ESTHER

Nature sucked, it was filled with weird smells, flying insects especially those fucking mosquitoes that never seem to stop whining when they fly by, and then there’s the sounds of animals that most of the time she couldn’t see. It wouldn’t be much of a stretch to say that she was afraid of the forest, I mean who wouldn’t, it was the most unpredictable place to be, whether you’re on earth or Zion.

Esther was born and bred in a city, and she loved the tall buildings, the neighborhoods, the estates, the slums and polluted air that was just filled with noxious gases and juicy lies. You would never be able to find those kind of excitement in a forest, the only thing you are sure to find was most probably death by being stung, or being eaten by some plants. Besides in every crime drama or movie she has ever watched, the forest is the place where killers always like to ply their craft.

“There’s nothing to be worried about baby, the forest is not that bad.” Her father tried to comfort her. Though he had less success than expected.

“No offense daddy, but the forest is that bad. I’m not supposed to kill anything, but this damn place is designed to make me murderous. Not to mention this place is creepy, let’s just hurry up and go.” Esther complained.

“Oh is little miss perfect and beautiful scared of a bunch of bugs……. Seriously?, you can have some of the most dangerous men in the city eating out of the palm of your hands, all with the danger of loosing that hand in the next second, but you’re afraid of flies. This is shameful.” Faith belated with a rather harsh voice.

“The only thing that would be shameful would be me slapping the hell out of that disrespectful mouth of yours and stripping you in the process so that the mosquitoes can have a wonderful breakfast.” Esther was already angry that she had to hike through this forest, but Faith making fun of her was rapidly pushing her to a point of no return, and she might just as swell slap the hell out of the teenager.

“Okay that’s enough from the both of you. Faith you should be more respectful, Esther is not your mate, she’s older and you should give her the respect she deserves. But Esther Faith is right, it’s not that bad, so you should stop complaining about the environment, after all you’re not the only one here.” Nathaniel spoke up trying to diffuse the situation. However.

“Why am I not surprised. You’re taking her side again. What a loving big brother.” Esther commented with sarcasm dripping with every word that came from her mouth.

“What are you talking about Esther I don’t take sides.” Nathaniel defended.

“Oh but you do little brother, you do. You take one look at me and its as if you’re looking at your worst enemy. But Faith is all so pure and innocent in your eyes, and you have to love and protect her from the dangers of the world. To you Nathaniel Omaye, you don’t have two sisters, you have one. The other is just an accessory!” Esther shouted at him.

But Nathaniel was not going to take being shouted at, least of all by Esther of all people. It’s always been a point of pride that he considered himself better than her, that as far as sins go, he got the better end of the deal.

“Well do you blame me, huh. Who would you choose, a sister that betrays you by constantly fucking you’re enemies and giving you a bad name. Or the sister that’s there for you when you need her!.”

“You’re alive today Nathaniel because I’ve been constantly fucking your enemies!. You had money to eat and waste on drugs because I was constantly fucking your enemies!. And you stand there in front of me to tell that a piece of crap teenager who thinks we’re a burden and a curse to her that she has been there for you. My God then those drugs messed up your head a whole lot more than I expected.

You think Faith cares about you, she would take the opportunity to leave us behind at a drop of a heart and never look back. And that’s the person you say have your back. I came back every time, I had to fuck dirty old men who don’t know the meaning of the word shower, to bail you out of jail too many times to count. I had to pay the same equal price to take you to the hospital whenever you overdosed. You who I love and care about the most.

The things I do for you, I never do for our father, our mother, or that pretending bitch of a little sister you chose over me. I’ve read her diaries you know, do you know what she calls you in it. She says you’re a needy fool with no direction in life, and absolutely no idea of how to be a man. She feels you’re a burden that she would happily like to dump and be free of. And if you think I’m lying ask her yourself.

Nathaniel was at loss for words, and when he turned to Faith probably expecting her to disagree with every word Esther had spoken, to reassure him that it was all a lie, all he met was silence. Faith could not even look at him in the face. And Esther loved every crease of agony and betrayal on his face, he deserved every bit of it.

