Eight 2: Chapter 18

A handful of teams were already gathered in the lodge’s courtyard. They busily checked over their gear, while making small talk. The hunters’ actions were familiar and easy going, but there was also an intensity of attention. They honed blades, oiled leather, tightened straps, and made sure every other possible detail was attended to.

Billisha and Aluali seemed to recognize the mood in the air. They wished me a safe hunt, then left so I could get to work. We’d caught up during the walk to the Hunter’s Lodge, but there’d always be more to talk about. From what I’d heard about their stay in Voorhei without me, they’d been busy.

I found my team inside. Mumu and Haol stood among a gathering of the more senior hunters around one of the butchering tables. Inleio pointed to a map spread out on the table as he briefed them on the plan for the day’s hunt, assigning sections of the forest to each of them.

Meanwhile, the rest of my team sat nearby listening in, with Tegen whispering a running commentary for Teila. He waved me over and had me sit next to her.

The hunt would last two days, and the goal was to remove as many threats to the village as possible from the local area. If we spotted any regular prey—say, a deer or turkey—we’d leave them alone, as it’d take time to dress the kills and transport them back to Voorhei. No, our targets were any creatures with the potential to threaten Voorhei, now or in the future.

Tegen walked Teila and me through the supplies we’d bring and the reasoning behind each. The man was a good teacher, and that was reflected in his talents.

I glanced at Teila to refresh my memory.

Teila was unusual in that she wasn’t even ten yet. She’d become an apprentice before the other villager kids had the opportunity to do so.

Ten was the age when children technically became adults. Or more accurately, they took the first steps of a five-year process toward adulthood, becoming full-fledged adults at fifteen.

Anyway, at ten years old, every human being, assuming they hadn’t absorbed silver or darklight beforehand, became Level 1. They also tended to get their first attribute to rank 10 around that time, and as a result they awakened their second talent. That was why most people waited until kids were ten to decide whether to take them on as apprentices or not.

Previously, when I had asked Teila about her early apprenticeship, she had told me an exception had been made for her, because both her parents were hunters and everyone had high expectations for her Wood-Wise talent. That was also why she’d been assigned to Mumu’s team. Besides, the lodge apparently had a practice of splitting up hunters from the same family.

The two of us listened to Tegen intently. While I was comfortable enough in the wilderness these days, that was with me doing my absolute best to avoid trouble. This time, though, we’d be searching for it, so I was willing to listen to all the advice I could get.

Tegen had just finished going through the day’s schedule when Ghitha Woldecsbrother walked through the door with three strangers behind him. Two of the three were men and wore brigandine, while the third, a woman, wore a jerkin with a thickly quilted shirt underneath. All carried spears, bows, and packs similar to the ones we were preparing for the day’s hunt.

If the gear wasn’t enough of a clue, each of them also had a sharpness to their eyes, a presence that spoke of the Way of the Hunter. I took a look with the Status camera.

Damn, all three are dawn. Just what level are these guys?

The room quieted when the locals noticed the strangers among them. Inleio gestured for the hunters to clear a path.

“Ghitha, welcome. What have you brought with you on your return from Albei?”

Ghitha nodded to Inleio, but when he spoke, his words were directed to the room. “I have brought help for the lodge. These three are great hunters, and there are another two waiting outside our gate. They are my gift, so that all the hunters may return safely.”

Inleio frowned. “We have spoken about this before: we will not hunt the King of the Forest. The kalihchi bear is too dangerous. Your revenge would threaten the wellbeing of this lodge.”

Huh. It looks like there’s been some drama while I’ve been away.

Ghitha glared at Inleio. “Revenge is not the reason for my visit, but if it so happens the lodge recognizes the prowess of these hunters, then we can talk again. With the right preparations and the right leadership, the King of the Forest is no king at all. He is merely prey for our spears.”

I looked toward Tegen in confusion, and he leaned down to whisper in my ear.

“Ghitha has placed a bounty of two antaak on the head of the kalihchi bear, who we call the King of the Forest. The hunters are undecided on the wisdom of this action.”

I nodded in thanks and glanced around the room. Most of the hunters seemed to be dismissive of the idea, but there were a few who seemed to be considering it.

“This is foolishness,” Inleio said, his frown deepening.

