by Jake Daniel
I’d spent most of my high school years either hiking through the woods behind our house or attending some deep woods parties with my friends. Now, if the games had been like this, where I could be in my element and level up certain skills, it would’ve been a whole different story.
My mind flashed to my brother. After high school, he went the college route. He was always book smart, but you put him out in the wilderness with a rifle and you were lucky if he made it back out without shooting himself.
I started working right away when I graduated, which was how I could save up enough money to buy my lodge. It pissed off my dad, and he told me often that I’d never be successful or that no one would ever want to go on one of my ‘little safaris’. After I netted over $500,000 in profit one year, he changed his tune.
Sure, he had the fancy finance company and was working in one of the high rises off of 16th Street in downtown Denver, but I never once could envision anyone enjoying that sort of life. We went our own ways, and really the last time we spoke was at Thanksgiving a few years back. We got into it over some stupid shit and he ended up storming out. I haven’t made it back down to the city for any holiday since.
I stood up to relieve myself after a few hours, carefully positioning Dahlia and Gwen to not wake them. I walked a short distance away into the forest and found an old stump to piss on. As I finished up, I caught a small glimmer of firelight in the distance. I immediately crouched and listened intently. I couldn’t hear what was being said, but when I closed my eyes and focused on the area, it became immediately clear we needed to move.
The outlines of at least nine men with horses trudged up an old logging path about four hundred yards away.
I hurried back to the others and softly shook Gwen and Dahlia, holding a finger to my mouth to keep them quiet as they awoke.
Within seconds they were on their feet and helping me to rouse the others. By the time everyone had awoken and was on their feet, the men were only about two hundred yards out.
I gathered everyone together and spoke in a loud whisper. “We need to stick together. It isn’t safe here any longer. Follow me.” I turned and led the group away from our camp and in the opposite direction of where the men approached. The forest was much too thick to retreat the opposite way toward the city without being heard.
I knew our wagon wasn’t far, but I wasn’t sure we’d be able to reach it in time. We moved through the forest like a long snake, weaving our way over fallen trees and in between scattered boulders.
We reached a clearing and I spotted the small patch of forest where we’d left the wagon earlier. It was too late. Three men walked up to the wagon and waved several of the others over. I watched their outlines through the darkness as they surrounded the wagon, offloaded the remaining supplies, and set it ablaze. Wofferd’s going to lose his fucking mind.
As I watched the wagon burn, I nearly broke our cover as I realized they’d left the mint green horse attached by his harness. The horse stamped his feet, trying to free himself from the inferno that raged behind him.
The laughs of several of the poachers cut through the night. I clamped down tightly on my rifle as the rear haunches of the horse went up in flames. The horse struggled for several more seconds as it burned alive before it fell still on the ground.
The primary group of poachers on our side of the road was only about fifty yards out now. I spun and focused on them as they approached. There were at least five men that I could make out clearly. I knew that if they came upon us, they would show us less mercy than they showed Wofferd’s horse.
I led the others forward, away from the clearing, and down into a small brushed-filled ravine. There was just enough space for all of us to fit inside. If one were to look closely enough or shine the right amount of light on the surrounding area, it would’ve easily given away our position.
I still had an unrestricted view of the wagon and watched as several poachers pissed on the remains of Wofferd’s horse. I saw only red. These men were not human, they were monsters. As the full extent of the group came into view, I realized if I made any rash moves I’d jeopardize all of our lives. The first group of five passed within mere feet of us, while approximately twenty more followed closely behind.
Gwen and Dahlia tried their best to keep the scared whimpers from the other satyrs at a minimum while I watched intently to see which way they were headed. Several of the men joked loudly as they passed, while many of the others grumbled and told them to keep their eyes peeled.
The men moved along the road toward Dunway and left the wagon, minus the supplies they’d lifted, to burn unceremoniously to the ground. I hoped that the other residents of that town had made it out safely, otherwise they would be in for a surprise when these assholes returned.
After about ten minutes passed, I crept out of the bushes. I turned to Gwen as I entered the clearing. “Keep everyone over here. I’m going to see if they left anything behind.”
Gwen scanned the area before her eyes settled on mine. “Okay, but please be careful.”
I hurried across the road in darkness and scanned the area around me for any signs of stragglers. I reached the horse first. The smell of its burnt hair filled the air.
I shook my head as I realized the horse was still alive. I crouched next to it as the massive beast gasped for air. I held a hand to its neck. “Shh, easy, boy.” The horse stared at me wide-eyed as it struggled to breathe. I knew I couldn’t let it lay there and suffer, but I also knew that I could not shoot it to put it out of its misery and risk alerting the others to our presence.
I pulled out my knife and gave the horse a couple more pats. And, as I’ve done on many hunts where the dumb asses hit their prey with a gutshot, or caused just enough damage to cripple it, I moved behind its head and braced it in my grasp.
I reached forward with my knife and sliced its jugular down to its neck bone, putting it out of its misery. I carefully set the horse’s head down onto the ground and stood.
I turned to inspect the wagon, and three men appeared from the surrounding trees. They had not been part of the first crew that decided to burn the cart and our horse.
