The plan that I had fixated in my head went up in smoke just like that. Literally. Since my first shot destroyed the fire sac, I had to kill another Fire Marten. The problem was, I lost the element of surprise. Instead, I landed myself in deep shit.

The largest Fire Marten emerged from the den. Its large reddish eyes stared in the direction of the dead monster, then in my direction. It obviously knew I was here, but it couldn’t pin-point my location. The other Fire Martens cautiously jumped from dead tree to dead tree, getting closer and closer. Right now, they were wary, but all that would change as soon as they realized how weak the threat was. And Fire Martens were carnivorous.

Adrenaline kicked in and pounded through my blood. I took a deep breath and forced my nerves to settle down. Mistake or not, I had to finish my job. And I needed a fire sac.

I pressed a little closer to the large tree I hid behind and drew another arrow. I aimed at the closest Fire Marten, memorizing its moves as it jumped tree to tree. Every time it landed, it paused slightly to gather its balance before it jumped again. The tip of my arrow followed its movement. As soon as it landed, I released the arrow.

The arrow shot like a star at the monster. It was the perfect headshot. Unfortunately, I overestimated the thickness of the monster’s skull and underestimated the force behind my bow. The arrow landed at a forty-five degree angle into the monster’s head, and sank deep, all the way to the torso. A second later, its fire sac exploded and the monster was blown right off the tree with a horrible sense of deja vu.

“No way!” I breathed in shock.

The remaining Fire Martens paused in fright … then let out gravely growls. Squealing like demons, they dashed my direction. With every breath, they released a small puff of fire that dissolved into smoke when they ran through it.

My stomach dropped to the ground in fear. Beneath the sounds of their growls, I could hear screaming. It wasn’t mine. And it wasn’t real, but I’d never forget that horrible sound. Was this how Mom felt that night eight years ago? Why didn’t I help her back then?

My fingers shook as I grabbed Shiva’s whistle and pushed it between my stiff lips. I blew the whistle while I drew another arrow and aimed at the closest Fire Marten.

I wanted to do this without Shiva, but things changed. Now that they were attacking me, it was a matter of life and death. I personally didn’t think dying would be that big of a deal – I should have died years ago – but I knew that my family would be devastated. I couldn’t let them down.

Even so, I wanted to finish my task. Everything that happened today would be meaningless if I didn’t.

I couldn’t hear the whistle, but I could hear Shiva’s agitated grunt and feel her presence getting closer behind me.

I let go of the arrow. I was trying to not hit the Fire Marten’s chest or the head at a wrong angle again. My moment of hesitation caused my aim to be off. The arrow sank into the monster’s thigh and hip. The Fire Marten squealed and collapsed.

The largest Fire Marten overtook it and ran at me, growling long and low. It opened its mouth and a huge jet of fire shot at me.

My hand, reaching for another arrow, paused and instinctively raised, as if I could catch the fire or maybe block it with my bare skin. Stupid, I thought. So stupid. Why did I lift my hand?

A cold wind blew just behind my ear a second before Shiva landed in front of me like a shield. The tips of her navy antlers glowed with magic and dozens of finger-sized ice shards appeared. I barely saw them before the shards shot at the Fire Martens. The fire blast collided with the ice shards, and the attacks exploded in a flash of white and red light.

Shiva grunted and sent another volley of ice at the Fire Martens.

My stomach sank in a whole new type of horror. I forgot she was trained to defend and attack for me. Shiva was a C ranked monster. The E ranked Fire Martens didn’t stand a chance against her, which was great for my safety. But terrible for my task.

Shiva’s area attack was so fast, the three smaller monsters couldn’t dodge in time. A second after they turned into ice pincushions, their fire sacs exploded. The larger of the Fire Martens squealed when a shard stabbed its fluffy tail, but it escaped the attack otherwise unscathed. It paused in the face of a stronger opponent, one foot lifted and ears forward.

The tips of Shiva’s antlers started to glow again.

“Stop!” I gasped and grabbed her reins with my right hand. “Stop attacking!” There was only one Fire Marten left. It was my last chance.

She froze and the magic faded from her antlers.

The Fire Marten turned and bolted in the other direction.

I cursed and grabbed an arrow out. Instinct took over as I stepped around Shiva and aimed. Without thinking, without worrying or second guessing myself, I loosed the arrow. The arrow shot across the burnt field and sank into the Fire Marten’s neck at the base of its skull and nailed it to the ground.

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I paused, barely able to breathe. And waited. The monster wasn’t moving. It was dead. And… the fire sac didn’t explode? It seemed too good to be true.

Shiva grunted and bumped me with her nose. Her eyes were wide, as if asking why I’d yelled at her.

My heart was still pounding with adrenaline, but I gently petted her neck. “You did good. Thank you for protecting me.” Even though her attacks were not in my plan, it didn’t change the fact that she saved my life.

But it did help me realize something. Monsters instinctively ran from stronger monsters. So even though Shiva was a great protection, any weaker monster that I hunted would flee as soon as it noticed her. That could be a problem.

The blackened ground crunched underfoot as I walked through the clearing, like the soil itself had been charred. Shiva followed after me, sneezing every couple feet, obviously bothered by the burnt smell. Even though the smaller monsters were closer, I walked past them to the largest. That was the one that mattered. It was my last chance at completing the task.

