“Hunt.”

When Hera heard my command, I suddenly felt something primal and vicious coming from her. Good. I needed her animal instincts now. I got off to the left of the trail and followed the drag marks deeper into a flat forested area of the hill. Hera quickly followed me and I stopped to judge the general direction of the drag trail. I walked fast to the direction I assumed was the location of Deputy Connelly.

Hera was no longer following behind me and she was now in front scouting ahead. She was following the smell of the bloody trail on the grass. I checked a suspicious shadow below a small tree but found nothing, so I continued moving. I was turning my head a lot, scanning the area and my neck started to hurt from the exertion. I ignored it and continued following the bear. This cougar was smart, she was hiding her meal somewhere out of the way. Where did the cougar drag the bodies?

Hera was moving too slowly for my tastes and I urged her to move swiftly. She responded promptly and her speed increased. I was following the drag marks when I heard Hera growl loudly at a wall of bushes. I parted the leaves and in a depressed area covered by vegetation, we found two unmoving bodies placed side by side together. The biker and Deputy Connelly. The biker’s body was missing several limbs and the deputies shirt was soaked in blood. They’re dead. The cougar killed them. The sight of my fellow partner made my heart ache.

Then I realized the cougar was nowhere in sight. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up and I surveyed the area. I was now angry and I wanted revenge. But, I hesitated to approach the victims in case the cougar attacks me when I checked the bodies. I held on to Hera’s collar when she wanted to move forward. My mind was plagued by indecision but something happened while I was staring at them. Unexpectedly, Deputy Connelly’s right arm moved to his chest and I threw caution to the wind.

“Hera. Guard!” I let go of Hera and went through the bushes.

I ran noisily to Connelly side and kneeled beside him to check his vital signs. I felt a slight pulse on his neck and his breathing was shallow. Relief washed over my body. I could still save the deputy. I glanced at the biker’s body but with the amount of damage he received, he was very likely dead so I guiltily ignored him. I cut the deputy’s shirt carefully with the monoblade and opened the uniform wide. His chest was full of long straight lacerations from the cougar’s claws and I needed to stop the bleeding. I took out my supply of SureClot and FastHeal pads out from my storage. Tordan recommended them to me and I bought a lot of them. I glanced at Hera and she was actively searching the area for threats.

I returned to my first-aid and applied the SureClot ointment on the long lacerations. The blood in the wounds bubbled and a slight burning smell filled my nose. Connally moaned quietly from the pain and I can’t risk giving him morphine. After the SureClot did its work the bleeding stopped and I stuck the FastHeal pads on the wounds covering them. I pressed the pads gently on the wounds and marveled at the sight of Altech medical technology. The pad melted into a single large pad and the med-nanites repaired the wounds. The pads must have a pain dampening feature because Connelly was no longer groaning in pain.

I stood up to confirm the vitals of the bikers when I heard Hera roar and I saw a large black blur moving with lightning speed towards me. I was surprised by the attack and froze for just a few moments. I fumbled in grabbing the rifle that was hanging on a sling on my chest. But I realized that the cougar was too fast for me and I couldn't raise my rifle in time. The Cougar was only five feet away from me when Hera charged out of nowhere and body slammed the cat. The snarls from the cougar and Hera’ s growls mixed into one cacophony of bestial combat. They were rolling on the ground clawing each other and I tried aiming at the cougar. Their bodies were too intertwined and I couldn't get a good shot without hitting Hera.

The growling Hera was on top of the cougar and was clawing the cougar’s chest like a jackhammer. The cub’s attacks didn’t do much damage and cougar contemptuously swiped Hera with her paws throwing her off to the side. The cougar stood on all fours and snarled at the dazed bear. The cub was dwarfed by the cougar and the cat was at least twice the size of Hera. I finally had my chance and I pulled the trigger. The hill was filled with the cracking sounds of multiple sonic booms. The rifle fired in five-round automatic bursts and I didn’t stop pulling the trigger. The armor piercing darts hit the cougar’s chest and the cat was thrown backward by the impact of the projectiles. I aimed the reticle of the holosight at the wounded cougar’s head and pulled the trigger. I learned my lesson when I hunted the wolf and I will never forget it. The cougar’s head exploded from the hypervelocity rounds. I engaged the safety on my rifle and ran to Hera.

The little runt was on her side, a little stunned by the cougar’s strike. I checked her for wounds but her skin was tough and the cougar claw didn’t cause any wounds. I breathed a sigh of relief. I felt her bones for breaks but there didn’t seem to be any. Hera whined pitifully at me and I gave her a gentle hug. She was just being a baby.

“You saved my life, Hera. Thank you.” I rubbed the back of her neck and made comforting sounds at the bear. I released Hera from the hug and stood up to examine the dead cougar. The cat’s body was a mess. The top of its head was missing and the chest cavity was fully open. The projectile’s entry wounds were the size of a baseball and the body was riddled with it. I stared at the cougar with contempt. This is for my partner, asshole.

