The deeper Rahul went, the quieter everything else became. No birds. No rustling. Just that sound. It came again. Louder now. Sharper. Not a call. Not a warning. Something else. Rahul slowed down. Careful where he stepped. The ground ahead looked disturbed. Loose soil. Broken patches. Like something heavy had been moving there for a while. Then-
Thud. Closer. Rahul stopped behind a tree and leaned slightly to the side. That’s when he saw it. A large female elephant. Alone. Standing over a patch of churned earth. She wasn’t grazing. Wasn’t moving around. Just lifting her trunk and slamming it into the ground. Hard. Again. And again. Rahul frowned. At first, it almost looked like she was throwing mud onto herself.
Something elephants often did in the heat. But this was different, she did not pause. Did not follow any rhythm. There was only urgency and force.
Rahul stayed still. Watching. Because the longer he looked, the clearer it became. This was nowhere near normal.