Chapter I: A Hunt

The forest meets with a sun as it encroaches upon the horizon and a pair of boots smash against the forest floor. Below, a hunter embeds himself well within his surroundings and makes moves amongst the foliage before daylight. A lean-looking man dressed in brown bear crawls up to a tiny clearing, or at least that’s what someone would see. His camouflage suits the surrounding forest well, as the brush is thick with woody vegetation and greenery.

*Snap* *Crack*

Leaves rustle, and a rabbit flings out of a nearby tree line. The critter soars through the air, launching from the ground up by a small tree snare. It bounces and bobs in the air for help, eventually sagging from the sling shot-like effect of the trap. It begins to twitch and spasm around uncontrollably, likely from smacking the nearby tree trunk.

A dark face and a smile soon met the rabbit.

The hunter approaches slowly, he seeks out the distressed animal and a means to end the rabbit's suffering. He thinks about his family as he steps forward and their needs. He grabs the string of the snare and the wild game hanging from it, quickly snapping its neck.

This was another simple day in the life of a hunter near the remote edges of civilization. Alakar would start his days early in the mornings, avoiding the wife as he would get dressed and grab his pack containing all his needed gear. The forest was a treacherous place with all sorts of foul creatures, monsters, and even the stuff of legends.

However, none of these things would bother Alakar today, and he makes it back to his little cottage and pregnant wife.

He yells, “Helloooo, hun, you in there?!”

Something flies and slams into the wall in front of him; Alakar is unfazed until a voice shouts, "It's too early to be that loud! Why are you back so soon? You wake me up when you leave and then…."

The woman had opened the front door at this point and noticed, shockingly so, that a strong man was carrying food before her.

“Ha, you were saying something?” Alakar makes his way inside the log cabin, now that the mother of his child-to-be is much happier to see him. He takes a right to the third and smallest room within the house and rests three rabbits from this morning's catch on a butcher’s table.

Margrett lunges in from behind in what appears to be a hug, and then it turns almost into a grapple, and she says, "You know I only act that way because I missed you."

Alakar responds, "Oh yes, of course, I believe you,” he's then struck in the shoulder with a soft jab.

"Ouch, just kidding, ha.”

He knew that this type of sarcasm would not pass her unpunished and wished, just once, he’d go unpunished for it.

Margrett says, "I know you think you’re being funny right now, but what are you gonna do the rest of today? I'm assuming these were from the snares, and you didn't shoot anything? You know we need some more food in the coming months?"

He thrusts his finger in the air and shouts, “Fear not, my dear, for I will slay a mighty beast for you!”

He is immediately slapped repeatedly over the head with significant repetitions and strong hands.

She exclaims, "You fool, just get us some horned deer or something... I know you're only kidding, but it's just us out here. I can't lose you."

Silence momentarily ensues under the morning bird chirps. Alakar, who has been stoking the flames, perhaps figuratively, of the cabin's clay fireplace, turns to Margrett with some degree of stupor.

He states, "I have no death wish at this point in my life. Maybe there would have been some questionable times when I was younger, but no more."

Her eyes lit up, and they give each other a real hug this time.

Margrett then says, "I'm glad to hear you say that, like the words of the goddess of air and tranquility to my ears."

He says, "I'm not a god, much less a goddess, ha, and you know I don't believe in that sort of thing."

Margrett says, "Oh, so now you want to be serious all of a sudden. I'll make a stew with these by the time you get back."

He begins to walk outside, and she then huffs and folds her arms up, "And don’t forget… It'd be nice to smoke a good size catch before the season turns. Not even magic will change the season for you."

Alakar says, "I know, I know."

He then walked out of his home, surrounded by rows of crops, patches of grass, and stray flowers. The smell of last night's campfire and sunshine lingered in the air. And leaned up against the side of the cabin was a boar spear, which he quickly picked up along with some extra necessities.

The spear was sharp and priceless out here in the sticks, especially since big game was common, which he relished in. This move out into the woods was justified for one of many reasons, all of which were logical in his head, but the main one was hunting. It was so that he could be closer to more epic hunts. He was a simple man in that regard, and he needed to make a living in this reality.

He straightens up with his gear on his back and looks at her within the doorway, and says, "I'll make sure to be back well before sunset, and when I get back, you can tell me all of those funny arrest stories from your guardsman days again."

As he marches down a dirt path and passes through one of the openings in the fence, she yells out at him, "That's guardswoman to you!"

He glances over his shoulder at her, only to look back to the forest and chuckle at his benign blunder. While tossing his hand up in a waving gesture he seeps back into the woods. Once deep enough into the forest, away from the vast clearing of the homestead, he climbs a tree. He reaches for one branch at a time, allowing his leather boots to place firmly with each step as he ascends.

He smiles and murmurs to himself, "The wife would freak knowing I did this on a regular..."

The leaves had fallen off most of the trees by this time of the year, making it easy to see the surrounding area. There were few trails left that he could use as a sustainable food source, and with winter soon approaching, even the snare traps would cease to feed him and his growing family. The direction leading south would lead to a great plains, while the east and west contained sparse trees or feeble hunting grounds. Only one direction was left, and that was to head north, deeper into the forest.

He scaled down the tree just as carefully and methodically as he came up it. Upon reaching the ground, he checked his surroundings for danger and covered up his traces. He immediately picked up his spear that he left at the tree’s base and carried on with his hunt. The spear would be the best weapon of choice for what he was searching for; a horned deer, a killing machine able to puncture down its foes in a single strike. Such a large animal would make the average human timid if they came too close.