This was obviously the B team. The youngest of the men held a switchblade and laughed. He turned to his partners as they approached. “Look at that, Striker was right. Here’s that fucker now.” He locked his eyes on mine. He looked a little like my brother when he was younger, except this man had obviously spent much more time outdoors than Matty did. “Couldn’t resist, eh? Where are they?”
“Where are who?” I remained stoic, waiting to see what these idiots were going to do. I took a chance that they were not the brightest of Striker’s merry men.
The tallest man with broad shoulders and a Frankenstein’s monster-esque head with almost no neck stepped forward. He raised a spiked morning star and pointed it toward my face. “You don’t understand what you’re dealing with here.” He shifted his eyes uneasily between the two others with him. “Make it easy on yourself and tell us where they are.”
The smallest of the men flipped a long strand of greasy black hair up out of his face and twirled his blade. “Come on, we know you’re hiding them. Return them now and we may even let you escape unscathed. You know, pretend like it never happened.” He struck me as a leader of one of those popular early 2000s emo bands. His voice came out as if he were imitating Batman, poorly.
The youngest of the three stepped forward. He had better armor than both of the others and appeared to have better grooming habits. “I say we kill him. He won’t tell us anything. Let’s just get it over with so we can keep searching for those stupid bitches.”
I scanned the three men’s faces. The large man looked like he didn’t want to be there, but the other two seemed determined to be the heroes.
I focused on the goth poser first. “Listen here Blink 182, say you’re right? That would mean that you three are completely outnumbered right now. Do you really want to try anything? What happens if we let you go? Are
you going to hightail it back to big daddy Striker? Tell him everything you know? And then, what? He slaps you on the ass and gives you the courtesy reach-around you so badly desire?” From the look on the man’s face, I knew what I was doing was having its intended effect. “And you two. Do you really think killing me is going to help you find those women?” They exchanged glances and within seconds the three of them were arguing amongst themselves.
I reached back for my pistol and stopped as I realized the others may still not be far enough away for me to fire it without alerting them.
Instead, I scanned the ground and found my knife lying next to Wofferd’s dead horse. I bent slowly and grabbed the handle of the knife and brought it up behind my back slowly so I wouldn’t draw their attention.
I really didn’t want to have to kill these guys if I didn’t need to, but I would if that was what it came down to. The last thing I needed was for these dumbasses to alert more of Striker’s men. I closed my eyes for a second while the men argued and focused on the surrounding area.
The harder I concentrated, the greater distance I could use my Sight skill. I eventually stopped at the glowing ball of essence that Gwen, Dahlia, and I had stopped at earlier. With a deep breath, I cleared my mind and envisioned the energy flowing to me, as if I was absorbing it from the spirit well, which was at least a mile away.
The energy rushed toward me and all at once it smashed into me, nearly sending me tumbling forward. I focused intently on the glowing strands as they whipped around my body and sank into my chest. The men stopped arguing and began stepping backward slowly.
The emo man pointed at me with a shaky arm. “What the fuck are you playing at?!”
The others watched as I channeled more and more spirit into my body. Something rose from within me and I felt the women a short distance from me, waiting just out of sight. I was sure that to the three men standing in front of me; it looked as if I were being possessed.
I focused on Dahlia’s energy and put everything I had into trying to contact her directly. It felt somewhat jagged and unorganized, but eventually I could enter her mind.
The three men backed away further and my body began to convulse. It took everything I had to control the amount of energy that was flowing through my body. I spoke in my thoughts, hoping what I was about to do would work. “Dahlia, can you hear me?”
After a few seconds, I feared that my plan may not work. That is, until Dahlia’s sweet, airy voice answered me. “Logan?”
I struggled to maintain our connection, feeling it slipping in and out. “Yes, I need you to use your powers to bind these poachers, can you do that?”
“Of course.”
Within a few seconds, I felt a small rumble rise in the ground underneath me. My connection with the energized spirit broke and the three men rushed forward, weapons held at the ready.
I braced myself as the large man brought his morning star down toward the top of my head. There wasn’t anywhere for me to go, except up. I raised my arm and caught the blunt force of the morning star’s spiked head in my palm. It tore my flesh in several areas, but I met the poacher’s arm high enough that he hadn’t been able to get all of his strength behind it.
Emo boy pulled out a dagger and brushed a long black strand of hair out of his face as he rushed toward me. “Get him! He can cultivate spirit! He’s worth more than any of those fucking monster girls!”
My arms remained occupied with the meathead, so I pulled the poacher’s large body toward me by one of his massive arms. I moved him in place just in time for the black-haired punk to sink his dagger into his friend’s armpit with a sickening slurp.
I pushed the large poacher forward, and he landed on top of Emo with a thud. The youngest man yelled and rushed forward, but it was too late, Dahlia had already gotten to work.
Chapter Seventeen
Several vines exploded up from the ground, wrapping themselves around the downed poachers. A flash came from my side as Gwen rushed in and kicked the emo man in his kneecap, tearing all the ligaments in his knee with a sickening pop and sending him crumbling to the ground in a heap.