I returned to Connelly’s side and kneeled to measure his vitals. I examined his pulse and it was a little stronger than before. I also check his breathing and it was improving. I tried to remember the first-aid class during training. I finally recalled something that I needed to do and examined the deputy’s body for any additional wounds. There were some defensive wounds on his arms and I applied first-aid on it. I also took off my leather Jacket and covered his chest for warmth. I glanced at Hera and she was poking the dead cougar with her paws. She did her cute victory roar and I laughed at the sound, relieving some of the tension in me. She put her head inside the cougar’s chest cavity and ate something. The kill was a team effort and so, I let her do what she wanted. I returned my attention back to the deputy.

I needed to make an important decision and I thought the deputy’s vitals were stable enough for now. Should I wait for help? Should I call for help?

I dismissed those options and I was left with a risky one. We were too far from help and I had to move him. That was his only chance. I eyed the deputy’s body and wondered if I can carry him all the way to the car. I’ll just have to try. Hera came beside the deputy and licked his face gently. Her face was soaked with the cougar’s blood.

“He’ll be fine, Hera.” I assured her and she continued cleaning the deputy’s face. I washed her face clean with some water from my storage and prepared myself to carry the deputy. Please. Mama Bear. I need your help.

I gently picked him up and put him into a fireman’s carry. I heard his pained moans and I apologized for the pain. I grunted at the weight and my knees shook. I placed one foot forward, then another, and another. I was walking too slowly and it would take hours before I could reach the cars. I took a deep breath and willed my Bear Core to help me. I felt nothing at first, but in a few minutes my chest started burning and I thanked the mama bear inside of me.

My step was quicker now like a normal walk and I tried not to jostle the deputy any more than necessary. I finally reached the bike trail and stepped on the gravel path downhill. I made sure-footed steps and tried to avoid slipping. I was amazed at the Bear Core supplying me with strength for a long time. I hoped using it continuously without breaks didn’t have any long-term side effects. I stopped my wandering thoughts and concentrated on putting my foot forward one step at a time.

I walked passed the destroyed bike so I knew I was about half-way through the back-breaking trek. I heard Hera behind me and when we reached her territory marker, she roared cutely again. Some of my exhaustion vanished from that funny sight.

“Stop...screwing...around...Hera.” I ground out between labored breaths and continued moving downhill.

I didn’t know how long I was walking but my radio crackled to life and I heard other deputies trying to contact me. I slowly reached behind my belt and took out the handheld radio.

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“This...is Deputy... Hunter...Deputy...Down...Deputy Down.” I was having a hard time talking on the radio. It was as if every word I uttered sapped my strength a little.

“Rowland Heights...Deputy Down...” I continued repeating the phrase. I hoped that they could hear me.

Trying to talk any further only diminished my stamina and Ignored the radio. I was so tired that I was mildly delirious. All thoughts on my mind were gone and the only thing I did was walk.When I saw deputies running towards me that I thought I finally broke my mind. But the people weren’t a mirage after all and they reached us and took a hold of my body. The touch from their hand snapped me back to reality and I stopped my foot from moving.

“We got him, hunter. We got him.” “Let go, brother. We’ll take care of him.” I heard the deputies soft assuring words.

They deputies gently took Connelly’s unconscious body from my shoulders and I wobbled and became dizzy. I tried holding on to Deputy Rawling but my exhaustion promptly overwhelmed me and I crumbled to the ground facing the sky. Hera anxiously grunted at me and liked my face softly. I tried moving my hands to stop her annoying licks but my arms didn’t have the power to move.

“Hunter! Are you okay!” “Rawlings, grab his arms. Pick him up!”

Two deputies carried me by throwing my arms around their shoulders and they grabbed my belt. They dragged and carried me downhill. I found out that we were not that far from the parking lot. The area was full of the cars and two ambulances.

“I’m fine, man. Just tired. Lemme rest.” They tried putting me on a stretcher and I took a seat on the back of the ambulance instead. A female elf paramedic checked me out for injuries.

“It’s not my blood, ma’am. I’m okay.” The paramedic tried to remove my shirt. “You got some water?” My supply of water ran out.

“Here.” She opened a bottled water and gave it to me. I drank half of it and gave the rest to Hera. She was sitting in front of me, anxiously looking on as the paramedic took my vitals. She drank the water greedily and the elf produced another bottle.

“Hunter, What happened up there.” Deputy Rawlins asked me after returned my leather jacket. I took a deep breath and explained. I noticed they stopped calling me Rook.

“I arrived at the scene...” I recounted what happened to the group of deputies who were clustered at the back of the ambulance.

--

“After I...uh...searched the scene, I ...Proceeded to...” I typed the words on the keyboard with difficulty. I was required to submit a report of the incident and they didn’t accept it if the language wasn’t formally written in police lingo.

