Hunters file in—more so than normal. With their numbers dwindling steadily, I’m happy to give them any comfort I can. While not everyone comes to the temple regularly, I recognize them all. Elvina huddles in her cloak near the breakfast spread as she eyes the cakes. She’s the strongest tank the Hunters still have. Short and stocky, she’s packed with more muscle than would seem at first glance. Having gone down into the Valley with her once before, I know she can lift a half-grown bear without breaking a sweat.
Lazaro stands at her side, pretending not to be interested in the food. As much as he claims that eating before a hunt makes him nauseous, it doesn’t take much convincing from his wife to get him to put something in his stomach. Elvina offers him a cupcake that he declines, though he never takes his eyes off of it or the savory food Farah added, rubbing the hilt of his sword as he always does when thinking hard about something.
Eamon is sitting on the altar’s steps, arms crossed and eyes closed. There’s never a moment when he isn’t trying to squeeze in a bit more sleep. At night he mans the lift that brings us in and out of the Valley, the walls being so sharply angled it would take half a day to get to the bottom carefully. His bow lays across his lap, the quiver on his hip angled so his arrows don’t fall.
The last two to come in are Savvas and Jojo. Jojo is vibrating with energy, dirt and flowers following in their wake as they rush to the breakfast table and start piling food on a plate. Muffins, cupcakes, eggs, sausages—nothing is safe as they start to eat before their plate is even fully made. It’s easy to see why Ayerin, goddess of the earth, chose them as a priest. Robust and brimming with life, happy to help and devastating when need be. Jojo is the second heaviest hitter but has the brightest personality.
Savvas, my dad, looks at me with heavy eyes. He has been here many times before. Rarely did he ask for my blessing, but I always give it willingly. Now, as he walks into the temple, I have to come to terms with something I have avoided thinking about until now. This may be the last time I’m able to.
He pulls me into a brief but tight hug before letting go. He smiles. I ignore that it’s forced.
He turns to everyone else and they quiet before he says, “Thank you all for meeting here instead of the lift.” He’s the only one who takes a seat, though chairs have been set up for everyone. The nervous energy is palpable as they all wait for Dad to continue. “Elder Artur will be arriving shortly, but we can get started now. This will be the last hunt.”
Murmurs break out, questions and confusion leaping from their mouth. “What?” Jojo asks, debris flying as they refuse to cover their mouth. “We have to make a living, Savva. We can’t just not hunt.”
“I understand that,” Dad says. His voice is low and grumbly. He clears it, but it does nothing to mask the irritation. “Hunters and Trackers have been going missing for over a year and every time we send people in to look for them, they don’t return. If they do, they don’t remember what happened to the rest of their party. The Elders have decided that this will be the last hunt if any of us go missing. I don’t like it any more to then the rest of you, but it’s what must happen. Our numbers are dwindling faster than we can replenish them. We can’t keep going on like this.”
“We’ve been careful every time we go down,” Elvina starts. “But it’s not good enough. We train and retrain. We pick up more safety measures and drill in the old ones. We even stopped hunting as much. Nothing has helped the number of Hunters missing go down. I can’t say that I’m surprised by the Elders’ decision, and I have to agree. A better solution needs to be found.”
“What about Trackers?” Eamon asks. He peeks an eye open, glancing around the room. “Will they go after us if we go missing, or will they be done for as well?”
“No,” Dad says. “Trackers will come after us, but if they also go missing, that’s it.”
“What does that mean?” Jojo asks. They finally have all their food plated and plop down in the seat next to Dad.
“It means we ban all entry and exit from the Valley.” Elder Artur’s voice carries from the entrance as he ascends the steps. His cloak is held tightly against him as he sniffs and heads for the circle of chairs. “We’ll up security around the perimeter to make sure that the Valley Beasts don’t overrun us, and we’ll move on from there.”
“That would change the very foundation of our city,” Lazaro says, finally moving away from the table with Elvina to sit. “We’re here because we hunt.”
