Eril's Story

Day 23

Dawn broke - the time when pale light gives way golden hues, saturating the land in rich colors, a time to celebrate. Leaving the camp, we made our way with the small procession of hunters, leaving as the first rays were warming the land. The moment felt very significant, standing side by side with others who shared in the same purpose, a strong sense of solidarity pervading. People stood by waving, smiles on their faces, wishing us well. It felt as it did when I was departing for war, at a time when I was a much younger man, though with less somber undertones. In some ways it was a war. I had seen the scars of those who had survived a hunt and come back.

We left the village, following the trail it had left through the land - trampled grass and cut limbs from some of the more encroaching trees marked the way. We wouldn't be the only ones to use this route. Predators had ways of following trails for great distances, waiting and lurking until some unlucky defenseless person strayed too far from their home. And this trail was their invitation. The best option was to deal with them first. Our chances of finding a raptor in the next couple days were very high.

The route the caravan had taken was through a much clearer part of the woods with significantly less trees. Dark twisted forests to the East, and sprawling grasslands on the West. Among the band of hunters a few were designated trackers, the ones whose sense of nature far outshined the rest. They led the group, often calling for pauses to examine some finer point of nature, discussing amongst themselves at length. Everyone else tramped along oblivious, often loudly swapping stories or breaking into song. I wondered if somehow this was a way to ease the confrontation with mortality that we were all voluntarily approaching. I had seen similar showings in war.

During one of the pauses, we were given a hushed order to remain as silent as possible going forward. The tension among the group spiked as we diverted course, following a young man wearing a coat resembling the bark of a tree under the canopy. Instantly, the bright afternoon sun was replaced with a murky half life as we fought our way inwards. Through the line of hunters it was whispered that one of the trackers had caught a brief glimpse of a raptor in the underbrush. Everyone became more alert.

There was no doubt the beast had seen us - while not known for keenest smell or hearing, when it came to sight, they were far and above any other creature on land. This was reiterated with a hushed order to keep from any sudden or fast movements.

We soon found a path that had been trampled down by larger animals, making it easier for our single file line to progress, now having spread out to give each person ample room for weapon strikes. The forest which had been lively and loud just a few days prior when I had journeyed through, was now ominous and still, a rare bird calling out in the distance. Everything around felt as if it was collectively holding its breath, me included. In the silence, I became uncomfortably aware of my own heartbeat, my ears pulsing with adrenaline.

Then we all saw it. A flash of feathers as tall as a full grown man, a gigantic flightless bird with malice in its eyes and razor sharp claws. As quickly as we had seen raptor, it then disappeared behind a tree and was lost from sight. The hunting party fanned out, sticking in pairs, working at cornering the beast.

I was just skirting a large tree when the order was passed along to halt. Without the sounds of movement through the brush, an eerie silence pervaded as we crouched tentatively, waiting for our next signal. Hunching down, my legs became increasingly sore, until I eventually decided to lean against the trunk for support. As I rested, I chanced to look over at the bark, noticing two deep gashes leading up the tree in increments - fresh sap oozing from them.

A sudden dread came upon me, fueled by realization as pieces of bark rained down from above. I looked up into the branches, seeing two jet black eyes staring back into mine. A viscous head and large flexible body were wrapped around the tree, intertwining with the foliage. Completely throwing the order for silence away, I gave a blood curdling shout, yelling, 'In the trees!'

Whether it was my cry or just our proximity, the hunt was on as the raptor slid down the trunk and launched itself with ferocity among us. Taken off guard, fear overtook the less seasoned hunters who all scattered. The few hunters that remained raised their weapons against its hissing advance, but they were too few to cover all the angles of such a nimble foe. That was when the other elusive raptor chose to strike, crashing through bushes and striking a weathered looking man full force in the back, sending him into the dirt broken and shredded.

The first beast capitalized on the confusion and lunged forward, Cyrith the target of the attack. She leapt back as feather, tooth and claw, shrieked by.

The raptor however was quicker though and turned mid lunge, snapping with it's dagger teeth. She only had time to throw up an arm, saving her life from its bite, but having her limb horribly gauged as a price.

By now, the two raptors were cornering the last of the small band, our backs to trees. It was then that the others who had run previously rallied together, circling the two beasts - who now realizing their disadvantaged state went into a frenzy, bodies low and darting between the hunters. One charged a young lad, who despite having his weapon ready, was only able to graze the creature. It's head crashing into his chest sending him flying, the crack of splitting bone ringing out. The raptor leapt through the gap in the line that now presented itself. Once free there would be no chance of catching such a swift animal.

Just as it ran past, in a last ditch effort, a large man threw a spear which must have weighed as much as a small child directly at the retreating foe. It was launched with such force, that when it connected with the creature's back, it came crashing through the front side - instantly the life was gone, and the raptors corpse tumbled to the ground in a heap.

There was a quick cheer from the rest of the group which was cut short when the other raptor let out a low screech and struck, leaving an axe wielder on the ground, wailing in pain. A mighty man, and a relative of the fallen hunter led a charge at the preoccupied predator before it could finish off the man on the ground. And with a series of blows, the outnumbered beast was slain. It was finished.

With the skirmish over there was time to tend to the wounded, and to wrap the slain. I helped as best I could, feeling sorry for the wounded but they didn't seem to mind - wincing from pain, but still managing to crack a smile or make a joke. While they were being cared for, the rest of the able bodies were tasked with harvesting the animals and packing them up, making things ready for the return journey.

We made some headway back as evening came, celebrating along the way those whose life and well being were given to keep the land safer for all. When we made camp, small groups formed around fires, choice meats being given to all to enjoy. The meal lasted well into the night while also sharing in excited conversations and retelling the day's events, each with their slightly own version of what had happened. Soon the thrill wore off and weariness set in. It felt amazing to sink my head on my rolled up cloak and rest.