into some kind of undead right before I was brought here? But that's not the question. Ambushes are fun!

[badnewsandshitlist]

Ambushes are elegant in their simplicity. You set the field, guide the quarry, and let the trap spring shut. No need for endless diagrams when the result is a clean strike.

Do you prefer the chase that leads into the ambush, or the moment of stillness while you wait for the prey to stumble into place?

[will_chase_balls]

Oh, definitely the chase!

[badnewsandshitlist]

Of course. The rush of pursuit, the rhythm of running the quarry down, the certainty that it will break exactly where you intend.

Do you ever find yourself chasing for the thrill of it even when the catch is secondary, or is the kill always the goal?

[will_chase_balls]

Oh, all the time! Sometimes I'll chase squirrels in the woods even when I'm not planning on actually catching them.

[badnewsandshitlist]

Then it is the movement itself you savor, not just the result. A living kind of sport, more than a means to a meal.

Do you think the squirrels notice the difference when you are only running for the joy of it, or do they flee with the same terror every time?

[will_chase_balls]

Yeah! Which isn't much of a surprise, because I like playing sports, too.

I don't think they know the difference. Honestly, I can't really blame them. If I was a squirrel I wouldn't want to gamble on a large creature with huge teeth not changing their mind on whether it was just a game.

[badnewsandshitlist]

A sensible policy on their part. Caution keeps small creatures alive, even if it robs them of knowing when they are safe.

Do you think that same instinct for caution makes the hunt more enjoyable for you, or would you prefer if the quarry sometimes trusted enough to play along?

[will_chase_balls]

It would be nice if it was a game for them, too. If we were both having fun.

[badnewsandshitlist]

There is a certain charm in that idea. A contest where both sides understand the rules, where the chase itself is the prize.

Have you ever had a hunt like that, where the quarry felt almost like a partner rather than prey?


[Oh, how nice it must be to have such simple desires. It is almost enough to be envious of.]

[will_chase_balls]

Yeah! When I play with other shifters we'll chase each other around just for fun. And pretty much all sports are like that.