Oh, primal deity, First Hunter divine,
Thy form a shifting tapestry of might,
In fur and scale, an ever-changing sign,
A symphony of instincts, wild and fierce, in the night.
Within thy maw, a primordial fire bright,
Ignites the chase, and sparks the hunt anew,
Fangs gleam with hunger, prey taking flight,
A feast of fear and blood beneath the moon’s ethereal hue.
We stand in awe, mere mortals, before thy gaze,
Since time immemorial, we honor thy name,
We, children of the hunt, bow low in grace,
Grant us thy blessing, oh Lord, in the forest’s vast domain.
Bless our spears, our arrows swift and true,
Oh God of the Hunt, we entreat thee, let thy presence imbue.
- Traditional Elvish Prayer
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We run toward the three howlers, that are stretching their massive bodies after a much-needed rest to prepare for sprint. As I didn't learn what our escape plan entails, too caught up in my own concerns to pay attention to my surroundings, now I have no choice but to trust that others know what they are doing.
In front of me, Nael veers off to the side, but motions for me to keep going forward. Before I get a chance to ask where he is heading, my feet leave the ground and my world turns upside-down as Mica lifts me into the air, throwing me on the back of one of the beasts with barely any effort on her part.
Its fur is coarse beneath my fingers as I grab hold of it with everything I have. My legs struggle to find purchase against the shifting muscles, fighting the momentum that threatens to send me falling. Only when Luci hops up onto the animal beside me and reaches out a hand, do I stabilize myself and secure a sitting position.
A moment later, my brother returns with three bursting packs and throws them over to us without stopping his sprint. Once again, I nearly lose my balance trying to catch them, but after a bit of frantic juggling, manage to tie one to my back. A soft chuckle tells me that my suffering amuses the bunny girl, but she has the decency to stop as soon as she sees my glare directed her way. After helping Aria and Eumelia up onto the mount as well, Nael vaults up and takes his seat in front of me before giving me a reassuring nod.
Everything happens so fast my brain simply cannot keep up with it. Within moments, the three canines rush out into the woods, darting through the undergrowth in a frenzy of movement as they weave through the maze of trees. Mica leads the charge, cutting through bushes and thickets with wild abandon like an arrow unleashed by a master archer. Meanwhile, Elder Rani has assumed a protective stance at the rear, wielding an intricately carved wooden staff in both of his hands while running backward, effortlessly matching the pace of our mounts.
I whip my head around, searching for the missing member of the party, but my mother is nowhere to be found, vanished into the night. Her absence strikes me like a knife to the heart, and a treacherous voice in the back of my mind whispers dark promises of what it could mean, but I shove them into the box they came from with iron fists before they consume my thoughts. If anyone here can survive this calamity, it is her. I don’t want to believe anything else. I won’t. Besides, brother seems not to worry at all about this, so it must be a part of the plan.
The force of the acceleration pulls on us every time we make a sharp turn and I would have likely tumbled down long ago, were it not for Nael and Lucienne supporting me from both sides. Despite how we cling to our ride for dear life, riding the howler is a harrowing experience. Their fur is short and rough, irritating my skin while offering little purchase. Whenever the animal jumps over a log, a fallen tree, or some other obstacle in our way, the jarring impact travels through the entire length of the beast and resonates inside my bones, adding to the list of fresh bruises forming all over my body.
On top of everything, the harshness of the motion forces us to inhale lungfuls of the sickeningly thick mist enveloping us in an impenetrable veil of gray, an overwhelming mixture of aromatic sap from freshly damaged bark and rotten mulch of broken foliage and debris scattered over the ground by the savage dash. Every time we burst out of the cover of the fog and into the clear night air, I desperately try to fill my lungs with as much oxygen as possible while scrubbing my stinging eyes clean to get the burning moisture out, before the cycle starts all over again as the dense vapors envelop us once more.
However, as the minutes pass, I adjust to the turbulent tempo of the flight through the night, to the best of my ability. The first rush of adrenaline wears off and my heartbeat slows down to a steadier rhythm as I find my equilibrium. A sharp turn draws a gasp from my lips, but this time it’s a sound of excitement rather than a terrified shriek. The exhilarating speed and the feeling of wind rushing through my hair as we race through the woods are addictive. A smile breaks through the veil of anxiety cloaking my thoughts as I lean into the motion and match the cadence of the beast beneath me with my breaths.
