Hunter

Chapter Seven - I Serve As Bait

Once Deirdre dismissed her bear, I gave her a ride on Midnight as my mom disappeared off in a different direction.

"Where to?"

"Straight ahead," Dee responded. "I'll tell you if I catch a scent." We both hopped on and gripped her fur tightly. I didn't have time to adjust because she was gone as soon as my feet were off of the ground.

Midnight's speed was exhilaratingly impossible. She galloped freely in the woods at an unbelievable pace. My skin prickled with excitement, the wind pulling my face into a grin. I barely even noticed what Deirdre was saying. Midnight moved swiftly, everything taking her flow. My hair was blowing wildly in the air like the arms of a startled octopus. It was the most energizing feeling that I had ever experienced, and then it stopped abruptly. I flew over Midnight's head and landed face first in the dirt. As I was spitting out mud, Deirdre was crouching, scanning the horizon.

"What is it? Dee--" I stopped speaking, my eyes registering what she was seeing. An elephant-sized boar with tusks as thick as truck wheels was rustling through the trees not too far from us.

"No way," she whispered quietly. The boar plowed down tree after tree, with surprising force, grinding the thick roots into a pulp.

"It's a vegetarian. So we're safe?"

"Hayle, that's an Erymanthian boar." Great! Just great.

"So, how do we kill it?" I asked, ready to apply my two and half minutes of education.

"We can't kill it alone. We have to lure it to your mom. It'll definitely be enough for the night. Get Midnight to find your mom's location. Whisper it to her, and she'll do as you say"

I spoke into her furry ear, her fine hair tickling my nose. Her head then dropped to the ground in a bow, her soft body rubbing against me. I stared after her as she bound into the moonlight. I focused my attention on Deirdre, who had become completely camouflaged. Her body blended in with the earth, leaving my eyes to only see her faint silhouette.

"How do I do that? It's not like I want to be seen by that thing!"

"You're supposed to distract it, Hayle." She pointed towards large trees that were far enough apart to let the boar in and struggle to get out. She explained her plan to me and I nodded in agreement before sneaking off into the shrub.

Deirdre, on the other hand, got to work on her plan. She climbed hastily up one of the trees and mounted herself up on the highest bough. She reached for a nearby branch and ripped it off in a long narrow strip. She ripped off three more of about the same length and placed them neatly in front of her. Her hands worked so quickly, I almost forgot to distract the giant piece of leather called our target.

Off to the west of where Dee was working I snapped a branch in half, quickly moved jumping to the south of her position. The boar rushed to where I had been and sniffed the area vigorously. It's large tusk uprooted the earth, staining the white ivory to the color of smoke. It's gnarled teeth gnashed on the tangled roots that were bent into odd shapes.

I looked over at Deirdre, and she had already twined her first rope, hastily moving onto the second, her hands glowing, with extreme concentration written on her face. She was almost completely done with the second one when I whistled faintly. The boar, once again, moved quickly but swiftly over to my position. This time, I wasn't fast enough and the force of its arrival threw me into a nearby tree. The boar didn't notice me at all and continued its search for the source of the sound. Deirdre signaled to me that it was time for me to bring the pig over to where she was. I struggled to get out of the tree and fell face first into the earth... again. I heard the boar stop its ruffling and turn its attention to me.