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Chapter 8 Hunters & Control

Lyric just stood there for a moment, her eyes wide scanning the area for the fish. The vulture had come down from the crows nest and started to pick at the open wound of the dead woman. Pulling out chunks of muscle and tissue to get to the bones underneath. Lyric heard a groan from behind where the body had landed. Rushing forward water splashing all around her. Alexandria was laying in a shallow pool of water breathing steadily, shifting back into her human form.

Forcing her eyes open looking up at the clear blue sky. She tried to move but her body screamed at her pain radiating all over her body. There was blood all over her face and shirt which to her surprise was still intact. Moving her hands over her body slowly searching for any serious breaks. She didn't come across any spreading her arms out to float on top of the water's surface. Maybe just a short rest before she tried to get up.

Droplets from Lyric running over to her peppered her face as she groaned again. "Hey are you alright? That was a crazy move you just pulled." Lyric started to check out every part of her body looking for any injuries.

"Would you stop? I am just bruised up, nothing feels broken." Alexandria groaned trying to pull herself up using the walls around the shallow pool. Her arms shook as she got herself into a seated position. Breathing in and out she pulled herself onto the shore to at least get out of the shallow pool. Lyric just watched her for the moment until she could get her bearings.

Alexandria turned around to see the vulture digging into the chest of the woman she had speared with her fish nose. Slowly cracking her neck she turned to Lyric. "What the hell is going on? I thought the map said this island wasn't named yet?"

Lyric got up splashing water at the vulture so it would fly away for a moment. She kneeled down over the body pulling it up to the surface and dragging it to the shore. Placing it not far from where Alexandria was sitting. "There are always others that try to do what we are doing now. They run aground on an island and get shipwrecked. So there is no way for them to put markings on a map. However she is something different."

Taking the knife from her belt looking it over. The craftsmen ship was high quality way too good for someone like her to have made. The short bow however was homemade laying in two pieces floating on the water.

This was the first time Alexandria had seen Lyric so serious. They had not known each other long but whatever was happening had her shaken. The dagger seemed to be the main cause of that. "Why are you so focused on that knife? Is there something important about it? Do we need to worry about others like her on the island?"

The vulture landed on Alexandria's shoulder shrieking in Lyric's direction. "It would also seem our friend is upset you took away it's meal."

Lyric looked up at her, a small smile crossing her face. "Was that a joke just now or are you being serious?"

She just sat there for a moment looking the knife over very carefully. The markings looked familiar but recalling where she saw them was proving difficult. Stabbing the knife into the ground about to speak when she noticed something on the handle. Grabbing it quickly and pulling it close to her face. Lyric started to laugh uncontrollably.

Alexandria looked at the vulture then at Lyric. "I really need you to answer the damn questions. We can't just sit out here doing nothing." She groaned a bit still feeling the effects of the landing. The vulture added in a shriek just for good measure.

Lyric took in a deep breath between giggles trying to compose herself. Flipping the knife she showed the symbol to Alexandria. "This is the symbol of the hunters. They are people sent out looking for people like us. If they ever find one, killing them would give them entrance into a walled city. I have sailed past islands with them just watching me. All of them have this knife."

She threw the knife into the ground at Alexandria's feet. "There is usually only one. If there is another one most of the time I hear they kill each other. Only one hunter can bring back a body to claim a spot inside a walled city. Of course these people are ones from starred settlements around the world who were tired of living out here."

Picking up the knife Alexandria spun it a few times in her hands. She really wanted to know more about the settlements. The walled cities were just places where the facilities were housed. Anyone who would rather live in one of those places really needed their brain examined. "I have never heard of any of these things while I was at my facility. Why would they keep that information hidden?"

Moving over to the body she started to pat it down trying to find anything else of value. A few things were there including a quiver of arrows which survived the fall. There was also a small compass along with a piece of paper. Lyric unfolded the paper which had a long list of names. There wasn't much else. She rolled it up and placed it in her pocket along with the compass.

"Most of the people in walled cities have no idea there are other settlements. Only the top leaders know about them. They are trying to either phrase them back into the walled cities or destroy them all together. There are also pirates who want nothing more than to see everything burn."

Alexandria tilted her head to the side as the vulture flew off her shoulder going back to prying bones from the dead woman's chest. Lyric stood up grabbing the quiver of arrows walking over to Alexandria. "Of course there are pirates that just want to be free. That is the area we fall into.”

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"Well that is good to know. I know that violence is only something I employ when I need to. However I can't deny the thrill I get while doing it." She blinked looking up at Lyric. "So I am guessing that control is the reason no one else knows. That is something we all seem to crave in order to feel truly alive."

Lyric giggled almost back to her normal self. "Yeah that is what it amounts to. We need to search the island for other supplies. Can you help with that or do you need to rest?" Alexandria jumped to her feet, wincing in a bit of pain. She felt better than before even though her body was still screaming at her.

