Adrian knew he shouldn't have given in to exhaustion yesterday. When he had been out hunting, he had aimed for one of the young boars, still a piglet really. It wasn't that difficult to separate it from the herd and have the other hogs run rampant.

Preferably he would've gone after something that wasn't inclined to fight back, but after days of hunting and coming up with nothing, Adrian would be a fool to ignore the possible meal that was grunting and churning up the soil with its stubby nose.

And it had been impossible to ignore his growling stomach.

He wasn't willingly going head to head with one of the adults and he knew that if the herd got spooked and the parents distracted, they'd flee. Still, there was a small risk that the females would defend their young, so his aim was to kill the youngster quickly and without a sound, reducing the chance of it alerting its mother with a squeal.

Even if he was detected after he made his kill, he could outrun the hogs with ease or, if they got too close, abandon his meal momentarily and return for it when the hogs dispersed.

And he succeeded, if only partially. The piglet hadn't made a squeak when he pounced on top of it, slamming it against the floor without a sound. It was still alive and breathing but stunned from having the air knocked out of it.

That's when Adrian made his first mistake. Instead of killing it, he paused, having heard the baying of hounds in the distance. The loud barks were familiar, as he had heard them before and had always ran away to make sure that he wasn't spotted by the humans always following in the trail of the hounds.

Still, the hounds proved to be a welcomed distraction as well, given that the hogs could clearly hear them too and were sent running for the woods. On the other hand, the hounds could be a threat themselves, if they managed to catch up with the boy. He'd seen the damage they could do, so it made sense that he was more than a little wary.

However, Adrian hadn't anticipated one of the mature males to come running from the opposite direction, catching the teen off guard before it drove its tusks in his ribs. If he had been standing up and not pinning the piglet to the floor, he might've limped it off with minor injuries to his leg.

As it was, his ribs took the full brunt of the attack. They gave way under the persistent shoving of the boar, cracking painfully as the sharp tusk tore skin and came dangerously close of piercing his lungs.

Adrian had struggled for his life, knowing that the boar could and would easily end it with those sharp tusks. He had managed to shift and kill the hog, though the action had drained all of his energy.

Mouth bloodied and side pulsing with pain, Adrian had barely managed to shift back and take two staggering steps before collapsing on the forest floor, shivering with exhaustion.

Technically, his first mistake was hunting in an area too small to contain his shift. If he had been able to hunt in his animal form, the hunt would've been over instantly.

But his tracks weren't exactly easy to hide, especially with humans so close by. So Adrian had went with the next best option.

He hissed as he finally woke, stretching slowly as he blinked past the tears in his eyes. He already knew he was in a metal cage before he had opened his eyes, could smell the people outside. Adrian had even heard snippets of their conversation and a vague recollection of hounds baying and people whispering before he had passed out again.

Adrian even caught a faint whiff of an unknown human's scent on him, as if he had been draped by something while he was passed out. He hissed and slowly pressed up on his arm to take a look at himself.

Small wounds and scrapes were easily healed but gore wounds like this took time. His fingers gently traced the raw skin around the wound before pausing as they bumped into soft fabric spanning over the deep gash.

Twisting his head as much as possible in the cramped space, he peered through the darkness to spot a bandage taped to his right side, starting a few inches underneath his armpit and ended just shy of his hipbone.

His side and legs were stained with blood, though it was obvious someone had at least attempted to clean him up a bit. Adrian swallowed with some effort, wondering silently how much of the blood on his body was the boars', and how much was his own.

The cage rattled with the slightest movement of the car underneath, the powerful engine created vibrations that unnerved Adrian greatly. And the stench of it along with the loud sound was off-putting, to say the least.

Rolling on his stomach, he paused yet again when he realized a pair of shorts was hiked around his hips, making him frown slightly. He knew humans wore fabric but he had no real intention to go anywhere near them to steal clothes from them.

Still, he was barely long enough in his human shape to require clothes in the first place. Whoever trapped him seemed to think otherwise. Adrian frowned, feeling around the metal carrier cage as he tried to find a weakness.

Nothing.

His fingers couldn't fit through the small holes in the side, designed to allow air into his small cell. The bars at the front would barely allow him enough room to stick his hands through.

Feeling around, he tried to find the lock that he had seen on similar boxes before but stopped when he couldn't find any within his reach.

And he wasn't about to jam his arm through the bars with the risk of getting stuck or worse, injuring himself even more.

He didn't even bother trying to bash the doors for a way out, assuming the door was bolted shut to prevent escape. Adrian had never been in one of these boxes, but he had seen humans with their cars, hunters that released their hounds out for a hunt in the same way.

One way in, one way out... Probably shut with a small lock too. Most likely on top so I can't reach...

