A Destiny I Can't Avoid

Chapter 1: The Hunt

I stared bleakly at the small proportion of food in front of me. The last of the deer. I have to go hunting today otherwise we'll starve. My little sister, Maple, prayed silently to herself and started eating. All was quiet except for the sound of silverware against stone. That was until my father's voice broke through the silence.

"You'll need to hunt today, Sybil."
"Tell me something I don't know, father." I spat his name out as if it was venomous word. Father, ha. A father who depends on his daughter to do all the work for him and beats her for one mistake is no father. I'd have left him if it weren't for my half sister, Maple whom was only 6. She was too young to help herself. And if I did leave then my father would most likely toss her out for dead. The only reason he hasn't done so is because he'd have a slit throat otherwise. He values his life so much. I wonder how he'd react if I slowly let him bleed too death, my face smiling above his tormented one. I smiled but it slowly faltered. A girl can dream.
"Watch your tone, daughter."  Bastard. Bloody bastard. He knows I hate it when he calls me that.

Murmuring insults under my breath, I started to eat my servings. 6 bites in all. 6 tiny bites. I clenched my fork.

"Sister, are you alright?" Maple asked sweetly. Goddamn, that girl is just so precious.
"I'm fine," I said and smiled at her. A forced smile but it worked for she responded with a smile too and got back to eating. Sitting up, I picked up my plate and walked over to the counter. Setting it down, I stared at the wall.

The remains of the paint on it is starting to fall off. By looking at it now, you'd never guess what if was. An ocean. My mother had always wanted to see the ocean. She vowed that one day she would sail across it. But she met death before she could do so. I was 5 when she died. She left home one day and never came back. Her death remains a mystery. One that shall never be solved. But I will find out what happened to her. I promise.

"I am now leaving to hunt. Maple, make sure you clean the dishes so then we may have plates for our food." Maple nodded and I grabbed my cloak and fastened it on me. Breathing in, I snatched my bow and quiver off of the floor of our cabin and left. The cold air hit me so suddenly that my breath was knocked from me. The warmth I first had has left me. Shaking off my surprise from the suddenness, I started my trek.

Around 5 miles into the woods and not a single sign of worth while game. I wondered around, keeping close to the shadows in case if I were to discover game.

There. A grazing elk. Ducking behind a bush, I silently placed an arrow on my bow and pulled back. An arrow in the eye is all it takes. If I miss, I'll have to waste more arrows. And possibly lose the game. Aiming at the grazing elks eye, I held my breath. The cold nipped at my bare fingers. Closing my eyes and quietly praying to the goddess of the hunt, I released. Bulls-eye. The elk went down and I grinned in victory. This will last us through winter just fine. We'll be stuffed with food. Now, the only problem was getting it back.

Standing up, I walked over to the elk and brought out my hunting knives. Squatting, I looked at my prize. I can carry the pelt on my back and the meat...hopefully it'll all fit within my bag. It'd be sad to waste such a fine beast. Digging my knives into the elk, I started to work. About an three hours later, I had gutted the elk and collected as much of it as I could carry. The pelt will do good for coats and blankets. The bones can be sharpened into weapons and used as silverware if need be. And the meat we'll freeze so it will last us through this year.

I sighed. It's been years since I've shot down such big game. This will make Maple happy. I smiled at that thought. I looked up through the trees. Shit. It's getting late and you don't want to be in the woods at night. I shuddered as I thought of all the faeries that came out then. Naturally, the wall separating us from them should have protected us but many found out long ago that faeries had ways of getting past it.

Heaving, I slung the bag carrying the meat onto my back and settled the pelts on top of it. Once done, I jogged through the woods quietly for I didn't know what was lurking in the woods at this hour. It took me an hour to get back because I was lugging around so much. By now I'd guess that it's getting close to midnight.

Collecting my breath, I sat down. That was when I heard it. The sound of snapping as branches broke under the weight of whatever walked upon them. I held my breath and froze. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed an oversized wolf. Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit. That must be a faerie. Surprisingly, its attention wasn't focused on me but...rather my house. Oh gods no. The beast prowled forward.

Dammit, there was no mistaking it. Its focus was on my house. What do I do? I can't possibly kill a faerie...their impossible to kill. Well, near impossible. Plus...the consequences for killing one. I shuddered. Then a thought crossed my mind. I can run. I can say goodbye and take off. I'll escape unscathed. But Maple. I will not run only because of Maple. My dear sister. She doesn't deserve to live in such a shit-hole. She doesn't deserve to die. I'll stay and fight for Maple.

With that final thought, my resolve to save Maple eliminated the idea of running. As quietly as I could, I removed the meat from my shoulders and took of my cloak. Slinging my bow across my back, I removed my twin set of hunting knives. My bow won't do any good. These knives...they will work. If I stab it in its eye, it'll die or stall it long enough to get Maple away. Normally, ordinary weapons wouldn't so much as scratch a faerie. But...but these knives are far from ordinary. They were given to me as a gift from my mother, in case if I ever needed to defend myself. Men would kill for these knives.

Special materials are needed to kill a faerie. The metal used for these knives were forged by dragons. Dragons. They are extinct now. They've been so for thousands of years. But I think that they are hiding. Hiding and growing. Clenching the knives between my fingers, I stalked the prowling faerie. Just like hunting. Except, I'm hunting an enormous, vicious, game. Easy.

Just as I about to throw myself at the faerie, it noticed me. Oh shit. Before I could react, it turned towards me and lashed out with its paw. The impact sent me flying into a tree. Satisfied, it returned to its prowl. I watched it go, too stunned to do anything. Oh gods, that hurt like hell. Regaining my sense, I greedily sucked in air. That was when I noticed the burning sensation that went across my chest. I gingerly touched the area. When I removed my hand, it was covered in blood. I wanted to hurl.

I was lost in thought and pain until I heard a scream. Maple's scream. That was when I looked up. Oh, by the gods. Our cabin was in ruins and my father was dangling from the jaws of the faerie. His face was partially gone. He hung limply but was alive. Although, close to death. The faerie was tossing his head back and forth, like what a dog would do to its toy. Maple watched in horror from the corner of the house.

Getting to a knee, I struggled to stand. By then, the faerie lost interest of my father and bit him in half. His insides went every where. I stifled a gag. Then the faerie's attention turned to Maple. Oh no. Not Maple.

Well, how bad was the first chapter? XD I apologize for my horrible writing. Anywayssss, I might update this a lot because I like to add more and more details everyday. But the story won't change. Hope you enjoyed it so far and stay tuned for more chapters