I sprang forward and followed Gwen’s kick with a punch across the man’s face, knocking him out cold.
The hulking man grunted loudly as he fought against Dahlia’s snare and blood poured down out of his wound. As I approached, I could see fear rise in his eyes. “Don’t kill us, please don’t kill us. We’re only doing what Striker wants us to do. He promised he’d leave our families alone if we joined him.”
I breathed heavily as adrenaline coursed through my body. I stared at the man with fire in my eyes. “So as long as your family is safe, it gives you the right to tear other’s families apart? Is that what you’re saying?”
The large man stopped struggling. “But... but... they’re monsters. It’s not the same.”
I clenched my knife firmly in my damaged hand. It took everything I had not to end the man. “You ever stop and think that maybe you’re the fucking monster? You piece of shit. I should kill you right now.”
The large man shook his head as tears welled in the corners of his eyes. “Please, I’ll tell you anything! Just please, don’t kill me.”
The black-haired man stirred on the ground and let out a loud groan as he remained pinned by Dahlia’s vines. I stepped forward and the youngest man objected. I reached back and slapped him solidly across the face, sending a loud crack through the forest. My eyes settled on the abnormally large man. “Tell me where they’re being sent.”
The man stuttered slightly and finally could get the words out. “Th... they were taking them up north to the capitol. Striker said that once we delivered enough of them he’d release us from his service and we’d get to go home as rich men.” He looked around wide-eyed. “Someone is paying good money for these girls. Their telekinetic abilities, especially their Sight. People pay big money just for the chance to unlock that skill, although I don’t know why, it’s not like any human has ever learned Sight from them, anyway.”
“Shut up, don’t tell him anything else.” The young man said. He kept his eyes focused on me as if I’d kicked his dog. “He can cultivate. Don’t you idiots get what that means? We have to get him back to the King!”
“Drop it Aether. I know you don’t care if you die, but I do, I have a family to think about,” the large man replied.
I ignored Aether and studied the big guy’s face. There was nothing that led me to believe he was lying. I turned to Gwen, and she gave me a smile and awkward shrug. I turned back to the men. “I’m not heartless, so I’m going to let you go free, just this once.”
Aether glared at me, and I’d finally had enough of his cocky attitude. I crouched down in front of him and stared in his face. He laughed defiantly. “You may as well kill me, monster lover. The second I’m free, I’m going to tell every man in Aurilon about you. You’ll always have to look over your shoulder, nowhere will be safe.” He paused and spit toward the girls. “Take your trash and run, we’ll find you, and when we do, I’ll make sure you regret this exact moment.”
Gwen crouched down next to me. “Kill him, he’s obviously not going to cooperate.”
I lifted my knife and brought it up close to the man’s face. I stared into his eyes and... entered his mind. I had access to the man’s memories, or small glimpses of them.
The scenes flashed before me, starting when he was only a toddler to a few hours ago. It was as if I’d just received an abridged version of his life.
The scenes flashed so quickly that I wasn’t able to gather much information other than that Aether had lived a very privileged life, except for the beatings he received at the hand of his father. I saw flashes of a castle, a large spider, and flowing white banners. Finally, I saw the moment he agreed to join Striker to make his father proud.
I snapped back into my mind and Aether’s eyes went wide with fright. “You have the Sight skill. I felt it. You were in my head. How did you get it? It’s not possible.”
/> I ignored him and gave Dahlia a small nod. She snapped her wrists and disconnected the vines from the tips of her fingers. Dahlia held a hand on my back. “You don’t have to kill them. There are much more evil men in this world.”
I shifted my eyes between the three men before answering. “I know. These guys were just doing what they were told. Honestly, we’re going to have to watch our backs regardless if they tell people about us. I have a feeling there will be a time where we will need to kill. That time’s not now though.”
The hulking man let out a long sigh of relief and froze as I met his eyes. He cleared his throat. “Thank you for your mercy, I promise you, you will not hear from me again.”
“Oh, I know. I need you to do me one big favor though,” I responded.
The man froze, and his eyes locked on mine. “What would that be?”
I had a feeling I could’ve asked him anything at that point and he would’ve done it. “I need you to find me a new wagon and two horses.”
“Two horses? But this one only had one.”
“I want it here within the next two hours.” I kept my eyes locked on his and waited.
After a few seconds, he looked toward the small greasy man and shrugged. “He’s got one at his farm not too far from here. I should be able to get that and be back within the hour.”
“Perfect.” I pulled out my knife and cut him free. “What’s your name?”
“Sven, Sven Jorgensen.”
I slapped him on the shoulder. “Alright Sven Jorgensen, now’s the time to redeem yourself.” I slipped my knife back in its sheath and left the other two tied up.
Emo struggled against the vines and scoffed. “What about us? Cut us free.”
I spun and leaned down to the bound man. I swore I could almost see his teeth chipping from how hard he was gnashing them. “You tried to kill me only a minute ago and have been a major douche bag this entire time. Why the hell would I want to release you? A little diplomacy might do you well.”