Sniffing the air again, Adrian's nose curled at the strong, pungent scent that was clearly a powerful predator. It was potent, fresh and gamey at the same time. He had to struggle and nearly missed the second scent that was partially masked by the odor, grumbling to himself as he tried to place the other, musty scent.

A serpent and a ...bear? Not like any bear I've seen or smelled before.

Snorting to clear his nose, Adrian tilted his head back and closed his eyes, inhaling deeply in an attempt to analyze the scents.

He once had bumped into a bear when he was much younger with one of his siblings. His sibling had been much more aggressive than he was, the little Alpha of their pack and had charged for the bear even if Adrian warned him it was a foolish idea.

Because Adrian had spotted the churned up soil and the deep gashes those claws had left in the tree. The thick, pungent odor that stung his nostrils had clued him in that this was an adult, powerful male, eager for a scrap.

Territorial. Looking for a mate... or food. Whatever came first.

So when his sibling had started to pursue the tracks, probably with the intent of chasing the bear out of their territory, Adrian had protested when his sibling saw the looming monster and refused to endanger his life by posturing against a fucking bear.

After attacking Adrian for his disobedience, his sibling had left him behind wounded and went after the bear. There was no surprise for Adrian when the bear made an easy meal out of his older sibling.

If he had shifted, he probably could've handled it... Too bad that you can't shift if your wounds are too grave and bears are faster than they look...

He shook his head to disband the memory. There wasn't much of a fraternal bond in his species anyways. Nest mates were there for protection, in the hopes to be the odd one out that survived. Adrian had done his best to provide for his two sisters, unlike his older brother, who had always stolen their food to make sure he had a fighting chance.

They were not possible mating partners but still, Adrian saw them for the potential they had, to be hunting partners until they were old enough to split up. To be capable of hunting and taking down bigger, dangerous prey until they could fend for themselves.

Less risk during a hunt and higher rewards instead of having to pick off smaller creatures and go hungry.

His sibling saw it a different way. The females were weak competition that could easily be dealt with.

To be honest, Adrian wouldn't be surprised if his sisters had died because of his sibling. Neither times was he present when one of his sisters went missing but it always ended the same way.

The male sibling returning from a hunt, reeking of blood and refusing to go out to look for their missing nest mate.

But now wasn't the time to ponder about ghosts. His siblings were dead, and he would follow them soon if he didn't have a fighting plan.

Adrian slowly sat up, stretching his legs as far as the cage would allow him to. Pain stabbed his side as he eased on his knees before sliding down against the metal walls of his cage. His brown hair was tangled with dirt and dried blood from the hog before he pushed it aside, cleaning it as best as he could.

If he was stuck, might as well use the time given to him by taking care of himself.

He preened himself as much as he could, given his wound and inability to shift in this small container. Adrian huffed several times as the box slid slightly whenever the car took a turn. He didn't know how long it took, though it was still dark by the time the car slowly squeaked to a halt.

"Morning Charles, Willem. Got him in easy I heard?" A voice sounded outside the car before it jolted, two doors slamming shut as footsteps approached. "Morning Ace. Kid was out cold by the time we got there." The voices spoke before the back door was opened, illuminating the cage and Adrian in it.

His heart started racing the second the doors opened before the light blinded his eyes, as they were accustomed to the darkness of his cage.

Adrian grumbled at the bright light before blinking rapidly, his eyes quickly adapting to the harsh floodlights built up against the building. The three men standing in front of the car were shadowed but he could feel their eyes on him.

"First time he's awake. With that gash, I'd imagined he'd sleep for the next two days." The bear grumbled, stepping forwards as he opened up the car while eying Adrian. "It'll make transporting him a bitch though."

"Aw, come on Willem, give the kid a break. He doesn't look that threatening at all." The third male replied, walking up to stand beside the grumbling man as he started removing the ropes that secured the cage to the car.

The boy kept his eyes on them, feeling his heart race away in his chest. At all times, Adrian's eyes remained on the fingers swiftly removing the ropes around the bars of his cage. He knew he was outnumbered and in the state he was, clearly outmatched as well. The bear alone would provide more than a challenge but combined with the other two?

Not a chance in hell.

So Adrian pushed himself to the back of the cage with a tired hiss, pulling his legs to his chest to avoid the men from being able to yank him out by the ankles.

"Seems we got a smart one."

Adrian hissed once more, pressing himself against the solid back wall as he kept his eyes on the men moving around, pulling at the carrier so it slid closer to the end of the truck.

They heaved the carrier up, making Adrian tumble awkwardly to catch his balance and grunt before hissing painfully when he landed on his side. Willem didn't even seem to flinch but the newcomer did, cringing in sympathy. "What happened?"

The bear snorted, grunting deeply in his throat at the combined weight of the carrier and Adrian. "Hunters went boar hunting and sent the boar running for the hills. Kid seemed to have gotten in the way; there were marks of a scuffle near the hog's body and the trail of a piglet leading away from the hog."