"I can make it. I didn't wait all that time to get here just to stay on the ship. We can leave the vulture here to watch over things. When we get back we can talk more about these hunters." She adjusted her clothes dusting off the sand. Moving her hands to her hair, patting it a bit looking around for her bandana. She found it floating in the pool she had landed in. Picking it up and wringing it out she tied it firmly back around her hair.

"Alright then what do you say we go find some food and fresh water. There may even be a makeshift dwelling this hunter used as a base. There could be more information or supplies." Lyric said as they both started to walk inland.

Alexandria stopped and turned around looking at the vulture. "Hey, keep an eye on the ship while we are gone. Don't go flying off once we are done. I want to get moving again." She turned back to catch up with Lyric hearing a sherik follow them into the inner parts of the island.

Lyric led the way with her cutlass chopping some vines that were in their path. The ground became firmer underneath their feet as they moved through the island. The sand from the shore was replaced by dirt and a bit of mud in some places. Alexandria was walking a bit easier now and her pain level had gone down. Lyric stopped at a nearby tree to rest her arm for a second. "This island has a lot more vines and brush on it then others I have seen. We need to keep an eye on the sky. Straying too far from the ship would be a very bad idea. We don't want to get stranded here."

There was a nod of agreement for Alexandria as she leaned against a nearby tree. A shift was always tiring and afterwards she would get some rest. However right now all she wanted to do was explore this place. Taking a deep breath she looked around her. There were trees all around them with what looked like fruit growing from them. "Would we be able to take this fruit from the trees? I see all kinds of things I would like to try."

A giggled escaped Lyrics lips as she nodded. "Yeah we will get as much as we both can eat. We don't want extras to spoil. Having rotting food on a ship is one of the last things you want." A smile crept across her face at the news. She was going to get at least one of each kind. The meal tonight was going to be an interesting one.

"We need to find the dwelling of that hunter. There is no way we can carry a good amount of supplies back to the ship without a bag or container of some kind. It shouldn't be too much further in since staying near the coast for them is the best way to find their prey." Alexandria nodded as they both started moving forward again through the underbrush and trees.

Alexandria was making a note of all the trees and other plants that had fruit on them. Once they did a bit of searching around this dwelling she was going to collect all the food. Her stomach growled in agreement since they had yet to eat anything since they woke up. Thankfully the uneasiness in her chest along with the shaking had stopped thanks to her new shift. There was also a feeling of clam that settled in to replace that uneasiness. There was also another note in her head to find that creature that helped her in the water.

The sun had moved to the middle of the sky before they finally came across the remains of a fire. Lyric walked up, placing her hands over it. There wasn't any warmth until she touched the ground. She looked up scanning the area around them. The dwelling had to be close because the ground under the fire was still warm. There would be no other reason to have a fire than for cooking.

"I think I found what we are looking for." Alexandria said pulling down a few large branches to reveal a cave opening. There were a few barrels and some crates around the entrance. Lyric ran over to her peering into the cave. It wasn't very deep thankfully and the light in the sky was more than enough so they could go inside safely. The same symbol from the knife was etched onto the side of the cave wall.

"Well it seems she had been here a while. These barrels and crates are pretty worn. We should be able to bring all this back to the ship in a few trips. How about we take a rest here and move once you can pick something up without hurting yourself captain." There was that word again. Alexandria hoped she never became tired of hearing it.

Lyric walked inside the cave finding a bed made from the inside of the cave along with a medium sized chest and a bag that hung from a jagged piece of rock protruding from the wall.

"Hey come in here. I think I found the bag you will need to carry your fruit in." Lyric took the bag off the rock and sat it on the bed. She opened the flap taking out all the contents. There was a canteen, some starter rocks, and another rolled up piece of paper. This time Lyric knew what it was right away.

Alexandria walked inside as Lyric opened the paper, placing it on the bed. It was another map however this one just had settlements and walled cities marked on it. "Well it would seem we found something very important. We should add this to the map on the ship. I for one would rather know where the walled cities are than come across one by mistake." She spat on the ground as Lyric rolled up the map handing the bag to Alexandria.

"I am with you on that point. Let's go through everything while we have the time. We can separate everything we are going to take from all the junk. This might take a while though. If we are not done before it gets dark we will have to sleep here." Lyric started to rummage through the chest hoping to find some more clothes and maybe a pistol.

Alexandria went to the entrance of the cave looking out at everything on the island. Draping the bag's handle over her shoulder adjusting the strap so it fits comfortably. Now that she knew a bit more about the outside world it would be easier to get through it. Of course they needed to find other strong women to join their crew.

Letting out an exasperated sigh she started going through the crate near the door. If they were going to get back to the ship before sundown Lyric couldn't do all the work herself.