[In progress] [4k] [sci-fi/fantasy] [Chronicles of the feline kind]

I’m looking for feedback specifically on pacing and emotional clarity. Does the tension build naturally, or does it feel rushed? Does the environmental shift feel grounded and believable without over-explanation? At this stage, do the cats feel like animals under pressure rather than symbolic stand-ins?

Excerpt: The prey moved wrong, but still moved. Calls were kept low. Spacing held. The wind lay steady. When the laughter came, it came from behind the trees. Bodies turned all at once—too many steps crossing where silence should have been. The forest did not swallow the sound this time. It carried. Some ran. Some froze. The noise ended abruptly. By morning, the clearing lay pressed flat. Grass bent in wide circles where it should have stood tall. No scent of their own remained—only the sharp musk of something that did not belong. That place was not used again.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1aaykK98P5AqaUE-xNnaNRHcewZq5Jmq2A90Jj5gpXT4/edit?usp=drivesdk