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The Brothers were a pair of Smilodon who appeared in the fifth episode of Walking with Beasts. Together, they served as the episodes main antagonists.
Biography[]
The Take-Over []
The Brothers were initially introduced as nomads, who had recently wandered into the territory of the episodes main protagonist and fellow Smilodon Half-Tooth. As the pair threatened to usurp Half-Tooth's position as his clans alpha male and take over his territory, it did not take long for the pair to establish themselves as his rivals. From the get go, The Brother's held the advantage, as they were working together against him.
Not long afterwards, the pair made their move, challenging their rival for dominance. Half-Tooth met two Smilodon head on and a short skirmish followed. Ultimately, the brothers chased Half-Tooth off, or more accurately Half-Tooth wisely chose to back down, knowing that the two younger males were too strong for him to take on. Half-Tooth was forced to flee into the nearby scrub forest, where he could easily monitor his old clan. Importantly though, Half-Tooth escaped the battle without any serious injuries.
Following their take over however, the new leaders faced a problem. The clans females were fiercely protective of their young cubs and, knowing what The Brothers would do to them, refused to let the new males anywhere near themselves or their little ones. Over the next few weeks, The Brothers killed Half-Tooth's cubs and are also implied to have driven out the adolescent males, allowing only the females to stay. Once this was done, the pair finally gained full control of the clan.
The Death of The Brothers[]
For the next few weeks, all was well with the Smilodon group. Food was plentiful and it appeared as though The Brothers were all set to become efficient leaders. That all changed when the clan was feeding on a fresh kill and a Megatherium showed up. Wanting to eat the meat as dietary supplement, the giant sloth approached the Smilodon clan. The dominant brother did not appreciate this and tried to chase away the intruder, but the sloth was not intimidated. Rearing onto its hind legs, the sloth simply smacked the saber-tooth aside, killing him and prompting the others to flee.
This simple act, changed the fate of the clan forever. With the loss of his brother, the surviving, formerly subordinate male now found himself the sole leader. Without his brothers support, both he and the females were on edge. Despite these set backs, he attended to his duties, unaware that danger was lurking just round the corner. Shortly after the death of his brother, the young male was drinking from a stream, when he heard another Smilodon call out to him in challenge. It was Half-Tooth!
The former king had sensed the demise of one rival and now, seizing the opportunity, was attempting to reclaim his former throne. To do this though, he needed to defeat the surviving Brother. Three months after their original encounter, the two rivals prepared to face off once again; this time though, it would be a one and one fight. The pair did not hold back, engaging one another in a short, but brutal skirmish. In the end though, it was the Brother who retreated. In a reversal of fortunes, it was now Half-Tooth who saw his rival off, whilst roaring triumphantly.
As it turned out, Half-Tooth had done more than just see off his rival. He had not only defeated, but fatally injured him. The last Brother succumbed to his injuries later that same day, with his carcass getting scavenged by some Terror Birds. With his death, The Brothers reign came to an end.
Trivia[]
- In the book version of Sabre Tooth the last brother survives the confrontation with Half Tooth, though he loses a saber tooth himself.
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