“No,” Elder Artur says. “We’re here because we protect. That protection can look like anything as long as we maintain our mission. When Thesgrea and Naunne were founded as protector cities, we didn’t hunt. We made sure to keep everyone but the very best away from the Valley and make sure that everyone was as safe as possible. Those who were willing to lay down their lives were the only ones dubbed Hunters. The name has since been watered down, most people relying on luck to get them out of the Valley. How quickly we forget our history.”
“That’s true, but it doesn’t mean that it’s the right way to go,” Lazaro says. “We started Hunting not just to protect, but to give back to everyone who relied on us to make sure that they were safe. We make the best weapons, have the best training programs, foster a tight-knit and capable community—if we give all of that up now, what’s the stop Leyfa or Norni or Ellwood from ceasing their trade with us? What do we have to give back if we’re not hunting?”
“What they choose to do would rely on what the capital chooses to do and Valdage is well aware of the circumstances. Believe it or not, the emperor wants what’s best for everyone.”
“Our skills aren’t only used for hunting Valley Beasts,” Alvina says, putting her hand on Lazaro’s leg. His face is red, and brows scrunched. His voice hasn’t risen, but his anger is easy to see. “We can be normal hunters or even go to the mainland and try our hand at being adventurers for hire. We have options.”
“I don’t want to leave Thesgrea or Katta. I want to stay here and lives as we’ve been.”
“Oh?” Eamon says, rising from his spot on the floor. He leans against Dad’s chair, a brow raised. “Are you saying you want people to keep going missing?”
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“Don’t be combative,” Dad says, knowing there’s nothing good that will come from that branch in the conversation. “Elder Artur, this won’t be forever, will it? Only until we find a better solution?”
“That’s the thought process,” he says. He strokes his beard, frowning. “I don’t want to get any hopes up by saying that this will change soon. I can’t know when this will be figured out, but there are those who have been working to understand the Valley. Those researchers are making their way here to observe closer. They will not, under any circumstances, be allowed to breach the Valley border.”
“In that case, is there even a reason for us to go?” Eamon asks. “At this point, we might as well wait for the researchers to get here to we can get their read on the situation. Maybe just bring in some Trackers if we really need to get something done.”
“That’s what we’ll be doing,” Dad says. “Not everyone here will be going if they don’t want to. We wanted to make sure that those here understood that there is a chance that they will not return if they go. You already know this, but the missing people are becoming more frequent, and you all haven’t been in the field in months. This is your chance to back out.”
Silence envelopes the room as they take in the information. Everyone already knows the danger, though they likely weren’t sure why they were picked to go next. Elder Reggie had told me already.
“They haven’t been down there lately,” she said. “They’re the best of who’s left and I can’t keep sending the same traumatized Hunters even if they do volunteer.”
“I’m out.” Eamon is the first to speak up, adjusting his bow against his back. “I see the Valley Beasts enough at the night lift operator and suffer the risk then. I won’t do it again if I don’t have to.”
Savva nodded. “I understand. You can leave if you want or stay through the meeting.”
Eamon sighs, leaning back in his chair. “I’ll stay. I don’t want to be left out of the loop.”
“We’ll go,” Elvina says. She smiles at Lazaro who had just opened his mouth to say something. “I love this city and our island. I want to make sure that we keep our reputation as an ass-kicking people.”
Lazaro leaned down and kissed her forehead. “You really do read my mind sometimes.”
“I’m staying here,” Jojo says, setting down their plate of food. It’s the first time I’ve ever seen them with a plate of food and not eating it. “My sister is coming here soon. I can’t leave without a guarantee that I’ll be back.”
“I see,” Dad says. “That makes this easier. We’ll have an even team. The best Tracker left will be going with us to make sure to keep on the charted paths and stay together. If nothing else, we keep Chryssa safe.”
I feel Elder Artur’s eyes flicker to me. “You’ve been uncharacteristically quiet.”
“There isn’t much for me to say.” I’ve been standing near the table, listening. “When people go into the Valley, I send them off with a prayer, knowing they may never come back. This time is no different. If I were to fawn over my parents with worry, it’d be an insult.”
