The main group surged forward into the clearing that it created while the rest of us followed them, the wall of smoke receding at a faster and faster pace. I followed the masses and stepped onto the grassy plain, the shouting and war cries of our hunting party being supplemented by the animal cries in the distance that were now more clearly audible.
“Stick close!” I called to my teammates behind me, as I negotiated my way through the belligerent mob. Once I made sure that no one important was paying any attention to us, we peeled off with the smaller, westbound group. That earned us some shocked looks from some of the kids surrounding us, but I caught their eyes and winked quietly, trying to make myself small and blend in.
The effort was probably a waste, as Isaiah stuck out like a sore thumb and Julia wasn’t much better, but everyone else was focused on charging southward so it was probably fine. As soon as possible, we whispered some quick goodbyes and split off from the westbound group as well, making our way north. The front of Mist had receded much faster than we could run, and it now was a massive and distant wall, getting further and further from us. Nothing but that and grassy plains spread out in front of us.
We trekked across those plains for a few hours before Al grabbed my shoulder to catch my attention, jerking his head to the left and putting a finger on his lips. I made sure that everyone else got the message and gestured at him to lead the way. He led us a bit further west, to a place where the grass had started to grow taller, and shrubbery had started to grow in greater abundance. Our speed slowed to a crawl as we carefully crept up to a clearing, where 3 Domilope were grazing quietly.
The four-legged creatures sported onyx horns that gleamed in the daylight. The female’s horns simply sprouted up vertically and ended in points, but the male’s turned into crescent moons with spikes jutting from their inner ridges. They were blue furred, and their dark eyes sparkled with the same black as that of their horns. Their paws dug protectively into the ground as their long faces fed on the grass upon it. I knew that there were 5 square black fingernails on those paws that would allow them to propel themselves across the ground in mighty leaps and fight back with some kicks, if necessary. Though their most deadly weapons would be their horns, obviously. Their heads came up to my shoulder.
Domilope meat was highly nutritious and valuable, as they were herbivorous, but their speed was tremendous. Even Ann, the fastest of our group, would only have a chance against them at a sprint. And the edge of the clearing was far enough away from them that her chances with a frontal assault would be low. But that didn’t mean that we didn’t have options.
“Maneuver 1. Julia opens on my signal.” I whisper at the rest of the group, then slink of into the brush surrounding the clearing. I carefully make my way to the other side before settling down just out of eyesight of the female closest to me. This is a group of 1 male and two females, with the large buck closest to the rest of my group and the females grouped closer to me.
“Now” I mutter as loudly as I dare. Almost immediately, a spear flies out from where my team is. It’s moving at a terrific pace, but the buck flinches before it catches him in the shoulder. At the same time, two figures sprint out from cover and right at the startled Domilope. They immediately bolt in my direction, with the buck hobbling much slower than the others. The larger of the two figures lumbers after it, while the smaller of them sprints right past it and towards the does.
Ann overtakes the slower of the two does at around the same time Isaiah catches the buck. The buck rears to defend itself but Isaiah buries his axe in its chest while sticking to its injured side. Ann’s doe never gets the chance, falling to a high speed thrust right to its’ side from her saber. The last doe is driven right into my waiting arms, where I draw my favored dual short swords, gleaming with the bone white of twice-forged Gwyniron. I finish the doe with a quick sneak attack.
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I had told Al to be on the lookout for food like this. Even if they weren’t the primary objective, we only brought enough rations for two days, which was primarily village policy. We had enough food that we wouldn’t die if we came home empty handed but we were encouraged strongly to find the bare minimum to feed ourselves, at worst. Growing food on the Mesa was hard, and there was never enough to go around, so the village lived off the surplus of the Hunt. Those who would not work would not eat.
At least they gave us enough water.
With food for the week now secured, we set to cleaning and butchering the carcasses. By now, the sun had begun to set, so we made camp where we were. We set up our tents and made a campfire with some stones, grass, twigs from the bushes around us, and the surprisingly flammable pelts of the Domilope. I had brought some firewood in my pack but didn’t want to use it yet.
We cooked the meat and sat around the campfire, joking and bickering as the others tried to get me to spill the beans on the details of the plan. There was no longer any need for secrecy, so after teasing them a bit, I finally told them about Glasrock, the mine, and how we were going to get there.
Julia and Al stared at me, gobsmacked, while Isaiah’s eyes grew about as wide as I’d ever seen them. The first to speak was Al.
“Wow, that’s…major. Assuming it’s real of course and not a massive hoax. It’s a bit late now, but should we really be gambling this much on what mostly amounts to a legend?”
Julia beat me to it with her response, turning to glare slightly at Al.
“My brother is as good a scholar as it gets. If he says it exists, it exists.”
“It’s a gamble, no matter how sharp Victor is.” I admit, also looking at Al. “But it’s the best option I have. Do you really think we would be able to forestall a challenge from Samuel through normal means?”
At the mention of Samuel, Julia’s eyes started shooting thunderbolts, and she wheeled to face me.
“It’s been so hectic there past few days that I almost forgot about him! Are you okay? No lasting damage? I barely managed to peel him off you but…”
“I’m fine, Julia.” I grinned warmly. “Thanks for the backup.”
She returned the smile before narrowing into a frown again. “Wait, what’s this about staving off a challenge?”
I told her about the surrounding political situation as the other three watched and nodded along. If I thought she was outraged before, she was livid now.
“That…he…if he kills you…” She choaked out, practically oozing indignation.
“Get in line, little sis.” Ann interjected, reaching over Al to pat Julia’s leg. “I get first dibs on assassination if Steve bites it fighting Aurelius. Plus, I’m faster.”
“Hopefully you all don’t start carving my tomb yet.” I grin, wryly this time. “If this works out, things might not come to blows.”
“And they might anyways, no matter what.” Al grumbled.
“Even if they do, Steve can win.” Isaiah rumbled right back, now looking straight at me.
I was taken aback. Not even my own father was happy about my chances and my past record on this topic wasn’t exactly stellar. But he looked at me with a fundamental level of confidence that I’m not sure I earned.
I looked to the others.
Julia mimicked that confidence, albeit a bit shakily, nodding and giving a thumbs up. Al just looked fidgety and didn’t meet my eyes. Ann was looking at me more thoughtfully, not quite denying the idea but not exactly endorsing it either.
I looked at Al, honestly a little hurt:
“Come on Al, what happened to all the confidence that you had a couple days ago?”
“Sneak attacks aren’t the same thing!” he declared, then looked over to the roasting meat. “The first batch is done.”
We started cooking a new batch and ate in silence. Some things you ate could improve you physically in ways that were not purely mundane. The Lightcore, for example, obviously changed me in ways that I am still trying to figure out. Rodents and smaller mammals that people sometimes ate while desperate would provide no benefit, while Domilope meat was some of the best you could get.
There were diminishing returns, of course. We were practically weaned on the stuff, so it had less of an effect on us, but we still welcomed the improved recovery and the slight boost in strength that it would give us. We would probably need it.
I needed to contribute some firewood to finish cooking everything. That’s what we got for trying to have a campfire with no trees in sight. Normally we wouldn’t need a stockpile of wood on a Hunt, but I figured we would need it where we were going. Once that was done, we retired.
Our first day was over.