Chapter 8: The Hunt Begins
The false dawn brought a world washed clean. Golden light filtered through lingering mist, turning every leaf and blade of grass into a jewel. Water dripped steadily from branches and the tower's eaves, a soft percussion against the quiet. The air smelled of wet earth, pine, and faint blood carried on the breeze.
Lira and I stood at the tower door, packs ready. She had restrung her bow during the night and checked each arrow twice. I had sharpened both knives until they caught light like mirrors. My shoulder ached under fresh bandages, but movement was good. Pain kept me alert.
We stepped into the clearing. Mud sucked at our boots. The beast's leap from the roof had left a deep gouge in the earth, furrows radiating outward where claws dug for purchase. Black blood spotted the grass in thick drops, already drawing tiny insects.
Lira knelt beside the tracks. Her fingers hovered without touching. "Still fresh. Left less than four hours ago. Heading northwest."
I crouched next to her. With Basic Tracking unlocked, details jumped out sharper than before. The prints were deep, splayed wide. Three toes forward, one back like a thumb. Claws longer than my fingers. Weight distributed wrong for any natural animal.
"Wounded bad," I said. "Your arrows hit lung or gut?"
"Shoulder and ribs mostly. Neck was shallow. It's hurting, but not dying yet." She pointed to a broken branch. "Limping on the left foreleg. Slowing it."
Good. Slow meant catchable.
We followed. The trail was easy at first. Broken twigs. Blood smears on trunks. Mud churned into soup. The beast had not tried to hide. Pain or arrogance. Maybe both. Forest closed around us quickly. Trees grew denser here, trunks silver and straight. Ferns brushed our knees. Mist clung low, swirling around ankles.
Lira moved ahead, silent as shadow. Ranger grace. I followed heavier but quieter than yesterday. Observation and Tracking worked together now. I spotted bent grass she missed. She found scent trails I could not. We paused often. Listened. Wind shifted, carrying distant bird calls and something else: a low, wet coughing far ahead.
"It's resting," she whispered.
I nodded. We adjusted the course. An hour in, the terrain changed. Ground rose into rocky ridges. Pines gave way to hardwoods with roots like knuckles. Streams cut deep gullies, water rushing white over stones. The trail led to one such gully. The beast had descended clumsily, claw marks scoring the bank. Blood pooled at the bottom where it had slipped.
Lira scanned the far side. "Cross here?"
"Or flank," I said. "Higher ground."
She considered. "Higher. See where it's holed up."
We climbed. The ridge was steep but climbable. Roots and rocks gave handholds. My shoulder protested, but bandages held. At the top we lay flat and peered over. Below, a small hollow nestled against the ridge. A cave mouth yawned in the rock face, half-hidden by vines. Fresh drag marks led inside. Blood trail thick now. The beast had made its den.
Lira nocked an arrow. "Direct or trap?"
I studied the layout. Narrow approach. Choke point at the entrance. Loose boulders above.
"Trap," I said. "Drive it out. Fight in open."
She grinned. First real one I'd seen from her. Sharp and eager. We worked. I gathered deadfall and dry moss while she scouted vantage points. Found a fallen log heavy enough to roll. Positioned it above the cave on loose scree. Lira climbed a tall oak overlooking the hollow. Thirty yards. Clear shot. I built a small fire at the cave mouth. Smoke first, then flames. Added green leaves for thick white plumes. The coughing inside turned to growls. I backed away. Knives ready. Heart steady. Smoke poured into the cave. Minutes passed. Then movements.
Yellow eyes appeared in the darkness. The beast emerged slow, limping heavy on the wounded leg. Arrows still protruded from shoulder and ribs, shafts snapped but heads buried deep. Black blood crusted its fur. One eye swollen shut from my hammer throw.
It saw me. Snarled. It Charged forward. I bolted uphill toward the log. It followed, slower than before but relentless. Ground shook under its weight. I reached the trigger point. Dove aside. Lira loosed. First arrow took it in the good shoulder. Second in the neck, deeper this time. It roared and stumbled. I kicked the bracing rock free. The log rolled. Boulders followed.
An avalanche hit the beast mid-charge. Wood cracked against skull. Stones pummeled body. It went down in a tangle, roaring fury. Dust and leaves exploded. I circled wide. It struggled up, buried to the chest in debris. One leg pinned. Lira dropped from the tree, arrow nocked. We approached together. The beast thrashed. Claws raked air. Jaws snapped feet short. Up close, wounded and trapped, it looked almost pitiful. But eyes still burned hate. I raised the longer knife.
"Wait," Lira said.
She stepped closer. Bow lowered but ready.
"Look."
Silver scars on its hide glowed brighter now. Not scars. Runes. Twisted. Corrupted.
Text appeared for both of us:
Corrupted Apex Predator (Elite)
Influence detected: Void Bleed.
Kill or Cleanse?
Options hovered.
Lira glanced at me. "Cleanse?"
I remembered the stag-thing. Mercy deed. Wild affinity.
"Try."
She nodded.
I sheathed knives. Approached slow. The beast snarled but could not reach. I placed hands on its massive head. Felt fever heat and trembling rage. Focused on the runes. Nothing happened at first. Then warmth spread from my chest. The same feeling from the spring. Wild affinity responding. Green light flickered under my palms. Faint. Unsteady. The runes dimmed. The beast stilled. Minutes passed. Sweat beaded my brow. Shoulder screamed. Slowly, agonizingly, black corruption leeched from the scars. Dissolved into smoke. The beast shuddered. Eyes cleared from yellow to deep brown. It slumped. It was not dead. It changed.
Text bloomed:
Deed recorded: Corruption cleansed from apex creature through affinity and will.
Affinity progressed: Wild (Significant to Profound).
Skill unlocked: Basic Purification (Active).
Title gained: Beast Tamer (Nascent).
Companion bond offered: Shadowmane Stalker (Juvenile Elite). Accept?
I stared.
Lira exhaled. "You just… tamed it?"
The beast, no longer corrupted, lifted its head weakly. Nuzzled my hand once. Gentle. I accepted. It shrank slightly. Wounds closed. Fur lightened to dark gray with silver streaks. A massive wolf-like creature now lay before us. Still huge. Still deadly. But eyes intelligent and calm.
Lira laughed. Disbelieving. "Null Path strikes again."
The new companion rose slowly. Tested limbs. Arrows fell out healed. It padded to me. Head bumped my chest in clear affection. I scratched behind ears. Felt the bond settle. Warm. Solid. Lira approached cautiously. Offered hand. It sniffed. Accepted. We stood in the hollow, mist burning off, three now instead of two. The hunt had ended differently than planned. But the Game rewarded deeds, not intentions. And my path had just grown wider.
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Please remember this is not part of my Faber-Uverse collection. Because of this, the style that I am writing in isn't my norm like the ones a part of the Faber-Uverse collection.