However, fears are swallowed, and Alakar grins at the thought of eventually finding his catch. His thoughts push him onwards as he makes his way through the ever-thickening trees and plant life. The forest feels as if it’s always attempting to grab at him with all its might. Debris and bushes push in from all directions, but he casts them aside without breaking them. The mind soon wanders, and he finds himself moving at a faster and faster pace whilst stewing in his own head.

He eventually hones his focus, realizing that he leads his mind astray more often than he’d like to admit. He stays alert and ready for action as he tunes into the air and other senses that flow in and around him. The forest is lively, and it creates occasionally deafening noises around him inside a maze of green.

The ground remained damp as he traveled. It was wet and covered in leaf litter, yet he was determined to weave through the medium quickly. Alakar looked up at the sky and realized midday had already passed. There was a feeling of impatience within, and it began to swell up inside his chest. He suppressed those feelings, as he was sure an animal trail would come up soon.

It wasn't long until he found a well-used trail and some small unknown tracks. He mulled over the possibilities for what made the tracks only to be distracted by the best sign he'd seen all day… Dung. A lump of heavy, cylindrical proportions. This was no ole pile of crap to a hunter. This was gold, scat from a horned deer. He finished scouring around and carried along with his usual routine for trail huntings: find tracks or signs of easy prey, avoid danger, and post up until the game presents itself - simple.

And simple comes early. The trail is open and wide enough for a man to walk down it unimpeded, and several meters away, a juvenile horned deer comes into view. His adrenaline surges at the sight of the animal.

A little longer, a little more patience, and he would be fat and happy on deer meat. In a bit, the horned deer would measly stroll its way down the trail. Once realizing the danger too late, it would charge with its single antler in self-defense. He had it all planned out in his head. Before the horned deer charged, he'd ready his spear in an effort to cause the deer to impale itself. The deer would become easy pickings to any hungry creature once a spear had been ran through it.

Only moments passed by, and Alakar's eyes beamed out of a bush as the brown deer covered in dots of white came into view. He began to grip the soles of his boots with his toes and shuffle his feet ever so slightly. Then, out of nowhere, a new sound stole his attention.

*Bizzzzzzz* *Bizzzzzz* *Bzzzzzzz*

Confusion stirs, and he starts looking at his flanks, only for the buzzing to get louder. He looks up in shock, no words are said, and he bolts forward. Unfortunately, he flees right into the direction of his prey, gritting his teeth in the moment of a poor decision. The horned deer is startled by the buzzing and sounds of running, and charges with its horn aimed at the perpetrator.

Out of panic and limited area to move, he dives under the deer's legs. The animal fails to aim low enough, and he shoots through the legs of the deer yet not unharmed. He gets to one knee on the other side, acknowledging a couple damaged fingers, and sprints further into the forest. He runs as fast as he can, not bothering to cover his tracks or minimize his noise.

After a full length of sprinting, he stops and tries to catch his breath. He breathes heavily, pushing his hands down atop his thighs to lighten himself while trying to listen for more buzzing. Finally breaking his code of 'forest silence,' he openly complains to himself, "Damn, those insects, bugs are nasty, and they should never be that big!"

A woodsman was accustomed to many dangers of the forest, few men like himself were going to be dissuaded from a few bug encounters, but stirges were no house fly. He could recall for a brief moment what he saw. The pest had the wings of a bat and the body of a mosquito. This one, in particular, was red and sported a gnarly-looking needle. A swarm of those bloodsuckers could be deadly for any hunter, and there was little option but to run. When he finally caught his breath and focus, a sound crept back into his vicinity.

*Bizzzzzzzz* *Bzzzzzzzz*

They are too fast, and a shooting sound strikes through the air, following Alakar’s yelp, “Ah! You damn buggers, you won’t have me today!”

He violently flings his spear in the air at what now appears to be tens of stirges swarming at once. The trees are thick, yet he wails his spear around anyway. With great precision and luck, he skewers one out of the air, leaving green insect goo splattering towards him. Paying no heed to the mess, he continues to fling the spear around, hoping to nick the many stirges surrounding him. They buzz, encircle, and jab relentlessly.

The spear worked briefly, yet in this situation, his weapon was proving to be not ideal, as it was meant for a larger target like the horned deer.

*Poink* *Poink*

“Ahhh,” and he cries out in shock!

This time a couple of the stirges punctured his leather vest, taking deep sips of blood and nutrients with each successful puncture.

One of the little bat-winged monsters hovers in the air, and amongst the chaos, he seizes the opportunity to down another stirge. He swings his spear at it, and to his surprise, the hovering bug moves at the last second, and the spear strikes a tree instead. The abrupt stoppage of the swing causes him to stumble over his feet, and he goes down onto his side with a thud. The swarm, as a collective, senses weakness, and it dives onto him. In a fleeting moment, he throws himself out of the way from several stabs.

From a crawl to a slow pace, he leans forward into another exhausting sprint and curses, “Damn it all, and damn these bugs!”

He wasn’t sure how long he’d been running, but it was getting to the point where the night sky would soon set. His lungs were on the verge of bursting, and he didn’t have much stamina leftover to give. The legs beneath him were giving out too, and to make matters worse, the terrain had become soggy. Yet he saw hope, something he’d used before while traversing his backyard - a large burrow that the endless swarm shouldn’t follow him into.

These types of burrows could act as temporary shelter, assuming you checked it beforehand for inhabitants. He briefly considered the pissed-off herbivore that likely lived in that burrow, but those were problems for the later him, and this was the now.

Exhausted yet willing, he plunges into the damp darkness of a random burrow while a swarm is hot on his tail.

Alakar falls through the air, screaming, “Woooo Aaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!”

He soon understood that this hole went much deeper than he anticipated.

*Bam* *Crunch*