1 – The Hunt (OLD)

Disclaimer
The likeness of Michael Kramer is used in this project through AI-generated technology. Please note that Michael Kramer did not record any audio for this content, and his voice is not being used for any monetary gain. The rights to Michael Kramer’s voice and likeness do not belong to Redmatter Creations. Furthermore, the voice and likeness of Michael Kramer will not be used in the final product.

It’s the planet that intrigues me. Not the star.

From the Journal of Azura Seren. -Turseno section, 28th rotation

I adjust my grip on my crossbow sneaking through the forest. Where are you? I step softly, ensuring that I avoid stepping on any sticks or crunchy leaves. The cool, moist air fills my nostrils and the wind roars through the trees.

I know he’s here. He’s been trying to avoid me since I arrived in his domain. Fear drove him to act. He may be fast on his feet, but I am smarter. The clothes I wear brush up against themselves. They provide enough camouflage to keep me hidden, but more importantly, pockets.

I stop, leaning up against a tree. I open a pocket on my coat and lift out a small flask. It’s filled with water I collected from a flowing creek. The water is cold as it goes down my throat. Some of it drips down the sides of my mouth. I release the edge from my lips and wipe away the excess water from my chin. 

I wonder if the one I’m hunting thinks I gave up on him. I step softly through the trees, staying aware of what’s around me. I spot something. An impression in the soft soil. The foot imprint matches my target. I follow the direction of the tracks.

Oberon, my hunting partner, started north of the camp. I’m probably getting pretty close to his territory. Oberon and I are an unstoppable force. I make up for the skills he lacks in tracking, but he bests me with the crossbow.

I freeze when I finally spot my target. He frantically eats berries from a bush, hoping for a brief respite from running from me. His eyes are wild and his figure is surprisingly thick. He could feed our group for days.

His coat would be an excellent prize if I could avoid hurting it too badly. I lift my crossbow. It’s already loaded. I level my aim and he looks around frantically. Does he know I’m here? I hold my breath, doing everything I can to remain still. I tighten my finger and the hair-trigger snaps the strings forward, launching the arrow blazingly fast through the air. It whistles faintly before finding a home in the dirt.

The buck leaps away in the opposite direction, becoming invisible in the mess of trees.

“I couldn’t have missed ‘at with my eyes closed.” A familiar voice says next to me. I spin, pulling a knife on the person before realizing it was Oberon. “Woah buddy, I’m not a raider.” He holds up his hands, “Do you even know how to use ‘at knife anyway?” Oberon has a distinct way of speaking that others don’t.

“Damn it, Oberon.” Adrenaline flows through my veins and I have to take deep breaths in order to recover. He gives me a stupid grin accented by his cleanly cut beard. He’s not much older than me, but strands of white hair poke through. He prefers to keep his head cleanly shaven, but it’s covered up by a hood attached to his coat. We wear similar clothes for hunting, except his clothes accommodate his larger build. I take a final large sigh before saying, “Come on, let’s get back on track. Keep quiet.”

We both scout through the forest together, following the tracks the buck left behind. Oberon would be just as quiet as me if he could keep his mouth shut. “Caelius, what are you doing on my turf?” He is smart enough to whisper, but not smart enough to answer his own questions.

“Take a wild guess,” I whisper in reply. I keep my voice lower than his.

“What?”

The distraction causes me to miss a twig. It snaps underneath my weight. Birds in the trees above us rush away.

“Nice going.” He says. I give him a rude gesture. After a couple of minutes of walking, we see him again. Our buck stands alone, majestic. His antlers are an intricate design stretching towards the moon above. We crouch down, keeping our height as low as it can get. Oberon unhooks his crossbow from his belt and raises it up to his shoulder.

Oberon aims for an uncomfortable amount of time before his arrow buries itself right into our target’s eye. It screams as it falls to the ground.

“That’s how you do it,” He smacks me on the arm, forcing himself up. We stumble over to the dying creature. It’s still alive, breathing shakily. Oberon must have missed its brain. I unsheathe my knife from my side, hoping to spare this creature from suffering much more by taking its life quickly. 

“In the name of the light, I thank you for your sacrifice. For your body and your blood.” The knife glides across its neck and blood gushes out immediately. After a moment, the body goes limp.