“It is not. Danger now or danger later during the Long Dark? What is the difference, except in how we prepare for it? I, for one, would rather we be the hunters than the hunted. My brother—”

“Your brother is dead,” Inleio said. “And even when he lived, he was not the master of this lodge, though you and he often forgot that truth. To his detriment, he did not heed my advice. I will not have the same thing happen to my other hunt brothers and sisters.”

Ghitha’s face was a storm of barely contained emotions. “If the kalihchi bear had been properly dealt with from the beginning, my brother and family would still be alive.”

“This lodge has hunted the bear twice before. We will not make the same mistake a third time.”

“The only mistake—” Ghitha started, then bit back the rest of his words. He took a deep breath and straightened his shoulders. “We are arguing for nothing. Today’s hunt is in the service of the village, and these hunters are my gift to it. Later, once they have demonstrated their skill, I will come again with an offer to each hunter here—a generous offer. And each of the hunters can decide on their own whether or not to participate.”

“They will not,” Inleio said. “They know the danger.”

“We shall see,” Ghitha said. He turned around and swept out of the lodge, nodding to the hunter named Banan as he went.

Banan gave the room an embarrassed smile. “We seem to have stumbled into a family argument. Let me assure you, though, that we are all brothers and sisters here. My team and I will do our best to fulfill our obligations and keep this village safe. We have walked the Way of the Hunter for many, many years, and you can rely on us to be your spear.”

He had an easy way of looking each person in the eye and explaining his team’s purpose. Yes, their employer had hired them with the aim of eventually hunting the kalihchi bear, but for now they were here to support the lodge’s hunt.

Eventually, once the introductions were done, the discussion about the day’s hunt continued. Mumu’s team was recognized as the strongest in the lodge and, as such, was given the area bordering the kalihchi bear’s territory. There’d also been signs of a giant javelina traveling through, as well as a wolf pack expanding their hunting grounds. The wolves seemed to be skirting around the bear’s territory.

That was a lot of activity uncomfortably close to the village, so Banan’s team was assigned the area next to ours. The thinking was that these two strong teams should be able to handle anything thrown their way.

Mumu scouted ahead, while Haol kept an eye on our backtrail and Tegen watched over Teila and me. I’d learned previously that this one-three-one formation was used by every team in the lodge.

The hours passed, the cool air disappearing around mid-morning and the temperature steadily rising over the rest of the day. We stuck to the shade where we could, but the increasing humidity meant there was no true escape from the heat.

At lunch, I cast Cold Snap on the shady side of a boulder, and that provided a brief respite. We ate our jerky practically glued to the cool stone. The hunters had scoffed when they’d learned about the Cold Snap spell, but the relief it brought forced them to reconsider the spell’s utility. I got head pats from the adults, and even shy Teila said a word of thanks.

An hour later, we spotted a beautiful stag drinking from a stream running through a ravine. Each and every one of us sighed to see him bound off.

Twenty minutes after that, we came across a group of three children, all blank faced. One seemed older, a boy standing a head taller than the others, while the other two were a boy and girl. All their clothes were simple but clean, and they sat under the shade of an oak tree. Just staring into space, waiting.

Mumu spotted them first, and she had the rest of us carefully approach. It was pretty obvious that they were false ones. Still, she was obligated to step out into the open and challenge their humanity. Then, if they turned out to be monsters, the adults would kill the larger of the three, and the apprentices would handle the smaller ones.

Well, Mumu didn’t need to go to the trouble. My Status camera told me quite plainly that they were false ones. I shared the information with Mumu using Signed Diaksh, and credited the observation to my spirit eyes.

Mumu grinned at me. “So useful, our Little Pot,” she signed back.

At that, Haol was free to snipe the largest of the false ones, while Teila and I planned to shoot at the other two. He’d be using Spiral Pierce to ensure the kill, while Teila cast the only spell she knew, Camouflage. Tegen counted us down so that we could all release at the same time.

Haol’s arrow punched right through and nailed his target to the oak tree. Two more of his arrows followed quickly after, making sure it was dead. Teila and I also hit our targets, but our arrows didn’t have the potency of Spiral Pierce. We managed four releases each—our targets looking like pincushions by the time they shambled into spear’s reach.

Teila faded back to keep shooting, her Camouflage keeping her hidden, but I stepped forward with my spear. I’d been practicing and wanted to see how far I’d come. Tegen stood nearby, as did Mumu and Haol.

