Suffocation was a terrible way to go. She found herself walking around in the pressure of it, each and every day now. She needed out...out of the city, out of her skin, out of her own head for a while. 

Scooping up the fan of brochures from her desk, she tossed them to the floor at Takum's feet.

"Pick one. We're going camping. And you're going stalking. Hunting. Whatever tigers do," she said, her gaze running over his frame. He was still young, but he'd put on a lot of weight and height since first wandering into the old New York headquarters. He needed to hone his instincts, and the concrete jungle wasn't the place to do it. 

"Saratoga National it is," she said, paging through the pamphlet. Twenty minutes and a packed duffle bag later, they were on the road.

Three hours wasn't such a bad drive. Nikki crooned along with the radio and laughed as Takum pawed at his ears, unappreciative of her attempts at singing. They stopped for sparse camping supplies along with food and water rations before finally arriving at the historical park's parking area. 

Once the car was unloaded and packs were secured to their backs, they hit the trail. Unbeknownst to either of them, however, three degenerates spotted first her beauty of a stolen car, and then Nikki's backside as she headed into the woods. A smirk passed among them and wheels started to turn. 

They never saw the juvenile tiger leading the way on the path ahead of her.

They walked a good while...a few hours and several miles, according to the map Nikki consulted from time to time. Watching Takum pace the trail nearly brought tears to her eyes; he was clearly in his element as he sniffed, stared, and occasionally galluped along, spooking the smaller wildlife and causing roosted birds to take flight. The drive and the stops had eaten a lot of daylight, though, and as dusk approached, she stopped in a clearing and removed their packs. There was a stream nearby, and she began collecting firewood as Takum continued to wander. 

As she moved rocks around, fashioning a fire pit, she thought she heard something in the brush. Takum had headed the opposite way, and unless he'd circled back around, she was certain it wasn't him. Footsteps. Frequent ones, or maybe...multiple sets? Staring into the setting dusk, she saw nothing. 

Lots of critters out here Nikki, stop being paranoid, she chided herself. The fire sprang to life as she lit it, and Takum returned to rest behind her,  just outside of the brightness of it. Fire made him nervous, it seemed. He showed no signs of being hungry, so Nikki had to assume he'd found something out there to prey on, shuddering as she munched on a pack of dried jerky before unfolding an army-style bedroll and hunkering down in it for the night.

The three men following had other plans for her. 

For the time they walked, Takum enjoyed exploring along the trail. He even enjoyed scaring the wildlife around him. When Nikki decided she had enough with walking, he went to explore on his own. He even found a nice squirrel which was much different than the pieces of chicken he was usually given. When he had finally tired himself, he made himself comfortable just outside the glow of the campfire. His instincts told him to stay away from it so he did. 

When the cub started to doze off, he heard a twig snap. The cub instantly shook off the feeling of sleep as he looked around. It didn't take him long to spot three human forms.  He silently stalked into the brush. The humans gave him a bad feeling. By now, he could when a person was a threat to those around him. Everything about them seemed to scream danger. He carefully stalked around the group, crouching around. When he was behind them and could definitely tell they were trouble, he roared.  

The three men seemed to freeze in terror. The first one to snap out of it quickly ran off. It was that human that he chose to go after. In the end, two legs are no match for four. 

Saratoga Tribune

August 24, 1937

The small town of Saratoga is on high alert this evening as rumors of a bloodthirsty animal wandering the beloved Saratoga Historical State Park are circulating. 

Martin Genovese, local bookstore owner and hiking enthusiast, made an alarming discovery yesterday after stepping off-trail to photograph indigenous flora. Much to his horror, he stepped upon a dismembered arm in the process.

"No need to panic!" Ranger Thomas Keene told our investigative reporter. "Our park remains open to the public. We ask that visitors stay on the trails, travel in groups, and return before dusk while we hunt down the bear responsible for this attack. We are certain it was scavenging for food, and an unfortunate soul made the mistake of feeding it. They are not pets! Please, don't feed the bears!"

The second man, confused and disoriented, ran in Nikki's direction. She'd heard the commotion and was ready, though, so when he broke through the clearing wielding a large hunting knife, she came out of the shadows of the fire, sticking out a foot and tripping him. He toppled forward and skidded a foot before rolling to his back and scrambling back to his feet, waving the knife like a maniac.

"WHAT THE FUCK YOU CRAZY BITCH?! YOU TRYNA KILL ME? HOW BOUT I KILL YOU!" He screamed as he lunged at her, half delirious. Gripping the narrow branch she'd been poking the fire with, Nikki planted her feet and swung for the fences with everything she had.

She didn't mean to kill him, she really didn't, but the impact crushed his temple on impact, sending a piece of skull into his brain.

"Hello, folks. Today we have a very important message. Yesterday, Mr. Cooper Dunn didn't show up to work. The station has agreed to help with the search so today's guest is Mr. Cooper's boss, Mr. Willcox. Mr.Willcox, would you please tell our listeners about when you realized Mr. Dunn was missing?" The host asked.

"Cooper just never showed up for work yesterday. It ain't like 'em not ta show up. Said 'e was goin' fishin' so I was expectn' 'em ta show up lat, as usual, stinkn' o gin, 'cuz 'ol Cooper can find more drinks than fish, don't ya know?" The boss responded.

"Hmmm... Sounds like maybe he could've gotten into a fishing accident. If you happen to see Mr. Cooper. Please contact the Saratoga police department. That's all the time we have for today! Thank you for listening!"

When Takum finished with the first man, he circled back. The human had tasted better than he had expected. The tiger was more worried about the human he had come with him. Just as the camp came into view, he saw a figure running towards him in fear. The man must have gotten lost during his escape and was now barreling toward the thing he was running from.

The cub pounced as soon as the man was within range. He tore into the man's stomach, the proceeded to rip off the man's limbs. His ears pinned to his head, now wanting to silence the screams. In the end, he ended up tearing off other certain parts. When the tiger managed to decapitate the human, the forest went dead silent. Who knew the man was such a screamer?

With the discovery of the third man's ravaged remains, authorities could no longer delude themselves into thinking that this was the act of a bear. Even a rabid animal indigenous to the area could not account for the disappearance and consumption of three grown men who were no strangers to rural New York.

Searches went on for days. Saratoga Historical was combed one, twice, three times with search dogs and, eventually, the FBI. Not a clue was found, though, from man nor beast. 

Woman and tiger were long gone before anyone realized there was a problem.