“I see,” he says. “Then will you give your opinion on what we’ll be doing if this group doesn’t make it back.”
“We at the temple are always happy to lend a hand where need be. If you need help with restructuring, I’d be happy to offer my assistance and if we need to reorganize our priorities, I’ll lend an ear. I’m hoping that we won’t have to, but I have been thinking about the best way to move forward and looking into our history to see what our cities were like before.”
He smirks. “Three steps ahead as always,” he mutters. “Is there anything you would like to add to our discussion?”
“Talaat hasn’t made much sense since he got back,” I say, referring to the lone survivor of the last hunting party. “The only thing he remembers about that night is that he couldn’t speak and had to be quiet. I try not to press him too much.” Since getting back, my best friend and childhood nemesis is a shell of himself. He keeps losing weight and seems to fold in on himself when anyone looks at him. He doesn’t sleep because the nightmares are too vivid, and he wakes up screaming. He nods off for a few minutes at most, the longest being twenty before he jolted awake. We’ve consulted witches and wizards to see if they could help him sleep without the terrors, but there was little to be done. Their draughts give him four hours, but that’s better than nothing.
Dad strokes his beard, his eyes cast down in thought. “If that’s the case, I’ll have to switch gear. We’ll stay as quiet as possible to increase our chances of success. Are there any more questions or discussions to be had?” Heads shake as Dad takes a deep breath. “Chryssa will take the lead in this hunt. We’ll reconvene in one hour at the lift. Lazaro, Elvina—thank you for coming with us. Jojo, Eamon—thank you for being honest with us.”
As they stand, Elder Artur raises his hand for their attention. “Please keep in mind the danger you will be facing and act accordingly. I understand my callousness can be seen as uncaring, but I care deeply about all of you. Be careful, and may the gods guide your path.”
Dad stays behind as everyone else shuffles out and helps me put the chairs away. “Are you truly not worried?” he asks. He’s staring at the table that Jojo attempted to clear on their way out. His hands grip the back of the chair. His knuckles are white.
“Dad, I’m always worried.” He chuckles a little, his grip relaxing. I put my arm around his shoulder. It’s jarring even after all this time that we’re the same height. As a child, he was always so big. Larger than life and stronger than any Valley Beast. As I got older, he got smaller and smaller until he was just a man. “I worry about you every day and today is no different. I know the risks, but like I said. I won’t insult you by fussing.”
“You could insult me a little.” I pull him into a hug, and he holds me tight. Tighter than is comfortable, but I’m okay with that. I’d rather remember this. The feeling of his arms around me. His warmth and pulse and scent and everything that made him my dad. Too often I remember the sight of his back. I won’t let that be the last thing I see this time. “Your sister insults me all the time.”
I laugh, pulling away. “Peggy can’t help it. She takes after Mom too much.”
“This is true,” he says. “Will you send me off with a blessing, dear?”
“Of course,”
I turn and shout towards the door. “Vid! Vahn! I know your eavesdropping.” There’s a deafening silence before they come inside, for once looking sheepish. “Did you learn anything?”
“We shouldn’t eavesdrop on Hunter meetings?” Vahn volunteers.
“We should make sure we know what’s happening before committing?” Vidia adds.
“You’re both correct. Now, I have to give a blessing. Will you accompany me?”
Their eyes lit up. “I thought you said we weren’t allowed,” Vidia says.
“Normally, no, but I think we can smudge it a little bit.” Vidia is a good singer but can’t dance. Her movements are stiff like an unskilled puppeteer is pulling her strings. Vahn is a fantastic dancer, but puberty has him left wanting in terms of singing. “Vidia, you will sing. Vahn, dance. I will channel and Dad, you know what to do.”
We get into position with Vidia and Vahn on either side of me, standing back as Dad kneels. I reach out my hands and they hover over his head like I’m placing a crown on his head. I breath in, letting the heat and light of Nzam flow through me. My blessings, real as they are, are just a plea to Nzam. A plea to protect. A plea to be watchful. A plea for understanding.
Light fills the temple, and buttery sunlight explodes from me, washing over Dad.
He smiles.