For someone who saw the world very differently and better than most people, he was incredibly blind. Well now he has hit his foot on a stone, Esther was sure the agony was sweet. She hurt him, but she also couldn’t understand why there were tears streaming down her face.

NATHANIEL

Nathaniel was every familiar with the feeling of guilt. It was a part of the reason why he was here in Zion, and not out there frying with the rest of the human race who were not lucky enough to get a spot here. But this time it hit him really hard, he was angry and some part of him was relishing the fact that tears were streaming down her face.

But at this moment, he had no idea who was more hurt between the two of them. Esther had said so many things that hit close to home, she was right; about a lot of things. And chief among them was how blind he was too the love his sister had for him. He wanted nothing more than to deny everything she had said, that somehow, he was not as much of a scumbag as she just said he was.

Nathaniel was different than most nineteen year olds, and this was mostly attributed to the way he grew up, he has a penchant for making bad decisions, based on every slight deviation of his thoughts and emotions.

But he was someone who knew how to admit his faults, it was always the hardest thing to do, admitting he was wrong. But Nathaniel also took pride in that aspect of his life, he knew how and the best way to say sorry.

But before he could open his mouth to apologize, the yowl of a huge cat was heard as the beast which had been bidding its time quietly struck.

The huge cat, that looked like a breed between a cat, and a unicorn and due to the four eyes and mandibles at the edge of its jaw of razor sharp teeth, a spider. And it was with horror Nathaniel watched those fearsome jaws take a bite out of his father’s shoulder.

Nathaniel was petrified with fright, and in the background he could hear the screams of his sisters and the painful wails of his father. But Nathaniel was dead to the world, face to face with a personification of death in front of him, Nathaniel had froze.

He could do nothing but watch in abject horror as spider like cat, with a spiral like horn between its four red eyes, chewed on the piece of his father it had taken. It kept watch on Nathaniel while it chewed, blood dripped down its jaws coming to rest together with a pool of saliva underneath the beast. The cat was not that big, it was only about the size of a large dog, however its bizarre look gave it an aura that made it even more terrifying than expected.

And then it moved, it shot straight into a sprint that saw a cloud of dust left in its wake. The grace attributed to cats when they run or hunt was missing from this beast, instead there was an awkward prancing that gave the little beast huge strides with every step it took. But it was coming, and Nathaniel could still not move.

When it was a few feet away, the cat leaped, and Nathaniel felt someone push him from behind. And then he heard a scream, he turned around to see Faith clutching at the side of her face. It seems the cat scratched her as it flew over them after the failure of its evaded attack.

But it suddenly chose to ignore them, going after the ones he considered really weak. And in this case, it was Esther and their father, who was still bleeding profusely on the ground and being nursed by Esther.

Immediately it moved Nathaniel did too, he did not think, he did not consider he just moved. Every step he took he felt like his chest was on fire, but he felt somehow right running among the trees. It was a wonderful feeling, but not one that Nathaniel had any time to explore.

He tackled the cat that was in mid pounce, crashing to forest floor with the beast amongst a heap of dead grass, tree roots and flashing claws. He received more than his own fair share of scratches, but at least his sisters and father were okay. Then he heard Faith shouting behind him.

“Nathaniel come back, we need to regroup. If we’re to spread out, it will give the cat to many easy targets to go after, non of us are strong enough to fight it alone.”

Nathaniel did not see the wisdom in her suggestions, but non the less he felt she was right about sticking together. He scrambled up from his position amidst the pile of dead leaves and rotten fruit to make his way to his family. Esther was so focused on healing their father she seemed to have closed her self off to the world, though it did not seem like she was having to much luck. As soon as they were together Faith handed Nathaniel a sturdy three feet long stick. He had no idea where she got it from, but the damn thing felt so rough in his hands.

Nathaniel took a stance in front of his family, and for the first time in his life, felt the pressure of what it meant to really stand in the line for others. He could just as easily drop his stick and make a run for it, with how messed up his family was, he would have only lost a few weeks of sleep. But at that moment, he could not imagine turning his back on them, that was not his way.

