flamboyant flamingos

Deus was becoming more and more familiar with the deserts of the south the longer he walked them, and though his puppies hated the trip itself, they both wholeheartedly enjoyed the opportunity to lounge in his cart while he did all the heavy lifting. It did not bother him much to cater to them - while they were supposed to be warriors at his side, they'd grown into almost a sort of children as well. He loved them fiercely, cherished their youth, and would gladly drag them across a dozen territories to see their puddle of limbs content in the back of his travois.

The last time he'd wandered past here, he'd seen an interesting sight. A giant, pink bird, larger then the flighted animals he was used to crossing over Aerie's territory. Almost like a crane, but different, with a color so vibrant it reminded him of some of the unnatural toned wolves who walked this land. Now that he did not have any cargo except the puppies in his cart, he could make the trip back through traveller's lake and see if he might catch sight of it again - and if he got lucky, snag a few of it's brightly colored feathers to make adornments out of.

Honestly, he didn't expect to find them so quickly. A flamboyance of flamingos, huddled around the lake looking stupid with one leg up in the air for whatever odd reason. They looked sort of peaceful in their odd stance, and Deus crept closer. To his surprise, one was on the move. It adjusted it's position and flew, up and away east.

Well that was going to throw a wrench in his plan - Deus couldn't fly, and he doubted he could run up on them before they took off. The only option then was to bait them, close enough to jump out and pounce. From the shape of their bills, he assumed they ate some sort of fish, and so it was fish he'd need to collect. Luckily he'd come prepared, with a long paw-crafted netting that he could use to steal from the lake a few of it's inhabitants - with the help of his puppies, of course.

With the fish collected, he moved to set the bait. He placed the fish down in a shallow clay bowl a ways off from the water, and then retreated backwards. His malinois got to work next, digging excitedly in the sand to mostly bury the wolf, save for his eyes and muzzle. The gold and white colors he wore blended it well with the sand, he was certain they'd not notice him. All he needed to do was wait for them to approach, to jjump from the sand, and to grab one before it had a chance to fly. Easy, right?

The wind whipped up in a way that was both familiar, and strange all at the same time. The flamingos even seemed disturbed by it, moving off from their resting at the water's edge and nervously shuffling across the sand. They were headed in his direction slowly, but seemed to catch their eye upon something and as one flock, turned tail and flew.

Deus shook off his sandy cover and sighed, assuming it was his puppies who had shown themselves and spoiled the hunt for him, but noticing quickly that that was not the case. In the distance was a massive wall of brown and yellow, accompanied by a noise he could only describe as a roar. It was moving quickly, toward him. Deus barked a sharp, panicked command to his companions, jumping to action and shoving his head against their asses to get them moving fast. They did not have time to dawdle or ask questions, and when their confusion grew and they slowed, he nipped at their ankles.

Even moving at their best speed, Deus and his dogs could not outrun the storm. It came upon them in what felt like an instant, a towering wave of sand that battered at their pelts, stabbed daggers into their eyes, and made breathing next to impossible. Abandoning his intention to outrun nature's fury, he instead veered for his cart. It was close by, prepared for the hunt, and he overturned it with one hard smack of his paw. With it on it's side he'd found them the smallest measure of cover, and he shoved his two whimpering, gasping puppies against it and formed his body around the remainder of the space. Together the three canines huddled, their eyes, noses and lungs burning in unison, until the storm had eased.

In the distance, where the fish offering had once been, one bright pink feather lay tauntingly upon the sand. Deus intentionally ignored it, righting his sand-logged cart and urging his companions into it gently. With the last of his energy he'd return them to Aerie, to his mother, to get them medical attention and ensure there would be no lasting damage from the storm. Fuck the desert.