[ WP ] A world where Homo sapiens sapiens did not evolve as a social animal .

A masked man knelt beside his fire, inspecting his tools. Tomorrow, the winter breaks, and it was fortunate. His coffer of food had been depleted, and the only things left in his winter cave were the bones and pelts of the animals he had eaten, and the filth he had left behind. Hopefully, come fall, the bugs and lesser beasts would have cleaned up the mess and he would be able to use this cave again. 
 
 He scrunged up a deer antler from the garbage, and began striking his obsidian knife, for it had lost its edge. He would need a fresh edge to butcher his first kill tomorrow. He checked the vines on his hammer, to make sure the stone was affixed to the shaft tightly, else it would not have the force to crush the skull of his prey. As it were a new spring, maybe the masked man would take for himself a bear, still drowsy from the winter sleep. It had no been the first spring he would celebrate with a bear, after all. 
 
 Satisfied with his preparations, the masked man slept, and awaited the next day. 
 
 -- - 
 
 Come the morning sun, the masked man ran his thumb along the edge of his knife. Perfect. He hefted his club. Perfect. He kicked down the camouflage that covered his winter cave, and set out to begin his hunt. 
 
 In the first hour, he performed his ritual. He would strike a tree with his knife, making it as his beginning. He carved the symbol he had used for One, designating the first day of the year. This had been the third time this tree had been marked One. The winter cave has been good to him these past three years. He thanked the cave in his heart, and took a branch from the tree. The masked man threw the branch into the air. When the branch landed, the masked man set off into the direction the branch had pointed. 
 
 Before the masked man would begin his hunt, however, he searched for his old shelter. It had collapsed under the ice and snow, but what he wanted was the thing buried underneath the ruins. A straw-weaved basket, and a coil of weaved rope. The basket would be for the fruits and vegetables he would forage, and the rope be used to drag his prey. He'll fix the shelter in due time. 
 
 The masked man carefully extracted the edible spring figs from the ground, putting it in his basket. He searched for the early spring fruits, but to enjoy such luxury right after winter is only for the overly fortunate. Finally, he spotted a resting deer. 
 
 The masked man carefully approached, silent as the forest breeze, his hand at the ready to toss his club into the animal in a last ditch effort. Fortunately, it seems the deer had not noticed him. He got close, very close, and just as the deer turned its head to look, a massive stone club descended on its nose. The deer was struck with such force that its entire skull fractured, and in a daze, the deer tried to stand and run. It only hastened its death, as the deer's brain rattled in its shredded cage, tearing itself apart. 
 
 The masked man was overjoyed, what a bounty, what a feast, for the first day of spring! He pulled out his knife and began working the kill. He would cut open the stomach. Remove the organs. Bury the organs, so as to have mushroom and vegetables to eat in the future. Then, he would scrape the pelt off of the flesh. While removing the pelt, the masked man noticed something he should have noticed before. There was a wound, a large gash on one of the hind legs of the deer. This was not done by an animal. It was done by another man. 
 
 Worriedly, the masked man looked around. Had he intruded on the hunting ground of someone who had left their winter cave before him? He quickly tied his half-butchered kill with his rope, and began pulling. It was then, that he noticed the distinct odor of a marking. It was the mark of man, who defined his territory. He slowly inched closer to the source of the smell, in case the man who left the mark was still around. He could ascertain whether this man would be a threat based on the marking, and act accordingly. 
 
 It was then, that the masked man was struck from behind by the painted man. The painted man's knife plunged deep, shredding through skin, flesh, bone and organ. As the masked man fell onto the ground, he saw the marking. A thick, log-like fecal matter that extended no less than five palm lengths. The masked man closed his eyes. He had been honorably bested by a superior.