“Nathaniel you have to keep your cool, with Dad out for the count, you’re the only line of defense and attack we have. Be calm everything is going to be just fine.” Faith said, trying to instill confidence in Nathaniel, whose hands were shaking badly and unable to keep the stick straight.

On a normal day, it would have been easy to make fun of Nathaniel for being afraid of this overgrown house cat, no matter how dangerous it was. But Nathaniel was still very much in shock, he has had to beat other people down, when he was part of a cult, he was no stranger to blood and broken limbs. But this was different, that was his own father lying there, and no matter how he looked at it, the fault laid completely with him.

But the [four eyed spider cat] would not let him experience the intricacies of self guilt and loathing as the tiny beast pounced again. Nathaniel was caught of guard, but he was able to recover in time to swing and smash the stick into the cat’s face, breaking the make shift weapon in the process.

The cat crashed to the ground at his feet dazed from the hit, then he heard faith shout behind him.

“use your skill, use shock.”

Nathaniel at this point was just like a robot under orders and he quickly bent down to place his hands on the smooth fur of the four eyed cat. Activating skills was based on understanding the intricacies behind them. The skill shock, at a low level was unable to draw electricity from the atmosphere, rather it used the electrical currents within the body of a living thing to cause it harm. The skill amplified the circulation of electricity in any living body, and disrupts its flow for maximum damage.

As soon as Nathaniel placed his hands on the Cat to use the skill, he could feel it. Not just the electrical currents within its body, but its entire being, it past, its present and its future. He could understand its instincts, its nature and its need. There was nothing evil about this beast beneath him, she was only an amalgamation of nature and instinct.

She was a part of nature, and member of an integral circle and ecosystem. She was part of a carefully structured natural order that sees her the predator of many inhabitants in this forest, and today she was Nathaniel’s prey. He understood her, he felt her, and he was her. But the life of his family depended on his next action. So even though he did not really want to do this, he had no choice.

“I’m sorry, but you have to die.”

[SHOCK]

[SHOCK]

[SHOCK].

With each subsequent release of that skill, Nathaniel felt the cat’s body jerk and shake as it convulsed in pain. It’s screams tore through the gloom of the forest as it screamed out in pain and abject horror. Nathaniel could feel everything he did to this animal, it was a harrowing feeling that left a hole deep inside of him.

As it drew closer and closer to death, Nathaniel could feel it, right at the back of his head. Like a clawing and growing headache that would never go away, the very idea that he held a life within his hands placed a pressure on him. But it was not the only one.

“Nathaniel hurry up, its cries might attract other animals here.” Faith berated him in a hurried voice.

And so Nathaniel put more focus to his task, sending wave after wave of electric shocks into the body of the cat. When it finally stopped breathing, it was not the smell of burnt flesh, or the still body beneath his hands that told him the cat was gone.

It was the pressure at the back of his head suddenly disappearing, and the fact that he could see the spirit of the damn cat looking at him. It was a weird experience, and extremely terrifying. He could not read the look on the face of the cat as it looked at him, but it left him very unsettled. Then the apparition of the cat split into two glowing orbs of light, with one going straight into the ground, returning to the nature it was birthed from, and the other flew straight into his chest. Then a system prompt rang out.

[SYSTEM ALERT: BATTLE: YOU HAVE SLAIN THE FOUR EYED SPIDER CAT. YOU HAVE RECEIVED 50 EXP, AND ONE FOUR EYED SPIDER CAT BODY. YOU ARE NOW LEVEL 3, ALL STATS INCREASED BY 2]

[THE SKILL SHOCK HAS LEVELED UP FROM 1~2, DAMAGE INCREASED BY 3%]

[CONGRATULATIONS YOU HAVE GAINED CLASS SKILL DRUID SIGHT DUE TO YOUR KEEN PERCEPTION AND CONNECTION WITH NATURE. THE HIDDEN STAT PERCEPTION HAS BEEN UNLOCKED. (THE PERCEPTION STATS CAN NOT HAVE STAT POINTS ALLOCATED TO IT.)]

[ANALYSIS: POOR: YOU SHOULD LEARN HOW TO SWING THAT STICK PROPERLY, AND NEXT TIME TRY NOT TO OVERCOOK THE MONSTER.]

