The earth shook. A thunderous tremor travelled through the jungle. The trees swayed with the rushing air. The leaves rustled on the high crowns of the jungle's trees. Swishing sounds of branches hitting one another irritated Larisa’s hearing. She despised the sound. The scratching noise of branches rubbing together was unbearable to her. The pitch made her ears hear only that. She could not focus on the sound she needed to hear — the sound of prey.
Larisa looked up to see what might have caused the tremor in the earth and the air. There could be a storm coming, but the wet season was still two moon cycles away. Instead, as her eyes touched the bright blue sky, she knew the reason for the tremor.
A deep red blur crossed above the trees, high beneath the clouds, and Larisa knew the dragon was home. This time, the tremor travelled through her. It shook her flesh and rattled her bones. A fresh layer of sweat broke on her skin. Fear took hold of her body and mind.
The dragon came back to the mountain to rest, and the jungle trembled from his heavy presence. Larisa touched the wet soil, and the Essence spoke through it to her. The jungle felt weary, and the beasts fled to their dens. Their heavy stomping and running across the land made the ground tremble. The arrival of the dragon meant a year full of chaos and people venturing into the jungle.
Larisa knew none of these things if not for the jungle and its connection to her. Even if her first memory was of the same red blur a full decade ago.
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She remembered lying on the cold ground, feeling sharp stones on her shoulders. She could smell something metallic. She recalled waking up with her eyes stuck closed, and seeing a red sky. She remembered a dragon; she remembered saying his name underneath her nose.
“Vitash.” she said quietly that time, and then a pain pierced her head. The dragon had a name that she remembered, but it was fading from her memory. Then there was nothing. No past, no recollection. She only knew she had to survive. She longed for a presence she couldn't recognize any more.
She knew that the jungle was inescapable as a young child. So she had to survive, and survive she did.
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The dragon was back, and everything would be different. She knew – as she knew many things – that the jungle would change. Many beasts that lived under the same verdant trees as her would alter their behaviour. They would be more vicious, more reckless and freer. The dragon Vitash arrived, bringing a new era for Larisa and her routine.
She had to make plans. But first, she had to conclude the hunt.
It did not matter that the dragon had arrived; she had to finish her hunt. The tracks of the beast ventured east, so that was where she must head. Today’s hunt was a dangerous one. Yesterday, a shadow jaguar, or cienja, approached Larisa's camp. Larisa understood that these creatures were as relentless as she was with her prey. Her scent had to be already burned in the cienja’s mind. If she did not get to the beast first, she would have to fight for her life when the beast finally came to her.
Cienja’s tracks were one of the hardest to spot. An Essence of darkness flowed through the beast’s spirit, making its steps light and tender on the soil. Marks were hard to spot if one were to use one’s eyes. Thankfully, Larisa saw more than what the mundane beasts in this jungle saw. She saw the Essence, a force that kept life going, imprinted on every particle around her. She saw a pattern in the darkness that moved through this part of the jungle.
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To her left, she saw two circles of Essence imprinted on the ground. Some distance further, she noticed two more circles. Steps. She followed after.
She stayed low to the ground, where the Essences could hide her and she could approach the beast.
Also, she kept her bow close with poisoned arrows, each tipped with hikora's vines. The toxin was powerful against mammals. However, it was not as effective against special creatures like the cienja. It caused paralysis. Still, it would work for a limited amount of time. Hopefully, enough time for Larisa to deliver the killing blow.
As you moved away from the mountain in this jungle, the ground would get greener with plants. Larisa would be happy with that, except for the noise the leaves and branches made when she walked on them.
The Essence she was following became thicker, showing that the beast was near. The tracks were also fresher. She would soon see her prey.
Larisa stopped when she stepped over a crunchy and brittle branch on the ground. Before she began tracking, she heard alkanosts singing in the high branches. Alkanosts were bold birds known for their loud mating songs. Now, the air had lost the timbre of that bird. She could hear dried leaves rustling on the jungle floor. The high trees swayed, making a swishing sound. Animal life had fled the surrounding area. The cienja was within her reach.
Larisa did not dare to go lower to the ground; if she did, she could not defend herself if the beast attacked from high up. So she stayed still and tried to sense where the beast might hide. Cienja were ambush predators. They used darkness to hide until they thought the time was right. That is why Larisa had to feel for the darkness and try to locate where it might congeal.
The cienja had no smell. The only things offending her nostrils were the rotting jungle floor and the pollen in the air. There was no sound, and she could not see with her eyes, but the Essence spoke to her spirit, and then she looked high up. A dark spot, bigger than the previous ones, sat on the lower branch of the tree next to her. The beast had got closer than she thought. It was particularly smart, it seemed. That made it all the more dangerous.
Larisa reached for the knife on her left hip. The blade made no sound as it slipped from its sheath. The same could not be said for Larisa’s leathers. She collected the darkness around her feet. She tried to hide her movements. She also made the air still. The sound would not carry. The beast was none the wiser of her intention.
Larisa changed her footing, her feet apart and ready for movement. She held a shiny knife. It felt powerful. She knew it was the right time. The beast appeared.
Its surprise was evident as Larisa jumped onto the branch the beast was sitting on. The cienja froze, and Larisa took the opportunity to strike. One slash to the beast’s neck was all it took. The cienja fell off the branch, and Larisa released her breath.
It was wise to have poisoned her blade this morning. Her intuition had never failed her.
Larisa jumped down and stood above the beast. Its features, now visible in the light, were twisted in fear and indignation. Larisa could tell, since some emotions flew into the Essence. She also knew her time was limited. The cienja’s paw had already started to twitch.
Larisa slipped her bow onto her back and took her knife with both hands. It would take all her strength to pierce this creature’s neck. A sure way to kill it, but a messy one.
She crouched and put the point of her knife near the creature’s pulse point. The cienja, despite being covered in darkness, were just like any other beasts in the jungle. They were made of blood and bone. The beast was on the ground, panting with fear and anger. Larisa despaired at what she must do.
The killing had never come easily to her. She knew that the difference between her and the beast was only skin deep. They might have looked different, but the same Wild Essence flowed through them both.
Larisa wept as she pushed her blade into the creature’s neck.