Left and right. Left and right. Breathe in. Breathe out. Bend. Counterweight. Lie flat against the fur in anticipation of a sudden swerve. Rise. Lift your center of gravity to soften the impact of landing. Stabilize. Embrace the moment. Ignore the system notification informing you of a level up in your riding skill. You can feel it without that silly glowing message interrupting your thoughts, a connection forged by the delicate touch of your fingertips against the furred hide of your mount. The euphoric sensation of freedom from the worries of the day is fleeting and will soon fade away, replaced by sore muscles and an aching tailbone from bouncing atop a colossal beast during a wild race through the forest. Savor it while it lasts.
The annoying voice of my brother ruins the fun before I have a chance to reach a higher state of bliss, crashing into my thoughts like a pebble through a glass window. “Enjoying yourself, Alice?”
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“Surprisingly, yes! And I’d love it if you weren’t spoiling it!”
“This is only the beginning of a long night. If you feel your strength waning even a bit, report immediately,” Nael says with genuine concern in his voice, completely ignoring my remark. “The harsh truth is you are the weakest among us here, sis. We can’t afford to lose you just because you decide to be stubborn about this.”
His words cut deep, worming their way into the core of my being to settle into a comfortable position atop the hoard of my insecurities. I grit my teeth in frustration but can’t bring myself to voice out any form of protest, knowing he is right. However, before I spiral any deeper into self-pity, a fluffy paw rests on my shoulder, startling me out of the void of misery I was descending into.
“Not even two days, remember?” the white hare speaks up next to my ear.
Her reminder stops my self-depreciation dead in its tracks. This is not the time for doubts and regret, no matter how justified they might be. To do that would be akin to insulting all the efforts the people around me have made in order to save me and get me through this tribulation. That I am still here at all is not the result of my own powers, but is owed to the sacrifices made by my family and friends. They were willing to stand together against the threat to our tribe and ensure my safety at the cost of their lives. I must prove myself worthy of the price they are paying.
With a squeeze of Luci’s hand and a slight smile, I signal that I’m all right, and she nods back in acknowledgment, content with the outcome of our brief exchange. I enjoy our growing bond, a closeness developing between us despite only having met each other yesterday. Or was it already today? Either way, this odd rapport formed under less-than-ideal circumstances is much better than us being at each other‘s throats. That I still know almost nothing about her troubles me, though. Hopefully, there will be time for proper talks and friendly banter in our future, provided we make it out alive, of course.
I do my best to amuse myself with observations of my companions as we weather the rough ride, studying their faces and how each of them reacts to the circumstances we found ourselves in. The muse twins appear to have entered some sort of trancelike state — their eyes are half-closed while their lips move with inaudible murmurs. A synchronized hum interrupts it occasionally, before being followed by more verses whispered under their breath. It looks to be some type of chant, but for what purpose is beyond me.
Behind me, my furry companion is once again engaged in a heated argument with herself, and from what I can tell, she seems to be losing quite spectacularly. Or at least, that’s how I interpret her exasperated groans and defeated sighs. Really... Are all lapines raving mad or is it just my luck to find the looniest of the bunch?
Then there is Nael in front of us. I can’t see his face, sitting behind his back, but I will bet all my possessions that a goofy grin is plastered across it right now. That man is incapable of taking anything seriously. It’s true, though, that if I focus on the annoyance, the mere thought of him causes, then I can push away the constant gnawing of anxiety that has taken residence in my heart.
Despite my newfound resolve, as time passes, the aches and pains accumulate and fatigue sets in. Eventually, a slight tightness develops in my chest while my limbs grow heavier and harder to lift, the intensity of the exertion overwhelming my poor body. However, before it has a chance to become too debilitating, I ask my brother for help through gritted teeth. It’s humiliating, but as my recent history proves, this isn’t a time to let my pride get in the way.