My heart was racing and my palms were sweaty, but I felt ready. I held the spear, and mentally rehearsed the proper forms for thrusting. I reminded myself of the critical components. Stay on the balls of the feet, twist the hips, attack from the core, and extend through the target.

Inside me, I felt the uekisheile spin up my qi into the patterns required for Dog’s Agility. The world slowed down, and my breathing eased. The false ones approached, and the one on the right split open to expose the swamp-green beak and ruffles hidden inside. The beak opened early, the creature anxious to bite and rend.

The beak was too tough for our arrows to pierce, but the interior flesh was soft. An arrow from Teila flashed past me and plunged into the false one’s exposed flesh. The creature fell to the ground, though its companion cared not at all. It also split and opened its mouth at me.

I flashed forward like the arrow, the spear point catching the inside of the false one’s upper beak. I pushed and followed the line down into the soft center—using the impact to knock the creature off its feet. The flesh squelched as I drove it down, and then I lifted the spear free and struck again. Then I realized Teila’s creature was in my blindside, so I stepped around to make sure I could see it. Her false one was still on the ground writhing.

Once I was sure mine was dead, I also gave Teila’s target a coup de grâce. Both of us waited a few minutes longer to see if anything else popped out of the woods, but nothing did. Teila let go of her Camouflage spell, her face beaming.

“We did it,” she signed.

Mumu gave her a head rub, and I got one from Haol.

“Our apprentices are strong,” Tegen signed. “The village prospers.”

There was hardly any silverlight inside the carcasses—just a couple of points worth—but we cut the beaks free. Tegen told us about how they grew in layers and that they were useful in certain crafts. The rest of the creatures we left behind, though, as they apparently didn’t have any medicinal properties and the flesh tasted like ass. His words, not mine.

After a short break and some pointers about our archery and spear skills, we set off again.

In the late afternoon, we started making our way back to Voorhei. We were halfway there when we finally stumbled across fresh tracks left by the giant javelina. If Voorhei was straight ahead of us, then the javelina was traveling from left to right, west to east. Banan’s team was supposed to be out that way, but it wasn’t guaranteed they’d spot the signs of the javelina’s passage.

Teila and I listened to the adults debating whether we should continue in our assigned area or follow the javelina’s trail. The teams had leeway in that regard. The forest was too dangerous and too unpredictable for them to be hemmed in by rigid rules, and the teams’ leaders were expected to act independently, with the village’s welfare in mind.

We didn’t know anything about the javelina except for its size, and that turned out to be the deciding factor. If it had any strange abilities or powers, then it’d jeopardize a team even as strong as Banan’s. Sure, the visiting hunters were all dawn, but the javelina might be just as high-leveled. So, we decided to track the creature, and we’d hopefully be able to join forces with Banan and his team to tackle it together.

We moved slowly, as the tracks appeared fresh and we didn’t want to stumble across the beast by surprise. The strange thing was, though, we never caught up. The javelina apparently never stopped to graze or rest. It just continued to travel, weaving a path through the forest. Maybe it was looking for something? Going on a tour?

It was weird. The tracks looked recent, like we were right behind it, but we never caught up. Mumu darted ahead to see if she could spot the creature. She climbed a pine tree, and even had me use my spirit eyes, in case it was a spirit of the land playing tricks on us.

All I noticed was the lack of anything to notice. The tracks felt strangely empty of spirit, nothing like what a living creature would naturally leave behind. Maybe it was a zombie, like the javelina I’d fought before, only much bigger? All of us were stumped.

An hour before dark, we hightailed it back to Voorhei to report on what we’d found. Tomorrow was another hunt day, and we’d ask for permission to pick up the javelina’s trail again.

We were tired, grimy, and sweaty from being out in the forest all day. I considered slipping away to the stream near the village’s wall for a soak, but Tegen let me know that we were expected at the gate. All the hunters had to be accounted for and treated for any injuries.

When we came in sight of the gate, I spotted Inleio’s desk. He was set up on the road leading up to the village. Nearby were blankets upon which a couple of hunters were being treated. The big draw though—the thing that gathered all the hunters around it—was the corpse… of a giant javelina.

Five feet tall on its side, the javelina must’ve been about ten feet tall standing up. Before the body stood the hunters of Albei, and Banan was doing the talking, gesturing with his hands as he described the kill in detail. We only caught the tail end of the story.