"Ah." The other man nodded and Adrian glanced at him with an annoyed glare. "The hunter has become the hunted." Willem rolled his eyes while the other man, Ace, deemed Adrian to be harmless and stuck his hand in the cage, perhaps to try and help Adrian off of his injured side.

Adrian's pupils became little pinpricks as he reacted on instinct and snarled, leaping forwards with bared teeth as he felt threatened. Ace yelped while the cage jarred and dropped a fraction, making Adrian stumble the slightest bit.

A good thing too; Adrian's teeth gnashed together a breath away from Ace's hand, lips brushing over warm skin before he slammed with his cheek against the metal bars of the cage. He hissed, releasing a deep, rumbling growl from his throat that the men felt vibrating through the cage and into their fingertips.

The bear snarled back, eyes darkening as he glared down at Adrian, challenging him in a repeat performance. Adrian sneered and bared his teeth in another hiss, keeping a close watch on where their hands were wandering.

He felt cornered, threatened and exposed. Even if he was being outnumbered, if it came to it Adrian knew he wasn't going down without a fight.

The boy's body was wired with adrenaline, heart galloping away in his chest as his nostrils flared, eyes flitting from one target to the next.

Who's going to try something next?

Ace managed to scramble back up from the ground, shaking his hand out and flexing it a few times. Adrian licked his lips, a small spark of satisfaction gleaming in his chest as he faintly tasted blood. "Shit, bastard nicked me."

The man showed his hand and blood trickled from several shallow teeth marks, dripping to the floor. Adrian's eyes followed the trail intently, knowing he could've done way more damage if the bear hadn't jolted the cage at the last second.

If Willem hadn't thought on his feet and reacted quickly, Ace would've been walking away with a few fingers less, at the very least.

The carrier was lowered on the floor and shoved against a dark room. Adrian's heart thrummed rapidly, his nose picking up a wide array of scents, both predatory and prey, fresh and old. "Well, you're the dumbass who shoved his hand in a feral predator's cage."

With a loud metallic shriek, the front panel of the carrier cage was lifted but Adrian didn't move a muscle. Instead he glanced at the darkness warily before glaring over his shoulder at the three men.

Ace was busy disinfecting the wound, knowing it would only take a few seconds to heal on its own. Willem and Charles were standing at the back of the pen, making Adrian's narrow before the back partition started moving forwards.

He hissed and scrambled out of the carrier, glaring at the men as they chuckled and shook their heads. "Give him a few days to acclimate and then we'll see if we can find out what he is and how he got in those woods."

More people approached, making Adrian back away and use the shadows of the dim area as cover. He slowly explored the room, realizing that it was an imitation of the forest they found him in. There was even a small pool of clear flowing water in the back, several dens underneath trees and hollows in the rocky slopes in the back filled with hay.

Adrian pressed against the wall, spotting several overhanging cliffs overhead and sniffed the air, opening his mouth for a taste. All the scents of both predator and prey in here were stale, cluing him in that he was alone in this biome.

He did detect other scents wafting down from where they had opened and closed the door. Adrian was confused why so many scents of predators and prey alike were mingled, as if they were living together.

Predators eat prey...

Stepping closer to the pool, he sniffed at the water and dipped his hand in it, shaking the droplets off before eying his hand curiously. When nothing happened and the water smelled normal, he took a hesitant sip, letting the liquid sit in his mouth before swallowing.

Pure, crystal-clear water.

He hummed, drinking his fill and using the water to clean himself up completely. He could still feel eyes on him and grumbled softly. Normally he'd sleep in the open, curled up in a nest of his choice. But seeing how those shifters were eying him curiously, Adrian was forced to choose against his needs and take more of a tactical approach.

Eyes flitting around, he calculated the distance to the overhanging cliffs but realized quickly they were beyond his reach. The room was much taller than the hallway, adapted to possible flying predators who needed the height advantage to feel secure.

The trees stood relatively wide apart with some shrubbery placed in random spots, so it would be relatively hard to hide... unless he used the underground dens. Adrian observed all of the dens, squirming down in a few before selecting one that was bigger and had a slightly wider entrance.

He wasn't going to shift while in the view of the people who took him and, if he planned this correctly and used his time well, he could connect some of the dens and make them wider, giving himself more room to travel with.

While all eyes were going to be on the den he curled up in, Adrian was going to make sure he'd have access to three other dens that had seemed suitable enough. Two of them had already been connected, though the tunnels were a bit too small for him to fit comfortably in.

He smirked, using his ears to listen out for anyone approaching as he started to dig.

A.N. Hehe, well, I didn't have anything else prepared so... surprise :D

I'll be keeping Adrian's, our new Feral, nature a secret, so I'm curious to see what you guys will come up with. 

Also, I'm trying to make my chapters bigger, so this is almost twice as big as usual xD Happy Reading <3