“I’m still weirded out that you do that,” Oberon says.

“Thanking them?” I stand up and wipe the blood off of my blade with a cloth.

“Yeah”

“The Light placed this animal here so we can eat for another couple of days, the least we can do is say our thanks.”

Oberon doesn’t reply. I know he thinks it’s dumb, but to me, it’s about respect. He lifts up the body and places it on his shoulder. We had to be about an hour away from camp. An hour was nothing to us, even with a 150-pound carcass slung over our shoulders. We have been walking our whole life and will continue to walk until our dying breaths.

When it’s my turn to carry the buck’s body, Oberon beams with excitement. “Brena’s gonna be so excited when she sees what I found for her.” Oberon reaches into his pocket and pulls out a shiny rock. The light reflects a myriad of different colors. It’s mesmerizing. I remember when I would collect rocks for my parents. I wonder if they still had them, wherever they might be.

“I’m sure she’ll love it” I say, smiling.

***

When we make it back to the camp, the cooks have already set up a fire for dinner. The moon was low and people would be getting ready for bed soon. The sun always stayed in the same place, as long as they remain at the front of The Bright Spot. If they fell behind, the sun would slowly rise before cresting the horizon a passing later, leaving everything in the dark to freeze over.

I place the carcass on Mattias’ prop-up table. The butcher is a scrawny man with a small nose and rat-like facial features. He often needs other people to help him lift the carcasses so he can skin and separate the meat from the bones.

“You are late.” He snorts. “We thought we weren’t going to eat tonight because of you guys.” His voice is high-pitched and nasally. It’s hard to listen to him for a long period of time without wanting to staple his mouth closed. Oberon had been close to doing that one time, but Mattias can only use his mouth to breathe and he is the only one who knows how to dress a deer.

I ignore his passing remark but Oberon cannot seem to ever do the same. “At least we are out there sweating our asses off while you wait here and do absolutely nothing for two days” 

“For all I know, you two could be out there, caught up in love vines while we starve, waiting for your return. Don’t you even consider how you’re hurting your wife and daughter?” Oberon’s face becomes bright red.

“I’ll snap you in half, little man.” I put my arm in front of Oberon, hopefully preventing him from fulfilling his promise.

Mattias gives us a sly look before pulling out his knives to dig into the carcass. I lead Oberon away from him and we walk toward the gathering point together. “I want to kick his teeth in,” Oberon grumbles.

“I know. Me too.” 

“Dad!” a child’s voice says from behind. It’s Brena. Oberon’s mood is immediately better.

“Hey, pumpkin! What are you up to?” She holds her arms behind her back and smiles. “What do you got there?”

Excitedly she reveals a red tulip and puts it into her father’s hand. “Wow!” Oberon exclaims. He sniffs it, “Mmm, very pretty. I’ll trade you.” Oberon lifts a pocket from his shirt and pulls out the rock he collected. The sheen is mesmerizing in the light. Brena sticks her hand out and he places it in her palm. “Don’t lose it!”

“I won’t,” Brena says before running off to show her mother the rock.

Oberon taps me slightly on the shoulder, “Would you look at that? When was the last time you’ve seen one of these?” He hands me the flower. I can barely feel the softness of the petals in my calloused fingers. I lift it up to my nose and inhale deeply. The aroma floods my lungs. 

The moment is interrupted by a hand landing on my shoulder. To my right is Hadrian, the leader of The Brightest. His other arm is resting on Oberon’s shoulder. He stands in between us. His rapier attached to his hip brushed up against my side. 

“Good to see you two are back safe,” Hadrian says. “That’s a pretty big buck you brought back huh?”

“Not the biggest, but it should keep us fed for three to four days,” I say, trying to engage in his small talk. I expect him to continue talking about the deer or our hunt, but instead, he changes the subject.

“I’m not sure if you two are aware, but I’ve been wanting to surprise The Brightest. Tomorrow we will be traveling through the city of Solace. More specifically, its neighboring suburb, Hollyard. You may have been too young to remember, but that’s where I met you and your parents Caelius!” 

He was right, I didn’t realize we were so close. Had it been 20 passings since then? Time tends to fly when you’re walking around the planet. Unfortunately, that means that they are dangerously close to The Octoro Bridge.