“He charged one last time,” Banan was saying, “but by then, the beast had lost his strength and tripped. Well, of course, we pounced. We came in from both sides and focused on the wounds already inflicted on his neck. With a prize like this, we wanted to keep the hide as intact as possible.”

We seemed to be the last hunters to arrive. As Mumu went to report, I glanced toward the injured hunters. One had a gash across his shoulder that was bound by a bandage, and the other was getting his foot wrapped. It didn’t look serious—maybe a strain?

I’d been keeping the Healing Water spell a secret—mostly because of my initial caution of revealing too much about myself—but as I’d gotten to know the hunters more and more, as I’d seen what they were capable of, I realized that it wasn’t as necessary as I’d feared it would be. They knew that I had Ikfael, a spirit of the land, as a backer. It shouldn’t be too unusual that I’d learned a healing spell from her—not anymore unusual than anything else I did.

I walked over to offer my aid. Well, as expected, that caused a fuss from the gathered hunters, drawing attention away from the javelina. My hunt brothers and sisters demanded an explanation, and I explained how I’d made a deal with Ikfael. I didn’t go into details, though, and hedged enough to make it sound like a recent event.

Afterward, I was scolded by Tegen for not letting the team know beforehand. Any changes in skills, talents, and abilities could impact the team’s survival. When Tegen was done, Haol took a turn, and then Mumu. Even Teila got into the act—she pursed her lips and admonished me. “Bad boy!”

What? Was I a dog now? I would’ve been upset except for two things: one, Teila was adorable, and two, the others weren’t able to hide the joy in their eyes.

I overheard a bit of Tegen whispering to Mumu: “The village prospers.”

The javelina was as normal as a ten-foot-tall animal could be. I checked him over from tusk to hooves. No zombification. No sign of spirit tomfoolery. Nothing that would make for the strange feeling I’d gotten from his tracks.

Otwei, the female hunter who’d come from Albei, must’ve noticed me frowning. “An impressive beast, yes?”

“Where was he? Our team found his tracks, but we ran out of time and couldn’t keep up our pursuit.”

“To the south,” she said. “He was rooting around a field of wild turnips.”

Hmm… we’d noticed he was heading that way, but then his tracks had turned and led us on a meandering route away from where he’d eventually ended up. Strange.

“You are impressed?” Otwei asked.

“Of course,” I said. “He’s huge.”

“It is a shame you were not able to hunt this fine animal, but you do not have to worry—our team will gift the meat to the village. We are here at the village’s service, thanks to Ghitha’s tilwisei.”

“I’m sorry, I don’t know that word. Tilwisei?”

“To pay or provide a reward, so that another may exercise their skills and talents.”

So, like sponsorship, then? I tucked the word away in my growing vocabulary.

“Ghitha’s sponsorship is good for the lodge and good for the village,” Otwei said. “You are young, but you should join us when we hunt the kalihchi bear. You will learn much from watching us work.”

I glanced around and noticed that the other hunters from Albei were also working the crowd; they talked to the hunters and encouraged them to join the bear’s hunt. The final two members of their team turned out to be dolbec.

My heart jumped a beat. For a moment, all I could see was the dolbec bandit who’d kept Billisha and Aluali captive. I quickly checked my camera.

According to Inleio, the dolbecs were a ‘lost’ people, descended from a man named Dolbec who’d ‘strayed’ from the Path to Perfection by using darklight. They were still considered human, but were fundamentally changed as a result of their ancestry. And apparently, that wasn’t enough for Moon; the fact that he was dusk told me he was also using darklight to level up.

I quickly gave Otwei a noncommittal answer and jogged closer.

The two were seven feet tall and looked close enough related to be brother and sister, with the brother, Moon, seemingly just a couple of inches taller. They’d taken off their brigandine and set aside their weapons. Only a couple of hunters talked to them—Mumu and Haol—and the dolbecs sat on the ground in order to not tower over them.

I paid special attention to Moon, but he didn’t appear to be different from Agath, or even Boscun, the dolbec I’d killed to free Billisha and Aluali. He didn’t have any extra eyes or scaly skin or anything like that. The mutations from using darklight that Ikfael had warned me about weren’t present at all. Maybe the stuff doesn’t affect dolbecs the same way it does other humans? Do they have resistance to it, or maybe a way to minimize the adverse effects?