FAITH

[SYSTEM ALERT: BATTLE: YOU HAVE TAKEN PART IN THE SLAYING OF A FOUR EYE SPIDER CAT. YOU HAVE RECEIVED 30 EXP. YOU ARE NOW LEVEL 3, ALL STATS INCREASED BY 2]

[CONGRATULATIONS, YOU HAVE GAINED THE HIDDEN STAT FORESIGHT DUE TO YOUR INCREDIBLY EFFECTIVE COMMAND OF THE BATTLEFIELD.]

[ANALYSIS: NEXT TIME TRY DOING MORE THAN JUST STANDING BACK AND SCREAMING ORDERS LIKE DRAGON IN ITS MATING SEASON.]

All stats increased by two yet she did not feel any different. But that aside she did not really care for a stat gain at the moment. She hurried over to her father’s side with Nathaniel hot on her heels. Esther did not even twitch when they came beside her, but Faith could hear Nathaniel suck in a breath of air in shock. The top part of their father’s right shoulder and a little of his neck had been chewed off by the cat. It was obvious the little bastard was going after his neck before deviating off course, which ended up leaving their father with a gaping wound in his neck and shoulder.

There was so much blood, and it seemed the cat had bit too deep, because Faith could see abrasions on their father’s blood covered bone.

“We need to get out of here.” Nathaniel’s shaking voice broke through the silence.

Faith rolled her eyes at how weak he seemed to be, sometimes she wondered if Nathaniel was the one who was meant to be born a girl, while she and Esther would have done much better in the world as boys. But non the less she agreed with him about moving and she gave Esther enough reasons for that.

“He’s right we have to leave, the previous battle and the smell of blood will probably be attracting more animals or monsters to this place. And it has already been hard enough taking down one tiny cat, I can not imagine us taking on any more.”

Esther's glowing hands did not waver for one bit as she gave Faith an answer with enough sting in it to kill an elephant.

“If you two idiots decide to move him from here, then he would be dead in seconds. My heal magic is not at a high enough level, as I have only been able to stop the bleeding to an extent. With parts of his body missing there’s not much I can do. Moving him will aggravate his wounds, so unless you want him to die then you can carry on with your current train of thought, but if not……. Find another solution and fast, I don’t know how much longer I can hold on for.”

Faith was rather taking aback by how rude she sounded, this entire scenario was not her fault. If any one was to blame, it was both Esther and Nathaniel who thought it would be a good idea to argue out loud about stupid and inconsequential things in the middle of a forest.

She shook her head in exasperation as she turned to Nathaniel to relay some instructions. Faith has always been able to take charge and exercise control over the nineteen year old Nathaniel. The twenty two year old Esther how ever was a different matter, and today Faith finally found out why.

And the reason was really funny because, basically they were three sisters torn in between the love of a single brother, a love that Faith absolutely did not give a damn about. Esther would never bow her head to her, because she was jealous…….. Seriously. It seemed that with every day that passed, this crazy family of theirs, got even more crazier than expected.

“Nathaniel you need to gather some firewood, its still morning but if we’re going to be here for a while we need to be prepared. Also you need to pick the firewood by canvassing a perimeter, so you can’t go past a fifteen meter radius around the camp. If you see anything dangerous, run around the perimeter and try to loose it, you can try climbing a tree. But under no circumstances will you lead anything dangerous into this camp. We can’t sit still on our asses, but we also have to be careful.

I will also join you, but my mission is a little different than yours, I have to gather some herbs. If I’m lucky I should be able to identify a few herbs that can bring a body’s temperature down or cause paralysis. That way we can slow or completely eliminate the chance of bleeding. Do you understand.”

Nathaniel gave her an absent nod and trudged into the forest noisily, there was no sense of carefulness and urgency in the way that he walked, but Faith could not hear any sound. In mere moments she lost sight of him, it was almost as if he had become one with the forest and could not be distinguished from the millions of trees around.

Faith shook the weird experience from her mind and wandered into the forest with her father’s bow and arrow leaving Esther behind with a dying man, and defenseless.