“Hey, Rook. Are you still not finished with the report?” My neighbor teased me.

The deputies finally stopped calling ‘Rook’ after I saved Connelly’s life and for some reason, Harris stubbornly keeps calling me by that name. She was just jealous that I didn’t get stuck with the name for months and Ignored her when she used that nickname.

“Okay. Okay. You’re no fun, Hunter.” She surrendered at last. I turned my head to look at her when she finally used my real name and gave her a grin. I also stopped calling them by their full title. The deputies didn’t mind me calling them by their last name

“It’s not my fault they gave me two days off, Harris.” It was already been a week now since the attack and was procrastinating with finishing the report.

“I heard they’re releasing Connelly from the hospital at the end of the week.”

“Already? That’s fast. I visited him three days ago and he was only conscious for few minutes. I was only able to speak with him for a short time and he got tired.” I was shocked at the news.

“They used some new Altech medical thingy on him.” She shrugged. Well, that explains it. My desk phone rang before I could ask any more info.

“Hello, This is Deputy Hunter. Okay, Sarge..” The sergeant called and wanted to see me.

I saved the document on the computer and went to the lobby. It was a slow day so the lobby was empty and I approached the desk. I search the office for Hera but she wasn’t here. She’s probably begging for treats somewhere. The people here at the office were used to her by now and they usually had a spare donut to entice the bear for a rub. I went through the glass double doors and entered the lobby. It was a slow day and the lobby was empty. I found Hera and the sergeant stone behind the reception desk.

“What do you need, Sarge?” I asked the sergeant who was feeding Hera with a donut at the back of the desk. He wiped his hands on his pants and came forward to talk to me.

“I need you to hand this purchase order to Tordan’s Emporium.” I owed him a lot of favors, so I didn’t mind being an errand boy. I read the list and I raised my eyebrows at him.

“The sheriff liked those first aid items you used on Connelly.” He explained.

“Oh, I almost forgot.” He handed me an official looking letter envelope. It says Federal Core Bureau on the front and I was intrigued. I opened it up and something fell out. I picked it up and examined it.

“Yes!” I pumped my fist in the air. I grinned at the sergeant and he shook his head while smiling.

“I gotta go, Sarge.” I called Hera and she came to me with her mouth still full.

--

“Sheriff’s business. Stand aside.” I ordered the orc guard blocking the entrance of Tordan’s store. The stubborn orc didn’t move and he just crossed his arms over his chest.

“Yu hav weaponz end bearz.” The orc gestured with his face at my sidearm and looked behind me at Hera.

“You will respect mah authoritah!” I pointed the badge with my thumb. This asshole had been hassling me ever since I threw his brood brother out the window. I was getting tired of his attitude and I put my hand on my gun to emphasize that I was not in the mood.

The orc saw the movement and stepped back hastily. I glared at him and went inside the store. Hera growled at the orc and followed me inside. The dwarvette was minding the store and when she saw us, she ran to the back office. Tordan emerged from the door with a big smile.

“Ah, my favorite customer. What do you have, my boy?” he affably. The dwarf probably had a good sales week. My face was still frowning from the delay at the entrance and I needed some fun to lighten the mood.

“Mr. Tordan Garilsson. I here to search your store for contraband. Here’s the warrant.” I said. My voice was very serious and I handed him the purchase order but he didn’t read it. His face was deathly pale and his mouth was opening and closing like a fish.

“I suggest you read the warrant before I start.” I said somberly. This was too much fun. They say power corrupts and they weren’t wrong.

“But...but...” He stammered and read the paper quickly. When he understood what the paper really was, he slammed it at the counter.

“You!...You!...” His face was turning crimson and he gnashing his teeth in anger.

“Gotcha! Hahaha. You should have seen your face.” I laughed and slapped my knees.

“You good for nothing, rascal! Is this how you repay me for my kindness! I am always fair to you boy and this is all I get!” He was ranting now. I always enjoyed tweaking his nose.

“Well... If you don’t want me here...” I took the purchase order out of his hand and walked away.

“Wait a minute! Stop! I was a little angry and hasty with my words.” He said hurriedly. I gave him a big grin and he shook his head. He then laughed and all was okay.

“You’re an arsehole, Brian. C’mon gimme the paper.” He extended his hand to me. His greed overcoming his anger quite easily.

I gave him the purchase order and he read it again carefully. His eyes were shining as he tallied the amount in his mind.

“Hmmm...I need some time to complete this order. I’m low on some of the other merchandise listed here.”

“Sure. Just send the items and the bill to the Sheriff's office.”

“Yes. I can complete this order in a week, I think. I could ask my suppliers to prioritize the items. For an extra fee of course.” He twisted his beard while he computed the total amount.

“Whatever. I’m here for something else too.” I placed the card on the counter and he read it out loud.

--Level 2 License--

--Brian P. Hunter--