The dolbecs were relaying their version of the hunt. It’d been their role on the team to draw the javelina’s ire and weather his attacks. That wasn’t a strategy used much in Voorhei, so my teammates were curious.

That was something I noticed about all the top hunters in the lodge—they always wanted to learn more: about the animals in the forest, about skills and talents, about tactics and strategies… about everything, really. That seeking of knowledge was integral to their pursuit of the perfection of their path.

I listened in, but the talk was all shop. The dolbecs didn’t even bother encouraging Mumu and Haol to participate in the kalihchi bear’s hunt. They left that to their teammates. Speaking of which, I noticed Otwei talking to Borba and gesturing toward the giant javelina.

The kill proved to be a public relations coup for the Albei team, and they were working it hard. If my team had been quicker, would it have been us bragging in their place? I couldn’t help feeling suspicious of their good fortune… and our bad fortune. Watching Otwei, I was reminded that she had a talent called Decoy.

“Do hunters ever compete?” I asked, the words spilling out of my mouth.

The adults turned their attention to me.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt. I was just suddenly curious.”

“Our Little Pot of Questions is always curious,” Mumu said. “Well, your path right now is to learn, so there’s no need to apologize. The answer is yes: hunters compete. The stag that you kill will not feed me or my family. At the same time, the stronger you are, the stronger the lodge. And the stronger the lodge, the safer the village. So, while hunters compete, they do not begrudge each other any good fortune encountered.”

“Hmm… that sounds reasonable in principle,” I said, “but I’d guess some people don’t take kindly to losing out.”

Haol sighed. “Human nature is what it is. Fortunately, our lodge master is discerning. Very little escapes his eyes.”

“And in the Soldier’s Lodge, as well,“ Agath said. “Our lodge master must take special care, since our lives are so often at risk.”

“Wait,” I said, “you’re not hunters?”

It was Moon who responded, and he did so in sign language. “No, we are—” and then he made a gesture I didn’t recognize.

Mumu must’ve seen the confusion on my face. “They are soldiers who fight for pay. The word is mercenaries. Villages who need extra protection, traveling merchants, and anyone else can hire them. Even hunters, when they are looking for people with specific skills for their teams.”

“Our symbol is the kalath,” Agath said.

Once again, I didn’t know a word, but she produced a copper coin with the image of a tower on it, and I got the meaning that way.

Oh, the coin looks familiar. Then it hit me that I had ten of them. They were among the things I’d recovered from the remains found in the dragon’s turd. Billisha had told me that she thought they were lodge coins, but she didn’t know the lodge. Turns out it was the Soldier’s Lodge.

“What are the coins used for?” I asked.

“Soldiers use them to buy supplies, special training, and the other things offered by the lodge.”

Mumu looked closely at the coin in the dolbec’s hand. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one curious. “The hunters don’t use coins, even in Albei. Our contributions are tallied and kept by the masters. This is my first time seeing a soldier’s coin.”

I briefly considered mentioning the ones in my possession and where I’d gotten them, but decided against it. There were already too many things pulling at my attention, and I didn’t need another connection-relationship-obligation to distract me. On top of that, there was no good to gain for me or anyone else. The soldier’s magic knife had already been traded to Ikfael, and I’d respectfully found a burial place for the body. The soldier’s family might be comforted to know that, but I didn’t have any obligations to them, just to the dead.

Besides, I still had suspicions about Banan’s team. If they had a way to lure others offtrack, then wouldn’t that help them get the best kills? That was the question I wanted to ask, but I’d wait until we were somewhere more private.

The mercenaries might not have been core members of his team, but they could still be complicit. I’d have to watch myself around them.

Agath raised her hand—I swear her palm was the size of a dinner plate. “May I?”

I was uneasy, but her eyes were mild and I didn’t sense any intent to harm.

When I nodded, she patted my head, her rough hands gentle. She turned to Mumu and asked, “This is your apprentice? I like his curiosity. It is good to wonder about the world.”

Mumu answered. “Yes, one of them. The other ran off somewhere.”

“Apprentices do that, don’t they?” Agath said, withdrawing her hand.

The adults laughed at that.

“Except, I don’t run off,” I said.

Mumu slapped me across the back of my head. “What are you thinking? You run off the most!”