When I don’t respond, Hadrian continues, “If you guys could scout ahead and make sure that Hollyard is safe for us to stay, that would be great!”

“You can count on us, Father.” Oberon says. Hadrian gives us a pat on the back before walking away. His white and gold-trimmed robe followed behind him. How did he keep it so clean? Oberon turns to me excitedly and says “Dude, I can’t believe Hadrian wants to stay somewhere. We can finally just relax for a while.”

It is uncharacteristic for Hadrian to want to halt their walk. He’s always trying to ensure we are constantly on the move, lest we fall behind. What made him change his mind? “Don’t you think its odd that Hadrian is proposing to stay somewhere, rather than continue walking?”

“Who cares? Hes an old fart, he probably needs some rest too. Who knows how long he has left before someone needs to take over for his position?” Oberon says. “Just take this moment and enjoy it. We’ll be the first ones to check it out!”

The idea made me feel slightly uneasy. What about potential raiders? They follow closely behind, we will be sure to deal with them as they pass through Hollyard, too.

Dinner is brought to us by one of the serving ladies. We find a spot to eat near our gathering area. Dolora, Oberon’s wife, and his daughter, Brena, join us in eating venison stew. 

***

I am the first to wake up. I take my eye mask off and the sun’s brightness temporarily blinds me as I try to adjust to the light. It would be impossible to sleep without an eye mask or blindfold with the sun frozen in the sky. Our wagons offer a cloth shade from the sun, but those are reserved for Hadrian, children, and pregnant women. Many women would try to get pregnant so they could stay in a wagon instead of walking.

Dolora and Brena slept in one, but Oberon wasn’t permitted to join them. I wonder if that put a strain on their relationship. Bodies of men, their spouses, and some teenage children sleep on the soft soil, all wearing eye masks or blindfolds.

I step carefully over the bodies, being careful to not wake anyone up. I find Oberon near the edge of the group. Drool leaks from the corner of his mouth and it pools up near his ear. I kick him slightly in the ribs. He groans, barely reacting to my kick.

I crouch down and lift up his eye mask. He squints from the light. “Wakey wakey,” I tease, letting go of the mask. It snaps back against his face.

“Ow,” he groans, feeling at his mask.

“Come on sleepy head, get up,” I whisper and grab his arms, pulling him up. He struggles to stand upright. He mumbles something but it’s incomprehensible. “Don’t forget your crossbow.” I grab it from the ground and place it against his chest. He holds on to it with one arm.

We walk ahead for a couple of hours, following the same road that many take while they travel around the world. The main road cuts right through Solace, but this one takes a detour around the city and through a small suburb known as Hollyard.

The grandness of the buildings of solace in the distance shakes me to my core. It seemed impossible that someone could make something so tall. The metal skyscrapers were accented with a green color from the vines creeping and clustering vertically. Chunks and corners of some buildings are broken off. I try to imagine what it looked like without the vines and deterioration. 

“That sure is something isn’t it,” Oberon says in awe, staring at the city as well. It was like seeing the mountains for the first time, but it invoked a different feeling. Men like Caelius and Oberon built that. It seems impossible.

I gawk before I’m interrupted by Oberon, “Caelius, look!” He says, pointing at a figure about half a mile away. They’re trekking into Hollyard. The grandness of the city, made me completely miss the little town. In the center of the town is a massive willow tree. Twice as tall as the tallest house. It was tiny in comparison to the city. 

The figure disappears in the mess of houses. “What are they doing?” I ask, “Is it a raider?”

“I ‘unno, should we find out?” Oberon asks.

I sigh, “We should tell Hadrian the place he wants to stay is already taken.” Because we prefer to walk at the front of the Bright Spot, it’s unlikely that raiders or other caravans would be ahead of us, but it’s not unheard of.

“Ah come on!” Oberon presses, “Maybe it’s a girl and you can get yourself a girlfriend, finally.”

I roll my eyes, “And if we get ambushed?”

“Do you see anyone else? Where could they be hiding.”

“Unless they know we are heading there.”

“You’re so lame, you know,” Oberon says, taking the initiative and walking toward the town. I keep my crossbow ready as I follow him.