When we got there, I pulled a pair of gloves out from Shiva’s pack and crouched down beside the monster. Carefully, I dislodged the tip of the arrow from the ground then turned the monster over. The Fire Marten was a lot heavier than I was expecting. I was so paranoid that I subconsciously treated the carcass like glass as I poked a finger into the gap in the monster’s chest where the fire sac was. My finger hit something hard, like tapping on plastic.

I sighed with relief. That was it. A fire sac. I passed the task. Now I just needed to get the kill inside the protective canister and then back home.

Because I was familiar with my uncle’s arrows, I knew how to take the head off. It involved pinching a small hook in, then twisting the head until it unscrewed. As soon as it was out, I slowly pulled the shaft out of the monster. I didn’t breathe again until it was out. I’d never forgive myself if I accidentally broke the fire sac after all that work.

Shiva stood like a statue while I unstrapped the canister from the saddle. I wasn’t used to the saddle or juggling the large metal tube so I almost dropped it on my foot. It was a good thing Micah wasn’t there. He’d have laughed his guts out at me. I felt like a clown enough with Shiva watching me so attentively. At least I trusted her not to spill my secret.

I set the canister down next to the Fire Marten and worked all of it in, butt first. The tail and fur were worth a lot of money, while the head was barely worth anything. But I didn’t have any problem squishing the tail to smithereens, as long as the fire sac survived. In theory, there shouldn’t be anything strong enough to injure the part as soon as the monster was sealed inside. I could even kick it, and anything inside should be safe.

I knew I was being over cautious. It was my future, and I wasn’t taking any chances.

Carefully, I twisted the lid onto the canister. For a second, I stayed like that, staring at the still tube. I was half expecting the lid to explode open in a puff of fire. Nothing happened.

Then excitement bubbled in my stomach and worked its way to my chest.

“I did it,” I breathed. It wasn’t until those words reached my voice that it sank in. “I did it,” I said with more confidence. “I did it!” I yelled and jumped to my feet.

Shiva watched me with a blank expression while I threw my hands in the air and laughed like an idiot.

But I didn’t care. I did it. I got my first kill, survived my first battle, and completed my first task. Of course Shiva helped, but I technically did this by myself. Dad and Uncle Maveric weren’t here to take care of all the details. I did it all myself. Even if the actual event was a little messy, I still got the results I wanted. I proved that I could do it.

Still giggling, I hoisted the canister up. I thought that monster was heavy when I turned it over, and it felt that much heavier when I picked up the metal tube. Grunting with effort, I put the canister back in its place on Shiva’s saddle. Luckily there were hooks to keep it still while I strapped it down. The Raindeer wasn’t phased at all. Then again, despite her slender build, she could easily carry over four hundred pounds.

When I got my own Hunter Guide and Items Bag, I wouldn’t have to worry about manually carrying kills. They could be stored inside the Items Bag and brought out when I got back to town.

Finally, I retrieved all the arrows that I shot. I paused, looking at the monsters littered on the ground. It was a pity to waste the resources, but I didn’t actually want to bring them with me for several reasons.

First, I didn’t want to hang a dead animal right next to me. There wasn’t enough time to drain their blood, so Shiva and I would get really gross. Not to mention, the smell would attract other monsters. And Uncle Maveric and Dad would recognize Shiva’s work the moment they saw the carcasses. They would know that I got in trouble enough to need Shiva’s help. I was trying to show that I could be a Hunter myself, not because my mount was awesome. Unfortunately, I wasn’t there yet, but I could get there with enough practice. I just needed to figure out a different way to do it.

I bit my lips and looked back at the closest carcass. “How about we come back here tomorrow?” I said to Shiva, fully aware that I was talking to a creature that couldn’t respond. “As long as a monster doesn’t eat them overnight, I’ll take them to the shop in Boulder and sell them.”

The people in the Boulder shop didn’t know my face yet, so I wouldn’t have to worry about Uncle finding out. And I really could use the paycheck. E monsters didn’t give a lot of money, but it would be enough for someone starting out like me. I could do that the same time I registered at the Hunter’s Association.

Giddy bubbles popped in my chest. Tomorrow. I was going to be a Hunter tomorrow. With another laugh, I jumped onto Shiva’s back and we set off for Mist Haven.

We were barely even ten feet from the Fire Marten’s territory when Shiva tilted her head and moved her ears around, as if listening to something.

I pulled her to stop. The smell of blood still lingered in the air, which would undoubtedly draw monsters. The question was, what did we have to outrun?

The forest was quiet. It was late enough in the afternoon that the bugs were done singing until nightfall, and there wasn’t a breeze to rustle leaves. I couldn’t hear anything. But Shiva’s hearing was a lot better than mine. If she reacted, there had to be something. Maybe?

The seconds slowly ticked by, but I still couldn’t hear anything. Her ears kept flopping back and forth, as if she couldn’t pin down what she was listening to. Maybe she didn’t hear anything after all.

Just as I was about to click my tongue, I heard a faint scream.

It was high pitched and weak – a child’s scream.