The Hunter

Chapter 2 - New Hope

For as long as I can remember, my only "home" was a place called New Hope.  It was on top of a mountain in a range in the west.  Adam said that he grew up in a town before this area before The Fall, and is good friends with the leaders. It's where we lived a few months out of the year. Adam wakes me up from my daydreams about what a town was like before The Fall.

"We're only a few minutes away, so we can eat when we get there," said Adam, wrapping up his hammock.

I begin to wrap mine up and ask, "That's fine, I'm not really that hungry."

He laughed, "You never are, but you need to eat, it'll keep you strong."

Adam always says that.  I'm tall, and I'm muscular, but I'm not particularly hungry most of the time.  He always makes me eat a meal three times a day since I'm growing and need the nutrients.  Adam's much taller than me, and his muscles look like tree trunks.  His long, black hair has always been pulled back in a man bun, and his face has a small scar near his temple.  Hybrids are supposed to be taller, and generally bigger than most humans, but Adam says I'm still on the skinny side of other hunters. Either way, I'm still more muscular than most boys my age.

After packing up all of our gear, we climb down the large oak tree, and begin hiking our way to the city. Adam leads the way with his crossbow that is older than me, making sure no vampires are out. They usually don't come out during the day time. They're skin is lighter due to the infection, so they burn easier than humans. However, in today's world, it's important to always be alert. I follow behind him with a machete, and a knife in my other hand.

There are four ways to kill a vampire.  The first, and easiest, is to stab or shoot it in the heart.  The other ways, like decapitate it, are risky, because it makes a hunter more likely to become infected.  A lot of hunters used to burn them, but sometimes the fires spread, so we usually only burn them if we can control the fire. Recently, it was discovered that injecting them with pumpkin extract kills them. Pumpkins are rare though, and you have to get close to inject them, so Adam and me haven't tried it yet.

The sun shines brightly in the sky, just enough to warm my face. It's early summer time, so it hasn't become unbearably hot yet. It never gets too hot in New Hope either, simply because it's so high up in the mountains. A few tiny clouds litter the sky, and every now and then a bird sings. Last night when we were coming up here, we kept running into brambles and bushes due to the lack of light. We can't take flash lights out too often because they draw attention. Today though, my legs don't get as scratched up on the hike. I can even see the dark green leaves that thinly make up the tops of the tall trees. Then, in the distance, I see the wooden walls surrounding New Hope.

Since all I learned was history, I know a lot about it. New Hope was built by the scientist who created the vampire infection. They had it constructed so that way in case the disease got out, humans in the area would be protected. While all of the other towns in former America were built after The Fall, this is the only one built beforehand. Adam told me this the first time I remember coming here as a young child. His dad was apparently a scientist who helped create hybrids, so Adam's dad took his family to New Hope. That's also how Adam became a Hunter.

As it comes into view, the image comes into focus. A humongous, wooden wall, that is twenty feet up in the air, surrounds every corner of the city. Barb wire lines the top of the walls to help prevent a vampire from climbing over. There are posts at the top in which guards sit in with guns, on the lookout for vampires. A part of the wooden wall has a small door in it, and it's the only way in and out of New Hope. Recognizing us, the guards at the tower go to get one of the leaders.

A tall man emerges from the door.  He has short brown hair, and holds a small briefcase in his hands.  He's dressed in a blue buttoned-town shirt, and long pants.  As he comes closer, he sets the suitcase down, and pulls out two needles.  We lift up our shirts for him to inject the needles into our stomach.  It stings for a second, but nothing bad happens since it's just pumpkin extract.  Adam and a couple of other hunters decided that in order for anyone to be let into the city, they had to be injected with it.  If they were human, their blood sugar would rise a tiny bit, but not enough to harm them.  A vampire would be dead within a few minutes, and the area would become red as soon as the extract is injected.  No one knows why they have such an issue with pumpkins, but no one questions it.  As the brown haired man sees that are not reacting, his face lights up.

"Good to have you two back," said the man, hugging Adam.

"Nice to see you too, Caleb," replied Adam, releasing Caleb, "it's been a long time since I've seen my only brother."

Caleb smiles, "You're right, it's about damn time you came home," Caleb comes over to me, and embraces me, "Wow, Martin, you just keep getting taller and taller."

"Maybe, someday, I'll surpass you," I joke as he releases me.

"Come on in, I can catch you up over breakfast," Caleb said, leading Adam and I inside the fortified city.