This was one of the few conclusions that came to mind, but Gwen didn't want to entertain such thoughts so she kept this assumption to herself, rather than letting Rick know about this.
The last thing she would want, was to trigger his previous fears again.
All she ever wanted was for Rick to depend on her and the Chieftess, because the two of them were prepared to do anything to protect him, and nothing about that had changed.
"So, what do you think Rick? Since the next menhir awakening is the day after tomorrow, do you still feel like taking part in it?"
"I don't know." Rick replied honestly.
"Good, because I don't want you to go. And you don't have to."
"I don't?"
"No. We'll convince Grandmother Ophelia to help us persuade the elders."
"How is she going to do that?"
"She'll tell them you won't be taking part because mother isn't here yet, and only when mother is present will you be allowed to do yours."
"Where is she?"
"Who? Mother?"
"Yes."
"She's currently dealing with the Night Clan, who are trying to force us into taking part in their war."
"Huh? War?"
"Yeah, but it's nothing to worry about."
"???" Rick furrowed his brow as he tried to understand how war was somehow not something to worry about.
And so he asked. "But what if the Night Clan gets here?"
"That won't be possible because mother won't let them. And if by some slim chance they actually do get here, Grandmother Ophelia will destroy them all with just a sneeze." Gwen explained this with such a calm and straight face that Rick's forehead broke into a cold sweat almost immediately.
'Huh? 'Did she just say our grandmother would destroy a whole clan with just a sneeze?'
'Yeehee. She must be joking right.....right??!!' Rick chuckled inwardly as he tried to wrap his head around what he had just heard.
He stared at Gwen's expression as he looked for any sign that suggested his big sister was exaggerating what she had said just now.
But there was none.
In fact, she looked completely and genuinely convinced of every word she had just said.
'So, our grandmother can destroy a whole clan with a sneeze? How is she not a monster?'
'Were primitive people supposed to be this strong?'
'First, I just heard my mother singlehandedly took out a huge bear on her own.'
'Now, it seems my grandmother is demigod.' He thought in a joking tone but Gwen's voice dragged him out of his thoughts.
"So, like I said Rick, we have nothing to worry about because mother is strong enough to handle the threat on her own. Also, don't forget about this." Gwen gestured to the pelt they were currently wrapped in, reminding him of how their mother had singlehandedly brought down the beast it came from.
Rick nodded in understanding and silence filled the cave once again.
The two simply stared at each other until Gwen began to smile softly.
"I like this." she said softly.
"What?"
"This. You, me, and us, just staring at each other. I like it."
"Oh, um. I like it too."
"Don't get me wrong Rick. I'm still upset about what Zok did to you, but I'm glad he's dead now. So we won't have to worry about him anymore."
'Wait what?' Rick's eyes widened in surprise.
'Did she just say Zok was dead?'
A few minutes ago, when he had just woken up in his new body and Gwen had bombarded him with questions about what he had been doing in the woods, she had asked about Zok as well.
At the time, Rick had assumed Zok must have been something like a bully.
He assumed Zok had to be someone who enjoyed pushing the previous Rick around until things got too far out of hand.
But Rick never would have imagined Zok would end up dead so quickly because of what he had done.
"Did you kill him?" he asked.
"No, it wasn't me. But with what he did to you, he should count himself lucky I wasn't around to break his bones myself." Gwen gritted her teeth as she clenched her fist, already imagining what she would have done to Zok if he were still alive right now.
Seeing this, Rick couldn't help but smile at the sight of someone feeling so genuinely upset on his behalf.
It felt strange and comforting at the same time, because it showed just how much his big sister truly cared about him.
"But if you didn't hurt Zok, then who did?"
"Well, right after you sneaked out of the tribe and into the woods, Phyllis said she saw you while she was carrying out an errand for Grandmother Ophelia."
"However, Phyllis also noticed Zok and his friends trailing right behind you. She said they began to start a fight with you, so Phyllis ran back to tell Grandmother Ophelia everything she saw."
"Luckily, your friend Grog was nearby. So he heard what Phyllis told grandmother, then he ran to find you before beating up Zok himself. Zok's friends joined in, but Grog fought against them all on his own. The fight got intense and neither side stopped until a beast jumped out of the forest and pounced on Zok."
"By then you were already bleeding, so Phyllis thinks the beast might have been pulled in by the scent of your blood. Zok's friends ran the moment they saw the beast, but Grog stayed behind to protect you until Grandmother Ophelia arrived to kill the beast."
"Then they rushed you back to the tribe, but you were still bleeding, and that's when I arrived to find you not breathing. I was afraid because I thought you had died."
"But thankfully, the spirits heard our prayers."
"I was afraid of losing you, and I didn't know what I would have done if you weren't around. But I'm truly thankful to the spirits for listening to us for once." Gwen explained as she tried to smile, and Rick remained silent as everything finally began to make sense to him.
If his predecessor had been hungry, or had simply wanted to prove himself ready to become a hunter in front of the elders, then it made sense for him to have ventured into the woods alone.
But as he sneaked out, Zok and his friends must have spotted him leaving and followed.
Fortunately, a girl, called Phyllis had been watching from nearby, and if it weren't for her going back to tell Grandmother Ophelia what she saw, Grog wouldn't have made it in time.