I barely finish the sentence before I have a leaf-wrapped bundle shoved between my parted lips. Yuck! How is it possible for something to taste this revolting?! Like chewing on rotten grass fermented in mud, sprinkled with an assortment of poisonous weeds, just for good measure. But whatever foul ingredients these things contain, they are potent. Almost instantly, the weariness leaves me as if I never tired in the first place. My muscles loosen up, becoming limber and easier to move as fresh vigor infuses my being, rejuvenating me from head to toe. In contrast to the welcome effects of this mysterious concoction, the bitterness lingers on my tongue, refusing to go away no matter how many times I try to spit it out.
More time passes and our surroundings remain unchanged. Trees whizz past us in blurs of green and brown, our mad dash through the forest, never slowing down or easing up, even for a brief respite. The repetitive rhythm of it all almost lulls me into a hypnotic trance before a loud shout tears through the fog of drowsiness like lightning splitting the sky, jolting me back to lucidity.
“It has started!” Mica bellows with such raw force that I swear my ears are ringing from the shockwaves traveling through the air.
This simple warning instantly wipes away all traces of tiredness from my mind, replacing them with fear as my entire being tenses up. This is it, then. Whipping my head around, I search for the cause of the alarm, hoping to spot the pursuers and finally learn what exactly is after us. My eyes frantically dart through the gloom of the night in desperation, but my efforts prove fruitless, and only the eerie shadows of the forest stare back at me.
Only after a few moments have passed do I understand what the beastmaster leading us meant. And with that realization, all color drains from my face as my blood runs cold. With no enemy in sight, there is only one explanation for the disturbing message — Mica must have received a notification about the death of someone in her party. The siege on Elziheir is underway, the divine punishment has arrived!
At this point, all attempts at denial crumble like a castle made of sand in the face of an incoming wave, washed away without mercy. A chill creeps through my bones and settles in as a tight knot in the pit of my stomach, twisting and pulling at my guts with cruel abandon. The tremors wracking my body have little to do with the turbulence of our wild ride, but rather stem from the icy clutches of horror closing around my heart, the foreboding sense of impending doom threatening to consume me. It feels as if reality itself has grown jaws and is about to swallow me whole at any moment.
Beside me, Lucienne trembles while biting her lower lip with visible anxiety, while my brother clenches his fists so tight his knuckles turn white and I can practically hear the grinding of his teeth from the tension in his jaw. The chant of the muses grows in volume and urgency and I am now able to identify it for what it truly is — a prayer for safety and guidance to the God we are fleeing from.
“...In thy feral glory, we humbly plea, First Hunter, guard our journey ‘neath the canopy...”
How ironic that in the hour of peril, we seek divine aid from the Deity, causing our distress in the first place. I close my eyes and allow the words of the twins to wash over me, hoping their devotion will bear results, for my own faith is far too tainted by resentment and bitterness to summon the necessary piety.
As our group keeps barreling through the underbrush of the night-shrouded forest, my attention focuses on the scenery racing past. Now, with the fear of what lies ahead clouding my mind, every shadow flickering in the corner of my vision becomes a menacing phantom stalking us from the obscurity of the brush. Each gust of wind in my ears resembles a threatening roar announcing an imminent attack.
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How long has it been? Minutes? Hours? Hard to say exactly, but the time stretches endlessly, draining my mental stamina at an alarming rate. At this point, I almost wish for whatever horrors are hunting us to jump out of the dark, sparing us from this nerve-wracking ordeal of anticipating an impending clash. Almost, as the rational part of my brain recognizes the foolishness of such wishes.
Yet nothing happens, and the anxiety steadily eats away at my willpower like a parasitic worm feasting upon the decaying meat of my mind. Maybe they might miss our group entirely and we will get out of this predicament unscathed. Or perhaps the defenders have been able to repel the threat and all the alarm has been for naught. Come morning, we will simply turn back and—
My heart nearly leaps out of my chest when something explodes out of the darkness behind us, causing me to cry out in fear, only for it to transform into a squeak of delight as a familiar figure reveals itself to be the source of the sudden scare. With one bound after another, she joins our flight through the woods, effortlessly keeping up with the speeding howlers. However, this feeling of relief isn’t fated for a long life.
“Prepare—” is all my mother can get out before a reality-shattering howl drowns out all the other sounds as the world grinds to a halt.